I’d just spent a few hours listening Gillian
Anderson film a scene on THE X-FILES: I WANT TO BELIEVE. Sadly all I could
hear were loud footsteps and a slammed door (which Anderson would later say was
just an accident). I thought for sure I could get her to spill the beans. While slightly more forthcoming than her counterparts, Anderson stopped short of telling me exactly what she was doing back there. (Lucky for you, I later was able to sneak a peek at that very scene – more on that to come at a later day…)
Anderson looked as beautiful as ever, years after she was one of the most adored women in the land of fanboys. She was also surprisingly warm, funny and vulgar (she dropped more f*cks than the rest of the cast and crew combined). Here’s what she had to say about returning to play Dana Scully after all these years…
Gillian Anderson
Why
come back to this after all this time?
Well, I
did. And I did. But I think that, ah, I’ve always made it clear no
matter what’s been rumored at various times in the press that were we to come
together or were somebody to get it together in order to do a film, I would be
happy and willing and hopefully able to participate. And, ah, I just
assumed it would be a matter of time. There were a few times there when it
looked like it might not happen. But you know there were many times there where
I thought even when people were saying it was going to happen I didn’t believe
it was going to happen. But I was always on board. No matter what
else I was deciding to do in my life at the time. So…
What’s
it like to come back to THE X-FILES? Is it familiar or does it seem
strange to be stepping back into these shoes that you left so many years ago?
You know,
I was really, um, not so much cocky about it but I was really confident that it
would be really easy. You know, on the first day. And I, I wasn’t
afraid at all. I usually am terrified before I start something for the
first couple of days, I get really — and it sucked! It was horrible.
I had a really, really hard first couple of days. I
think part of that was that I’ve spent such a long time trying not to do
anything that even remotely resembled Scully. Or at least you know while
I’m working. If there’s something, a gesture or a way, whether I’m
successful or not I don’t know. But at least in my mind I’m thinking
that I’ve been pushing it away for such a long time that while I was doing it
to bring it back, my brain was going, ‘no! No!’ This wasn’t supposed
to be happening. And also we happened to start on the worst possible scene
that we could have started with, it was probably one of my most difficult days.
Which
was?
It was a
confrontation scene. So I hadn’t been like normal, flat-line Scully.
No! I didn’t mean flat-line. No, I didn’t mean that but [laughs]
that’s funny. I hadn’t even been normal Scully before I had to be upset
Scully.
Do you
approach her differently? Has she changed a lot?
I
don’t think she has. What’s been important is not have her change a lot.
You know that it’s been finding who she is again. You know, um, it’s,
ah, I think it’s important to show somebody that’s recognizable to the
audience, who’s used to that. But you know obviously there’s a
maturity that’s taken place naturally. To hold that and to use that fact
to inform how she might be, you know, in this present state.
Are
there some references to what happened to her in the last five years?
Not
really. I think that it becomes a given. There’s something that’s said at
one point about the choices that she’s made. Which kinda covers that,
yeah.
What’s
behind your willingness to come back to this? Did you not want to be the
one to say no and it fell apart?
No!
You know I thought if it was enough of a period of time. It was a, a
formidable experience for all of us. Even at the times, you know at
various times I was very outspoken about the challenges of it, it was still
something that I wouldn’t have changed even at the time. Well, that’s
not true [laughs]. But in retrospect certainly I wouldn’t have changed
for the world. I was always aware that this was something unique and
valuable and precious and doesn’t happen very often. We were all
incredibly lucky. And even despite my frustration at the hours and the
exhaustion and all that kind of stuff, I’ve always been grateful on some
level. And the idea of us all coming back together again, um, has always
been exciting. Even at the very end I knew it would be at least a couple
of years. And I had to trust that even after two years I’d think,
‘this is a good idea.’
You
didn’t want to be defined as Scully for your whole career?
Well, I
think in certain ways sometimes I still am. When people, producers or
whatever, you know, see my work, sometimes they go, “Oh! She can act!”
