the x- files
What We Know…
David Duchovny helps us preview the new series.
1 The new X- Files series is filming right now – it’s due to wrap at the end of August – and will consist of six episodes that will air in January 2016. There would have been more episodes but David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson have other filming commitments.
2 At first, Anderson wasn’t all that keen on the idea of doing the show again. It took persuasion from Duchovny, who’d just finished an epic run of sex, drugs and debauchery in Californication, and show creator Chris Carter, to get her on board. Once there, however, she enthusiastically told Entertainment Weekly: “It feels like we never stopped doing this.”
3 This is not a reboot. It’s actually being called “season ten”, so it’s a continuation of the series – although we’re not sure if it will address the fact that Agents Doggett ( Robert Patrick) and Reyes ( Annabeth Gish) were such a huge part of those final few seasons. There’s a lot to cram into these half dozen episodes, obviously, but some kind of name- drop or cameo would be nice, eh?
4 Keeping in the spirit of the original X- Files, which filmed there until it moved to Los Angeles in its sixth season, the episodes are being shot in good old Vancouver, British Columbia. Those spooky, mossy, rain- drenched forests will feel like friends of yore…
5 Carter has revealed that the show will reflect the post- 9/ 11 world of surveillance, human rights issues and government conspiracies. While he was always inspired by the Watergate scandal of the ’ 70s – even going so far as to call Mulder’s first government informant Deep Throat, after the real- life whistleblower who brought down Nixon – the issues he used to write about, that lurked on the fringes of our existence, have now become a huge part of our lives. Well, aliens aside, naturally.
6 After they were shown kissing in 2008’ s big- screen outing The X- Files: I Want To Believe, the question on everybody’s lips is: what’s the deal with Mulder and Scully’s relationship? The actors have remained silent on the subject, but mention that the two aren’t living with each other and Mulder is apparently “in a dark, dark place”. A publicity image of Mulder’s pad seems to suggest that he’s holed up in his house obsessing over UFOs and conspiracies to an unhealthy extent – perhaps he took a break- up badly? Perhaps Scully couldn’t handle his latest quest? Does he have – gasp! – a new woman? Or does Scully have a new man?
7 We’re also not sure whether Mulder and Scully actually work for the FBI in the new series. Although given the fact that their old boss, Mitch Pileggi’s Walter Skinner, is popping up, perhaps the FBI will play a big part.
8 Another familiar face is also making a return… despite the fact anybody who’s watched the show’s series finale will know that it’s bleedin’ impossible. William B Davis is back as the Cigarette-Smoking Man – a magical resurrection, given that we saw him atomised in a missile attack. Perhaps he’ll be back as some kind of ghost? It wouldn’t be the first time the series has brought back dead characters, whether in dream sequences or in flashbacks.
9 Rather oddly, Anderson’s hair has been a huge talking point since filming began. When The X- Files ended it was a shock to see the actress dye her hair blonde; now it’s a shock to see it red again ( although not quite as red as the old days, mind). She has a secret, however: it’s a wig. After being advised by her hairdresser not to dye it any more in case it falls out, the disappointed Anderson regretfully conceded the point and will wear a ( thankfully very convincing) wig. “It’s like wearing a vise on your head,” she says. “Every day I have a whopping headache. I want the fans to know I’m suffering for the red!”
10 Mulder’s “I Want To Believe” poster is back, but in a slightly different format: it’s a montage made up of images sent in by fans to raise money for charity. Also present in his apartment: his old porn VHS tapes. Some things never change.