Hot Celebrity Interview

MICHAELA CONLIN from Bones Exclusive Interview
I recently got a chance to interview the lovely MICHAELA CONLIN, who plays Angela Montenegro on Bones.

Last season of Bones ended with quite the controversy, and Michaela Conlin was nice enough to share her thoughts on the matter. She also dished on what new things are coming up for Angela this season, which includes her going to see a psychic played by none other than Cyndi Lauper.

Season 5 of Bones premieres on Thursday, September 17, at 8pm on Fox, but for now enjoy Michael Conlin's interview below.

Congratulations on getting renewed for two seasons. That's awesome.

Michaela Conlin: I know, I know. Isn't that crazy. It's crazy in the network television world.

I'm sure the fans have been excited all over.

Michaela Conlin: Yeah. I traveled this summer. I went to Paris and Turkey and it was really crazy to be stopped by those people on the other side of the world, very strange.

The final episode last season generated some controversy with fans because of the whole Bones and Booth relationship. What's your take on that?

Michaela Conlin: That's a good question, a good provocative opener. Step right into the fire. I think a couple of different things about it. I think it was a tough decision. I think the show has these really loyal and ardent fans that have followed the show from the beginning. I think that the episode, at least in my opinion and I think in Hart's [Hanson] opinion, was really sort of an homage to the show. There were a lot of people from the past and inside jokes. It was sort of a referential season finale for that particular season. In regards to them getting into bed together, I think it's hard because I think people don't really know what they want. I think that some people would love to see them in bed and then will get upset when they're in bed. I think it's hard to sustain the kind of lightening in a bottle thing that David [Boreanaz] and Emily [Deschanel] have, and I think that Hart has done a really good job with that. In my opinion, I thought it was a really clever way to do it. But I know they have more to unleash, hopefully this season they'll be able to let out everything that they couldn't get out in that season finale.

Do you know when the finale will be resolved this season? David told me they probably wouldn't keep the amnesia story for too long.

Michaela Conlin: I don't know, actually. I have no idea. I know that in the episodes we've begun to shoot this season they're definitely dealing with the residual effects of him being in the coma. But I'm not sure how long that's going to last now.

What's coming up for Angela this season?

Michaela Conlin: It's an interesting season. Cindi Lauper is playing Angela's psychic in the season opener. I'm not sure if you knew that, or not.

No, but fun.

Michaela Conlin: Yeah, it is really fun. I think it's hilarious that Angela is always surrounded by musician types. Her dad is ZZ Top. I think that maybe Cindi Lauper and ZZ Top should do a duet on the show, her dad and her psychic. She was a real joy to have on the set. She was great. She came in and did the season opener with us. There's a great scene with Emily and her and I at the beginning of the show. So that's been a really fun treat and I hear that she's going to be back being that she may have some things to predict. So we'll see how that goes.

Is she a real psychic or is it just a scam?

Michaela Conlin: In real life?

In the show.

Michaela Conlin: In the show. Yeah, I was like, 'I'm not sure.' [laughs] She plays Angela's psychic, a real bona fide psychic. So I have a hypnotist and a psychic at this point. I think Angela just needs straight up therapy. She needs to just go and see Sweets a couple of times this season, which I also hear is going to happen which will be fun.

You just mentioned her dad. Will we see some more storylines with him this season?

Michaela Conlin: I hope so. I also hear that we might meet her mom at some point, which I think would be really interesting. I'm not quite sure yet when that will be, but that should be kind of cool. It's always hard to say what a season will bring, but that's what I'm hearing and is kind of cool.

Do you think that Angela and Hodgins will get back together or is there a new love interest in the air?

Michaela Conlin: I hear that Angela resolves her celibacy pact, or she ends it. I should say that she concludes her celibacy run. But I can't tell you with who. It'll be pretty funny and fun. In regards to Hodgins, I don't have any information. I feel like I keep saying that I don't have any information. I don't know what's going to happen to the two of them. We'll just have to see, but I know there are other things on the horizon for Angela that should be pretty interesting.

Is there anything you wish would happen to her this season, after four seasons and going into the fifth?

Michaela Conlin: Yeah. I've spoken to Hart about this, but Emily and I, both Brennan and Angela, we'd really love to see more of them and how they became friends because it was a strong point in the opening of the series, with the pilot, and subsequent episodes in the first season dealt a lot with their friendship. I'd really like to see us go back to that, go back to how they met and how they became friends and kind of get into that because I think it's a really unlikely friendship that was struck up. I'd also like to see Angela maybe deal with, she never really wanted to quite be in that lab. She was very grossed out by the bodies in the beginning of the series. I'd like to see her sort of deal with all of that stuff again. I love when people from the past come back. I loved when Roxie came back last season and I love when our parents visit. It tells us a lot about these characters that are predominantly just inside that lab. So when someone from the outside comes in, we learn a lot about them. So I always think it's nice when we have people visiting or even the new round of interns that have been coming through, I think it's an important aspect of the show at this point.

