The Only Bones Cold Open The Show's Creator Regrets (For A Reason You'd Never Guess)

Fans of crime dramas typically don't mind some blood and guts on their TV, but graphic violence is hardly known for its universal appeal.

Back in 2011, "American Idol" was one of the most-watched programs on television. So, when the Fox network shuffled around its Thursday evening schedule and an episode of the reality singing competition landed in a timeslot directly before "Bones," the procedural had an opportunity to introduce itself to a gargantuan new audience. 

The Emily Deschanel-starring thriller made its post-"American Idol" premiere with Season 6's appropriately titled episode "The Bullet to the Brain" — which meant "Bones"-curious "American Idol" viewers were treated to a character's head exploding before the opening credits. 

"It's the only cold-open prologue that we regretted," creator Hart Hanson told Gold Derby. "America had just been watching light entertainment, and we had the most violent death. ... If we'd known that [timeslot move] was going to happen, we might have tailored an episode toward capitalizing on that mass audience."

Of course, there was no way for the creative team to know about the schedule shift until after their season lineup was already set. The only way they could have tailored an episode for the "American Idol" audience at that point would have been to air their episodes out of order, which could have created a lesser narrative product for the core "Bones" audience that was eagerly following the story.

With that said, the series made it out just fine. "Bones" went on for another six seasons, ending in Season 12 with an explosive finale.