X-Files, The


The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

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About

A skeptic and a believer investigate unexplained phenomena and enjoy a heavy dose of sexual tension. The X-Files, created by Chris Carter, premiered on FOX on September 10, 1993 and introduced the world to one of TV's best duos: ever-the-opposites, "Fox Mulder" and "Dana Scully."

David Duchovney played Mulder: an FBI profiler, Oxford-educated psychologist, and firm believer in the paranormal (his sister was abducted when he was 12-years-old.) Gillian Anderson portrayed Scully: an FBI agent recruited straight out of med school, and a scientist to the core, always looking for the logical explanation for mysteries. Together, Mulder and Scully were the yin to each other's yang.

The original series ran for nine seasons and followed the personal and professional lives of Scully, Mulder and others in The X-Files, the FBI department dedicated to exploring the paranormal. Unlike many shows, not every mystery was solved at the end of each episode, and the series finale, "The Truth," introduced several new questions rather than tie up loose ends. Two movies of the series were made, in 1998 and 2008, and a six-episode miniseries aired in 2016.

The X-Files spawned a plethora of catchphrases including, "The truth is out there," "I want to believe," "Deny everything," and "Trust No one." It managed to not only appeal to sci-fi fans, but to a broader audience as well, thanks largely to the "will they or won't they?" chemistry between Scully and Mulder. Watch Chris Carter's Archive interview to see if the pair actually ended up together.

- by Adrienne Faillace

Creator: Chris Carter

Programming History: 202 episodes, 9 seasons, FOX

September 10, 1983 - May 19, 2002

Friday nights at 9pm seasons 1-3, Sunday nights at 9pm seasons 4-9

 

Highlights
Chris Carter on coming up with The X-Files characters "Mulder" and "Scully"
01:15
Chris Carter on the premise of The X-Files, and on his thoughts on area abduction
02:07
Vince Gilligan on the conspiracy theories explored by writers on The X-Files; on the influences for the show
Vince Gilligan on the The X-Files episode "Drive" where he met and worked with actor Bryan Cranston for the first time (later Cranston would star in Gilligan's Breaking Bad  series playing a similar role, and why Cranston was perfect to play a "sympathetic creep")
07:06
John Bartley on the look of The X-Files
01:04
James Hong briefly on guest-starring on The X-Files
01:14
Who talked about this show

John Bartley

View Interview
John Bartley on the look of The X-Files
01:04
John Bartley on getting hired for The X-Files
01:35
John Bartley on his impressions of the X-Files pilot, and his own work on the series
00:58
John Bartley on lighting The X-Files when he first started
01:54
John Bartley on the set of The X-Files and the long hours he and the crew put in
01:51
John Bartley on adding color to The X-Files as he continued with the show
00:39
John Bartley on the kinds of equipment he used on The X-Files
03:02
John Bartley on watching The X-Files on TV while he worked on the show
00:38
John Bartley on the directors of The X-Files
01:11
John Bartley on a typical workday on The X-Files
01:07
John Bartley on working with X-Files leads David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson
01:26
John Bartley on leaving The X-Files
00:48
John Bartley on the amount of darkness in the lighting of The X-Files
00:38
John Bartley on X-Files /Roswell producer-director David Nutter
00:50

Peter Boyle

View Interview
Peter Boyle on guest-starring as "Clyde Bruckman" on The X-Files
02:22

Chris Carter

View Interview
Chris Carter on coming up with The X-Files characters "Mulder" and "Scully"
01:15
Chris Carter on the premise of The X-Files, and on his thoughts on area abduction
02:07
Chris Carter on casting Gillian Anderson as "Dana Scully" and David Duchovny as "Fox Mulder" on The X-Files
06:03
Chris Carter on the characters' motivation in the first season of The X-Files, and on the romance, themes, and goals of the show
06:22
Chris Carter on pitching The X-Files to Fox executives and on their reaction to the pilot
04:00
Chris Carter on the filming the pilot of The X-Files, and on the audience reaction to it and the mythology arc
09:08
Chris Carter on The X-Files main theme and title
03:03
Chris Carter on "Fox Mulder's" shooting on The X-Files, and on coming up with story ideas
05:25
Chris Carter on The X-Files' core audience
01:50
Chris Carter on the first season finale of The X-Files
02:14
Chris Carter on what made The X-Files scary
01:48
Chris Carter on the process of collaborating with other writers and producers on The X-Files
06:20
Chris Carter on The X-Files' themes of government conspiracy theories
02:15
Chris Carter on various The X-Files storylines, including the disapearance of "Mulder's" sister and the "Cigarette Smoking Man"
04:31
Chris Carter on putting humor into the mix on The X-Files
01:52
Chris Carter on on how they handled Gillian Anderson's pregnancy on season 2 of The X-Files, which led the the "Scully abducted" storyline
01:52
Chris Carter on the "Alex Krycek" character on The X-Files, and on getting an Emmy nomination for the episode "Duane Barry" which he directed
02:28
Chris Carter on those episodes of The X-Files that he labeled "monster of the week" and the alien mythology of the series
01:23
Chris Carter on how the early episodes of The X-Files impacted television at the time, including the cinematography of the show
02:55
Chris Carter on The X-Files' following, and the impact of the internet and new media on the show
01:45
Chris Carter on getting "Mulder" and "Scully" romantically involved on The X-Files
02:18
Chris Carter on the "Mulder" and "Scully" relationship as the show and feature films progressed on The X-Files
05:28
Chris Carter on the importance of Emmy Award nominations and other awards to The X-Files team and himself
01:01
Chris Carter on Cher guest-starring on The X-Files
00:48
Chris Carter on the season 5 finale of The X-Files, and on the first feature film based on the series
03:29
Chris Carter on the decision to move The X-Files from Canada to Los Angeles starting with season 6
01:31
Chris Carter on responding to fan criticism of season 6 of The X-Files
01:07
Chris Carter on Vince Gilligan writing for The X-Files season six, and on the plot points of that year
02:39
Chris Carter on having stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson direct episodes for season 7 of The X-Files and the major plot points of that season
03:17
Chris Carter on David Duchovny leaving The X-Files and on replacing him with Robert Patrick as "John Doggett"
04:13
Chris Carter on his decision to end the first run of The X-Files
01:08
Chris Carter on how 9/11 impacted The X-Files
01:03
Chris Carter on the fate of "The Lone Gunman" on The X-Files, and on tying up loose ends at the end of the series
02:13
Chris Carter on The Outer Limits' influence on The X-Files
00:38
Chris Carter on his favorite season of The X-Files, and on leaving some storylines and questions open
01:06
Chris Carter on The X-Files documentary "The Threads of Mythology"
01:00
Chris Carter on the legacy of The X-Files
00:51
Chris Carter on the feature film X-Files spin-off "I Want to Believe"
03:00

