| Full Name | Emily Erin Deschanel |
| Birthplace | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Birthdate | October 11, 1976 |
| Occupation | Actress, television producer, film producer |
| Years Active | 1994 - Present |
| Nationality | American |
| Role | Melissa Helm |
| @emilydeschanel |
Emily Deschanel is an American actress, television producer, and film producer. She is best known for her role as Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan in the Fox police comedy-drama series Bones.
Life & Career[]
Deschanel was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Academy Award–nominated cinematographer and director Caleb Deschanel and actress Mary Jo Deschanel (née Weir). She is the older sister of actress, model, songwriter, and musician Zooey Deschanel. Her paternal grandfather was French, from Oullins, Rhône; her ancestry also includes Swiss, Dutch, English, Irish, and other French roots. Deschanel attended Harvard-Westlake and Crossroads School in Los Angeles before graduating from Boston University's Professional Actors Training Program with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater.
Deschanel is a vegan and a committed supporter of animal rights causes. She can be seen in an Access Hollywood video at the book launch event of Karen Dawn's Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking the Way We Treat Animals, discussing how vegetarian and vegan diets help the environment, and a video on the homepage of the book's website talking about the importance of animal rights. She collaborated with PETA on a video encouraging mothers to raise their children as vegans.
Deschanel was raised Roman Catholic, but is no longer a Catholic, and has stated that she is now "more of a spiritual person, if anything" and an agnostic. Deschanel married actor and writer David Hornsby on September 25, 2010 in a small private ceremony in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles. Deschanel gave birth to their son, Henry Lamar Hornsby, on September 21, 2011.
Deschanel made her feature film debut in 1994's It Could Happen to You. Her next notable role was in Stephen King's Rose Red in 2002. She then appeared in Cold Mountain, The Alamo, and Glory Road and was named one of "six actresses to watch" by Interview Magazine in 2004.
In 2005, Emily Deschanel was chosen for the role of Dr. Temperance Brennan on Fox's Bones, a series based on the fictional novels of real-life forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs. She has been playing this role in Bones for 9 years. For her performance she received a 2006 Satellite Award nomination and a 2007 Teen Choice Award nomination. Deschanel has served as co-producer since the start of the show's third season, and as producer since the middle of the show's fourth season along with co-star David Boreanaz.
Deschanel, with Alyson Hannigan, Jaime King, Minka Kelly, and Katharine McPhee made a video slumber party featured on FunnyorDie.com to promote regular breast cancer screenings for the organization Stand Up 2 Cancer. In recent years, her passion for animal welfare has led her to providing the narration for My Child Is a Monkey and serving as an associate producer on the documentary film How I Became an Elephant. Deschanel ranked number 72 in The 2012 Hot 100 on AfterEllen.