You know [laughs], there’s nothing much I can do about that. But all I
can do is, one, you know, try and challenge myself. And also continue to
try and challenge the minds of people who want to put me in a box.
What do
you love about the character and why do you think she has resonated with the
public?
well,
I mean at the beginning, ah, ah, I guess in looking back, it’s almost like
there’s, as well all know, we all know the history of fox being dubious about
hiring me and all that kind of stuff, and you know this redhead. You know
it’s almost like Scully’s always been, at the beginning she was like this
little engine that could [laughs]. She
was almost like feisty, fiery, intelligent, um, you know, buster of everything.
And you know I think that that was strangely appealing to people. You
know, it was just so different from what people had seen at the time. And
the show was appealing to so many different kinds of people on so many different
levels. And I don’t know whether that’s still appealing I mean in the
old days there’s been so much that’s tried to emulate that, that’s tried
to copy that over time, we’ll see with box-office if people care. These were
great in the context of the series. But maybe next to Julianne Moore or
whatever, it’s like “eh…” Who
knows?
She was
a powerful woman, an intelligent woman.
Yeah,
absolutely. I think that was primarily Chris [Carter]. He was
determined at the beginning to keep Scully, ah, that way. There were times
at the beginning, I’d done so little work on camera before, I’d only done
theater, so I wanted to have the – it was almost like at the beginning I was
in a rehearsal for a play. But the second day I came to work was kind of
different. So the second day I remember crying once when I was holding a
gun. And I got this phone call [smiles and yells], “Scully wouldn’t
cry!” He didn’t yell like that. But I really had to be molded
and reminded, you know, just who this person is. And you know eventually I
got it. And she developed and we all grew together.
Yeah, I
think that was, that her resilience and her strength and her intelligence and
her determination and everything was fortunately appealing for lots of young
women. And you know I still get – you know there’s a whole new group,
I don’t know, I don’t pay attention [a laugh] but apparently there’s a
whole new group of people who are discovering the show in reruns for the first
time. Which is awesome. I don’t really get letters but if
anything comes through to me, it’s from grandmothers to four-year-olds.
Which is really cool. And I think I over time as – I’m rambling now
– get some….. You know it’s easy talking to Chris or David to get very
melancholy and wistful. And when I see stuff, when somebody sends
something, you know, something that somebody’s put together, moments of Mulder
and Scully. We were watching something, actually I pulled something on
YouTube, and, um, we kissed a lot in the series! I just remember how
everyone was complaining how there was no – and there were millions of kisses!
I didn’t remember kissing so much.
Is
there some of that in the movie?
Like I’m
going to answer that question!
Is the
intimate relationship between Mulder and Scully more important in this movie?
Um, oh, I
don’t know. I think that’s what’s remarkable – and I find it more
remarkable today after working with many other actors – just what kind of, um,
energy there is between [us]. You know it just kind of happened.
Weird. And I don’t know why this chemistry. Yeah. It’s
cool now, once I’ve seen things in the past and gone, ‘where the fuck did
that come from?’ It’s still there and of course that’s going to be
appealing to people. I now see what the appeal is. In the old
days I was, ‘yeah, so what? Yeah we get along. There’s
chemistry.’ I was just using that word and now I see, you know, there really
was and there still is and I think that’ll always be there.
How
much easier is it working David again now that you’re not on top of each other
for 16 hours a day?
It’s
great. It was great then too. It’s all – it’s just like a
sibling relationship. You know. And I never had siblings.
I had brothers and sisters that started when I was 13 so I was out of the house
and didn’t have that experience. There was always this natural love-hate
– hate’s too big a word – but you know what I mean? There was always
something. Whether it was us coming together or us keeping our distance,
whatever it is it’s just a natural relationship. In the history, over a
period of time. And I think that now we’ve grown up and we’re older
and, um, I think we’re more appreciative of, um, the relationship period.
And the unique experience that we had together. And we have an opportunity
to continue that and foster it and, you know, we’ve always loved each
other and we’re always going to be at battle sometimes. It’s just, you know
—
Scully
started out as a skeptic and later became the believer to the new characters.