Vince Gilligan

View Interview
Vince Gilligan on the conspiracy theories explored by writers on The X-Files; on the influences for the show
Vince Gilligan on the The X-Files episode "Drive" where he met and worked with actor Bryan Cranston for the first time (later Cranston would star in Gilligan's Breaking Bad  series playing a similar role, and why Cranston was perfect to play a "sympathetic creep")
07:06
Vince Gilligan on getting hooked on The X-Files in 1993 and getting an introduction to Chris Carter, who was related to Gilligan's agent
Vince Gilligan on writing The X-Files episode "Soft Light" and then being offered a job as a staff writer on the show, which he initially turned down
Vince Gilligan on The X-Files "The second greatest job of my life" that taught him everything he needed to know about writing for TV; on the mythology versus the stand-alone episodes
Vince Gilligan on the writers' room at The X-Files; on the first episode he wrote as a staff writer "Pusher"; on the writing process
02:16
Vince Gilligan on what he liked about the lack of rules on The X-Files for the writers
Vince Gilligan on "Folie Aux Deux" - an X-Files episode he wrote and how the visual element was incorporated into the show; on why the visual is as important as the dialogue
02:14
Vince Gilligan on the importance of the visual element on The X-Files and his input as a writer
Vince Gilligan on the only script he wrote for The X-Files that was re-written
Vince Gilligan on the censorship limits on The X-Files; on the episode "Pusher" about Russian Roulette; on the episode "Paper Hearts" where he couldn't show an entry wound
02:33
Vince Gilligan on the writers on The X-Files
Vince Gilligan on whether the writers on The X-Files actually believed in supernatural phenomena: "I Want to Believe"
Vince Gilligan on The X-Files episode "Bad Blood" influenced by the film "Rashomon"
Vince Gilligan on how The X-Files writers' room would "break" the story by building a scene "brick by brick"; on the hardest part of writing for TV
03:14
Vince Gilligan on how much the writers on the The X-Files were aware of the early Internet forums and fan chat rooms
Vince Gilligan on The X-Files mythology episodes 
Vince Gilligan on the balance between comedy and drama on The X-Files; on his reputation for writing the funnier episodes; on his episode "Small Potatoes"
Vince Gilligan on the first episode of The X-Files he directed "Je Souhaite" (I Wish) in Season 7
Vince Gilligan on directing The X-Files episode "Sunshine Days" in which the reconstructed The Brady Bunch house
05:41
Vince Gilligan on being nominated for an Emmy for The X-Files episode "Memento Mori" 
Vince Gilligan on The X-Files episode "Memento Mori" in which "Scully" gets cancer
Vince Gilligan on how the writers adapted to news that David Duchovny was leaving X-Files
Vince Gilligan on the "jump the shark" episode of The X-Files and the resolution for The Lone Gunmen spinoff series
03:07
Vince Gilligan on the finale of The X-Files
Vince Gilligan on the legacy of The X-Files
01:02

James Hong

View Interview
James Hong briefly on guest-starring on The X-Files
01:14

Felicity Huffman

View Interview
Felicity Huffman on appearing on an episode of The X-Files in 1993
02:24

Lucy Lawless

View Interview
Lucy Lawless on guest-starring on The X-Files
00:45

Thomas Del Ruth

View Interview
Thomas Del Ruth on being director of photography for The X-Files and working with show creator Chris Carter
06:29
Thomas Del Ruth on acting as director of photography for The X-Files and establishing the "look" for a series in the pilot
02:57

Mark Snow

View Interview
Mark Snow on being hired to work on The X-Files and composing the show's theme song
14:24
Mark Snow on The X-Files theme song being released as a single
02:57
Mark Snow on composing for The X-Files
06:12
Mark Snow on composing for The X-Files and the importance of the music to the show
03:40
Mark Snow on using music to build emotion and suspense on The X-Files
03:08
Mark Snow on a typical work week on The X-Files
03:06
Mark Snow on the times he used an orchestra while scoring The X-Files and themes he wrote for characters
03:52
Mark Snow on The X-Files episode, "Humbug"
04:23
Mark Snow on The X-Files episode, "Home"
01:57
Mark Snow on The X-Files episode, "Per Manum," on which he appeared in a cameo
03:25
Mark Snow on The X-Files episode, "Post Modern Prometheus"
01:35
Mark Snow on The X-Files episode, "Closure" and the use of music other than Snow's in the show
01:54
Mark Snow on composing for the finale of the original series of The X-Files
01:12
Mark Snow on working with directors on The X-Files
07:49
Mark Snow on composing for The X-Files movies and the 2016 reboot of the show
15:51

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