The Sneaky Hodgins Line That Means More Than You Think On Bones
It's pretty easy to simply dismiss "Bones" as just another police procedural in a long, long line of them. After all, there's only so much time in the day to consume media, and some can understandably grow tired of the repetitive parts of the genre. Though it is, of course, true that "Bones" implemented quite a few techniques that are common in crime shows, it also often leaned into more comedic and meta elements. While some of the more comical moments regularly came from the central two characters, Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz), "Bones" often utilized its supporting cast for this effect.
Perhaps one of the most prominent supporting characters in "Bones" is Dr. Jack Hodgins (T. J. Thyne), an entomologist with a unique sense of humor who often subscribes to some pretty bizarre conspiracy theories. Hodgins often delivers more scientific-oriented pieces of dialogue that help Brennan and Booth in their efforts to solve crimes. However, there's one particular line of dialogue from Hodgins that fans believe means just a little bit more than that.
A line on Bones may reference a past role for Hodgins actor T.J. Thyne
Over on the r/Bones subreddit, u/likejackandsally pointed out that a piece of dialogue from Season 2, Episode 8 ("The Girl in the Sand") may reference a previous role that T. J. Thyne played alongside actress Julia Roberts in 2000's "Erin Brockovich." The piece of dialogue in question has Hodgins refer to a carcinogen known as hexavalent chromium. This is the same substance at the center of "Erin Brockovich," which tells the true story of the eponymous character's fight against Pacific Gas and Electric (via ABC News).
Funnily enough, years before he took on a permanent role on "Bones," Thyne actually played a PG&E lawyer in "Erin Brockovich" named David Foil. While not explicitly stated by anyone associated with the show to be a reference to "Erin Brockovich" or Thyne's role in the film, it's certainly a nice little throwaway line that reminds us of Thyne's past filmography. This sort of meta dialogue would also be fairly on brand for the show, which often tried to fit in both subtle and obvious references to the real world and pop culture whenever it could. For example, Season 5, Episode 2 ("The Bond in the Boot") is filled with references to the "James Bond" films (via IMDb).