Are you going back to the skeptic/believer relationship?
I think we
have to. That’s part of one of the big premises of the film, the
relationship and what makes the relationship work is this constant, you know,
fight to be right in some way. I think no matter what film or what
episode, you have to maintain an element of that. To make it interesting.
This isn’t a love story. It can be and there are elements of that in the
intimacy of the relationship and everything. But it’s that can’t be in
the forefront. What is in the forefront in these two people’s minds and
their passions and naturally they’re going to swing in the direction they’re
built for. That’s going to cause tension between them and issues.
Were
there things about being back on an “X-Files” set that took you back ten or
15 years ago?
Well,
I was actually looking around on the set for more things than were there. At the
beginning I was actually surprised that more things weren’t brought out of –
somebody’s got to have them they’ve got to be in some storage space I’ve
gotta surmise…
How
comfortable are you now with this role that you once sought to distance yourself
from?
Um, it
feels, um, I feel very fortunate. You know. I think my desire to
distance myself – you know I started when I was 24. I told them I was 27
– to get hired. But I was 24 and at the time, yeah. Somebody sent
me an interview I did on I don’t know some cheesy TV station and I was so,
just like so sure of myself. And the way that I was talking and
everything. I think I had to surround myself with so many survival mechanisms to
just survive. As a 24 year old to be thrown into that when all I’d done
was a little bit of theater really was intense. People would say to me, in
interviews, ‘what a whirlwind life you’ve had,’ and I didn’t even have
enough of a perspective to be able to stand back and go, ‘yeah man!’
My response was like, ‘yeah.’ and I think, but in a sense to a
detriment at times because I assumed that I should be able to deal with stuff, I
should be able to just press on and buckle up and you know go on. To a
disservice to myself. I can’t remember what your original question was
[laughs]!
Survival
and distancing yourself…
So I was
just in it for such a long time that when it ended you know there was a part of
me that one, didn’t want to see a set. I didn’t know if I was going to
go back and ever be on a set again. It just got really intense. I didn’t
do that much on my hiatuses. I did a couple of things but I didn’t
really go after that. Between exhaustion and being a mom and stuff.
I just wanted to do something different, for fuck’s sake. So I needed, I
just really needed that. But I found a place again of appropriate
perspective and great appreciation and gratitude for just being allowed and
invited to such an extraordinary experience.
Because
Chris fought for you in casting?
Fuck yeah!
He’s the godfather to my first-born child!
Is it a
relief to get away from that complex mythology and keeping track of –
Who kept
track? Definitely the fans know so much more about the episodes than I did
and what happened. I mean I practically forgot I had a baby when we
started this which is really sad. I’m exaggerating a little bit but
it’s kind of true.
What’s
the biggest difference between Scully now and the last time we saw her?
I think
she’s more relaxed. I think she’s made some choices in her life that
have allowed her to do what she most wants to do. That’s mellowed her a bit.
She hasn’t lost any of her determination and passion about things by any
stretch. But she’s mellowed a bit.
Having
done and survived “The X-Files” would you ever do another TV series?
I’ll
never say never because things change so much over time. But it would have
to be something pretty extraordinary to take that kind of time and move back to
Los Angeles
where it’s likely to be shot. But you know I’m 40 this year and I
hope to still be working when I’m 60 so maybe as a 60-year-old I’ll come
back and do a comedy for NBC or something.
Do you
get to do any fun stuff like that in this film?
Fortunately
David gets to do all of that [laughs]. I’m serious, I should feel really
sorry for him. I do. There’ve been a few times when I’ve come to
the set to do some dialogue where he’s been scaling cliffs and all that kind
of stuff. So – did I say too much?
Do you
feel that X-FILES can go on now, as a movie series?
I don’t
know. I think that’s something that’s been discussed for a long time.
It’s something that we have all been interested in. If we are able to do
one that is, um, that can appeal to a mass audience and it’s, ah, successful,
in the right ways. Um, that perhaps we might do another one after this.
But that’s —