This is a rather roundabout way of elucidating the connection between “Bones” and the “Nightmare” franchise. But viewed another way, it’s actually quite an accurate illustration of the unpredictable nature of the Hollywood career, in which opportunities present themselves at random and often without warning. Listen to Yagher tell the story himself:
“I started working on things like Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ for a makeup artist named Rick Baker, who just recently retired and was like an seven-time Academy Award winner. I started the business back then with ‘Nightmare’ and ‘Cocoon.’ I just started doing small things. ‘Nightmare on Elm Street,’ I did three or four of those films. And then I did, I got into ‘Child’s Play’ — I did four of those films. […] And I did a character called The Crypt Keeper from ‘Tales From the Crypt’ [on] HBO, and that’s where I met Barry Josephson who went on to become the executive producer of ‘Bones.’ And he and I hit it off really well and as we got to know each other, became friendly and just on. We’ve been working together over the years and he’s the one who actually called me on ‘Bones’ when this came up 12 years ago and that’s how I got the job.”
We’ve all heard grueling, unbelievable stories from the talent side of the industry, but it’s honestly the same on the craft side. Even if you’re the best in your field, there’s no guarantee of success. But if you’ve seen “Bones,” you’ll know just how good the Yagher brothers’ work on those corpses always was.
The Yaghers worked on a staggering 234 episodes of “Bones,” so you’ll forgive them if their filmographies have been a bit scant since. If you want to see even more of their artistry, check out their contributions to any number of incredible films, from “Face/Off” to “Hellraiser: Bloodline” to “Æon Flux.”
