Kait Mae

I grew up watching crime shows, so I obviously loved Bones as a kid. So when I discovered the author of the Bones book series also had a young adult series, I jumped right in without looking at the synopsis. It quickly became a comfort series – I’ve read the first book at least ten times. And what do I do with my favorite books? I think about how I’d adapt them.

Warning: I might have minor spoilers if you haven’t read the books yet, but I won’t give away any major plot lines.

What is ‘Virals’?

Kathy Reichs teamed up with her son Brendan to pen Virals, a young-adult series following Bones protagonist’s great-niece and her friends.

In the first book, Tory Brennan and her friends accidentally contract a rare virus that changes their DNA beyond scientific belief. Throughout the rest of the series, they dodge the law and suspicion while using their new abilities to solve mysteries around Charleston.

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How I’d Make It

I would absolutely make this a live-action series with half-hour episodes. Each book would be its season. I’d love to link it back to the Bones television show, with Emily Deschanel appearing when Temperance comes to visit her nephew and great-niece.

The short stories would fill in the space between the seasons as short films. Shift would either be part of the pilot episode or a prequel that comes out between the first and second seasons. Shock would fill the space between seasons two and three, with Swipe taking place after season three. As for Spike, it is a finale to the book series, but I’d love for it to be the start of a subsequent season.

In the books, when the group “flares,” their eyes glow gold. To show this in the show, I’d love to do it similarly to MTV’s Teen Wolf. I just loved how they did this, so I have to implement it somehow.

Who I’d Cast

Starting my cast off, Alyvia Alyn Lind would be a great Tory. Her past work shows she can handle anything the script throws her. She’s also around the right age.

As for the rest of the Virals, I couldn’t find anyone who was the right age and also matched the descriptions. Ben is at least half Native American and 16 in the first book, and I just couldn’t find anyone who felt just right. 

As for Shelton, he’s half-Black and half-Japanese, and I don’t know of any teen actors that fit that description. And Hiram is described as larger and Jewish, and again, I couldn’t find anyone. So, an open casting call would be necessary for these roles.

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Moving on to the significant side characters, let’s get the Claybourne family out of the way. Jay Jay Warren is my pick for Chance Claybourne. After searching the internet, when I saw Jay Jay’s headshots, I knew I’d found my Chance.

As for Chance’s father, Hollis, Shawn Hatosy is perfect. I had a hard time imagining Hollis the first few times I read, but then I saw his episode of Law and Order: SVU and knew it had to be him.

I’m not planning on casting the boys’ parents, but I have to cast Tory’s dad, Kit Howard, and his girlfriend, Whitney Dubois. For Whitney, I imagined Dianna Agron after seeing her in later seasons of Glee, and I can’t stop picturing her as the Southern debutante. As for Kit, Wes Armstrong is my pick because I saw him in Zoe Valentine and knew he was perfect for the role.

Next is Jason Taylor, Chance’s best friend and classmate of the Virals. I had just seen clips of Ms. Marvel while I was casting and remembered Matt Lintz. And he just fit Jason’s personality and character so well, so he’s my pick.

As for Chance’s girlfriend, Hannah White, I think Scarlet Spencer is perfect. Hannah is described as really pretty, sweet, and innocent. Scarlet could handle this role and everything that comes with it.

Moving on to the “Tripod,” as Tory calls them. Ashley, Courtney, and Madison are best friends – and Tory’s main bullies in the series. Ashley Greenblatt, Ever Anderson, and Kate J. Cochran would play these characters well.

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For Ella Francis, Tory’s best girl friend later in the series, Miya Cech is my pick. When I saw her in Always Be My Maybe, I knew she had to be my pick for Ella.

Moving on to Will Speckman, I saw a picture of Tyler Chase in Euphoria immediately after finishing the series and knew he was the perfect fit. As for Will’s peer, Cole Gordon, I couldn’t find the right person to portray him.

I hope this series gets turned into a show that brings in Bones lovers like me one day. Have you read these books? Who would you cast?