Chris Carter dishes out new details on The X-Files’ return to television

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

The X-Files is coming back. I honestly didn’t think it would happen but I’ve never been so happy to have been proven wrong in all my life. The show will return to Fox with a new six-episode limited season which will see David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson stepping back into their roles of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully.

The architect of The X-Files, Chris Carter, has also returned to guide the show into the year 2015 and he had some interesting things to say in a recent interview with X-Files News. I’d been wondering where the show would end up shooting but Chris Carter (as well as others) have confirmed that The X-Files will be returning to its old stomping grounds of Vancouver, British Columbia; which is excellent news when you think about how much the atmosphere of that city really helped to shape The X-Files during its formative years.

As to which characters might return in addition to Mulder and Scully, Carter has already thought of who he’d like to join the fun:

I have ideas for everyone, their availability is subject to their regular paying jobs. Of course, I'd like to bring everyone possible back, but it's who's going to fit into the story and who's available.

Mitch Pileggi is a no-brainer obviously; if they can only bring back one other cast member it’s got to be him. I’d also love for Robert Patrick to show up as I’ve really grown fond of his portrayal of Agent Doggett over the years. Naturally, Carter wouldn’t specify which character’s would return so we're left to taking shots in the dark.

Well, I don't want to reveal all my tricks, but I can tell you there will be some obvious choices and there will be some surprises.

In addition to the on-screen talent Carter made mention that he'd like to assemble as much of the behind-the-scenes crew as he can. Mark Snow will be on hand to deliver his classic X-Files music and Carter also confirmed that two original writers will return:

We've lured Darin Morgan and Jim Wong, we're very excited about that and we're working on the rest.

It's been thirteen years since the end of the series and seven years since the last film so Carter was asked how much the characters may have changed in that time.

I don't think it will actually change anything, of course, with the new technology we'll certainly see Mulder and Scully carrying different cell phones. We're going to tell X-Files the way that we've always told them; we will of course set them in the time and place that they exist. We're telling contemporary stories about contemporary situations, true to Mulder and Scully's characters and their relationship and the passage of time.

One of the threads left dangling at the close of the series was the December 22, 2012 alien colonization date, which has obviously passed us by in the real world, but it sounds as though that's something the revival will deal with in some form or another.

I've thought about that, I don't know exactly how I'm going to address it, in a big way, a mild way, a modern way, a mention or a plot point. And of course you can't avoid to deal with the William (arc) in some way or another.

The Daily Beast also scored an interview with Carter in which he revealed that there are no scripts at the moment but that he does have an idea of what kind of arc we might see over the course of these six episodes.

I do, actually. I know what I want to do, how I want it to lay out—the balance of mythology to stand-alone episodes. Even though none of us have had contracts, I’ve only had one since yesterday, the people that are going to be involved have been talking since the beginning of the year, so we have a clear idea of how this should be, or the best way we think this should be laid out.

I'm glad to hear Chris Carter say that there will be stand-alone stories in amongst these new episodes. The mythology episodes were always interesting and obviously they were an integral part of the show but…the stand-alone episodes were frequently the best ones. Let me know some of your favourites in the comments.

As to the future of the series, be it another movie or season, it's obviously too soon to say as Carter just wants to make these six episodes the best that he can.

I think…first things first, we just want to do six great episodes. We’re all primed to do that, there are great stories to tell, and now it’s just distilling it down to telling the best stories possible in the time we have.

This is all fantastic news to me; I grew up on The X-Files and in many ways it functioned as my introduction to all the various horror and sci-fi films it drew from, so knowing that it's coming back with all-new episodes has got me beyond excited.

What do you hope to see from the new series? Which characters/plot-points do you want to see return?