The male characters in the lab have regular contests about who's going to be king of the lab. Do you think there should be a queen of the lab contest with the girls?

Michaela Conlin: Oh my God, that's such a good question. I've never had anyone ask that before. I'm totally bringing that up to Hart. I'm going to bring that up to Hart and I'll give you credit [laughs]. I'd like to be queen of the lab. I'm sure we all would. I think all three ladies are queen of the lab in their own domains. I think Brennan with the bones, Cam with the flesh and Angela with all of the forensics and all the restoration of the skulls. So I think they're all, in their own minds, queen of the lab.

Angela doesn't usually go out into the field with Bones and Booth. Do you think this season will be any different in that regard, or do you hope to get out more?

Michaela Conlin: Absolutely, yeah. It's tricky with those because the show is structured in a way where Brennan and Booth are out in the field while there's a case running concurrently, we're working on something back in the lab. So it's sometimes tricky to further the story along with us not there. It does become a sort of structurally difficult thing sometimes. But I would absolutely love to. I think that Angela is going to be snooping around in a lot of people's business this season. She definitely loves to stir the shit up and find out who's sleeping with who. So I think that'll find her in a few different situations. I hear that there might be a lot of moments with Angela and Sweets, as well as more with Brennan and Booth.

What has been your favorite storyline on 'Bones' so far?

Michaela Conlin: I think my favorite so far would not be the falling in love between Angela and Hodgins but the trying to find her ex-husband. I thought that was a really great storyline and it gave us a lot to do and was really funny, and was just a fun storyline to play. It was like a comedy of errors. So I really enjoyed that storyline, them trying to figure out if they were supposed to be together. It felt real to me. A lot of my friends are in relationships that are difficult. I liked that it wasn't all roses. I thought that was nice.

After being on a show now for four seasons do you find it easier to prepare for each new episode?

Michaela Conlin: Yes and no. The rhythm of each of the characters is really specific and so in that respect, line memorization and all the technical aspects of the show are definitely easier. The hours and being used to working on series television which is such a marathon, we shoot ten months of the year, fourteen hours a day that I'm definitely physically much more used to it. I think that as far as the work for the character goes it can sometimes be even harder because I think audience members get used to seeing characters certain ways and they think that they know you, and as you know, we're all different every moment of the day. So it's hard to sort of bring new parts of her forward without sort of offending this loyal audience, because you want to make sure she's a real person and not just a one note TV character. So that's been challenging.

In regard to your process, is there something special you do for each new script?

Michaela Conlin: Yeah. I've been working with an acting coach for eight years out here in Los Angeles. I went to NYU and studied theater. I've been studying for a long time and there are definitely certain things that are much more helpful than others. For me it's just voice and body. It's getting into my body and then working with my voice, not a singing voice, but just connecting your breath to what you're saying. I studied that in school in New York and I continue to study it out here. I work every week with an acting teacher. I did a lot of movement classes and yoga classes and dance classes. I think it's really important to physically stay in your body, especially with the hours that we shoot where we're standing for really long periods of time. So those are the two things that help me the most.

Aside from your character who's your favorite character on 'Bones'?

Michaela Conlin: Good questions. No one has asked me these questions before, in four years of the show. Can you believe it? Who is my favorite character? Michaela's favorite or Angela's favorite?

How about both?

Michaela Conlin: I think that Angela's favorite character is Brennan because I feel like they're much more similar than they let on. I think they're opposite sides of each other and I think they really need each other to balance each other out even though they don't want to admit that to each other. I think that Michaela's is Sweets' character, who's really interesting because he's so young. John Daley is a great actor, but the character, the fact that he comes from such a psychological viewpoint I think makes him a really interesting character, and we'll hopefully see more of him too.

You weren't at Comic Con this year. Would you be interested in going next year?

Michaela Conlin: I know. Bummer. We were there last year. We were all working. Yeah, I'd love to go again. We all went last year, I think it was last year and it was great. Everybody warned us that it was going to be really crazy and packed which it was, but I was really struck by just how enthusiastic and supportive people were about the show and also everything else that was there. People were just really thrilled to be there and it sounds cheesy, but sort of celebrating the stuff that we do. I was really sort of inspired by that honestly and thought that it was really cool. We had a lot of fun. I'd love to go back.

If you could guest star on any other show which one would it be?

Conlin: Oh, wow. 'Mad Men'. 'Nurse Jackie' is pretty good, too, but I'll stick with 'Mad Men' though.