The X-Files (TV Series)

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This article is about the television series. For the franchise, see The X-Files (franchise). For other uses, see The X-Files (disambiguation).

The X-Files
Genre	Science fiction Horror Drama Mystery Thriller Supernatural fiction
Created by	Chris Carter
Starring	David Duchovny Gillian Anderson Robert Patrick Annabeth Gish Mitch Pileggi
Music	Mark Snow
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	11
No. of episodes	218 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Chris Carter R. W. Goodwin Howard Gordon Frank Spotnitz Vince Gilligan John Shiban Kim Manners Glen Morgan James Wong Michelle MacLaren Michael W. Watkins David Greenwalt
Location	Vancouver (seasons 1–5, 10–11) Los Angeles (seasons 6–9)
Running time	45 minutes
Production company(s)	Ten Thirteen Productions 20th Television (1993–95) 20th Century Fox Television (1995–2002, 2016)
Distributor	20th Television
Release
Original network	Fox
Picture format	480i (4:3 SDTV) (original broadcast) 480i 16:9 (DVD seasons 5–9) 1080p (16:9 HDTV) (2014 remaster, season 10-)
Audio format	Dolby Surround 2.0 (original broadcast) Dolby Digital 5.1 (2014 remaster; Descriptive Video Service over SAP season 10-)
Original release	Original series: September 10, 1993 – May 19, 2002 Revival: January 24, 2016 – present
Chronology
Original release	Millennium (1996–99) The Lone Gunmen (2001)
External links

The X-Files is an American science fiction drama television series created by Chris Carter, which originally aired from September 10, 1993 to May 19, 2002 on Fox. The program spanned nine seasons, included 202 episodes, and a feature film of the same name. Later in 2008, a second film was made and preceded a tenth-season revival, which consisted of six episodes, in 2016. The revival premiered on January 24, 2016. In April 2017, Fox officially announced that The X-Files would be returning for an eleventh season of ten episodes, which would air in the 2017–18 television season.

The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who investigate X-Files: marginalized, unsolved cases involving paranormal phenomena. Mulder believes in the existence of aliens and the paranormal while Scully, a medical doctor and a skeptic, is assigned to make scientific analyses of Mulder's discoveries to debunk his work and thus return him to mainstream cases. Early in the series, both agents become pawns in a larger conflict and come to trust only each other and a very few select people. The agents also discover an agenda of the government to keep the existence of extraterrestrial life a secret. They develop a close relationship which begins as a platonic friendship, but becomes a romance by the end of the series. In addition to the series-spanning story arc, "monster of the week" episodes form roughly two-thirds of all episodes.

The X-Files was inspired by earlier television series which featured elements of suspense and speculative fiction, including Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, Tales from the Darkside, and especially Kolchak: The Night Stalker. When creating the main characters, Carter sought to reverse gender stereotypes by making Mulder a believer and Scully a skeptic. The first seven seasons featured Duchovny and Anderson equally. In the last two seasons, Anderson took precedence while Duchovny appeared intermittently. New main characters were introduced: FBI agents John Doggett (Robert Patrick) and Monica Reyes (Annabeth Gish). Mulder and Scully's boss, Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi), also became a main character. The first five seasons of The X-Files were filmed and produced in Vancouver, British Columbia, before eventually moving to Los Angeles to accommodate Duchovny. The series later returned to Vancouver to film The X-Files: I Want to Believe as well as the tenth season of the series.

The X-Files was a hit for the Fox network and received largely positive reviews, although its long-term story arc was criticized near the conclusion. Initially considered a cult series, it turned into a pop culture touchstone that tapped into public mistrust of governments and large institutions and embraced conspiracy theories and spirituality. Both the series itself and lead actors Duchovny and Anderson received multiple awards and nominations, and by the end it was the longest-running science fiction series in U.S. television history. The series also spawned a franchise which includes The Lone Gunmen spin-off, two theatrical films and accompanying merchandise. After the final theatrical film in 2008, fans continued to push for a third movie to conclude the series' plot lines, and in March 2015, Fox eventually announced that the series would return, with Chris Carter as executive producer and writer, and Duchovny, Anderson, Pileggi, Davis, and Gish all reprising their roles.

[edit] Premise

[edit] General

[edit] Mythology

Main articles: Mythology of The X-Files, X-files unit, Syndicate (The X-Files), and Colonist (The X-Files)

[edit] Cast and characters

Main article: List of The X-Files characters

[edit] Main characters

[edit] Recurring characters

[edit] Production

[edit] Conception

See also: The X-Files (season 1) and Pilot (The X-Files)

[edit] Casting

[edit] Minor recurring characters

[edit] Filming

[edit] Music

Main article: Music of The X-Files

[edit] Opening sequence

[edit] Broadcast and release

[edit] Episodes

See also: List of The X-Files episodes

[edit] Nielsen ratings

Nielsen ratings for The X-Files

Season	Timeslot (ET)	Premiered		Ended		Rank	Viewers (in millions)
		Date	Premiere viewers (in millions)	Date	Finale viewers (in millions)

[edit] Foreign broadcast

[edit] Films

Main artcile: The X-Files (film) and The X-Files: I Want to Believe

[edit] Revival

Main article: The X-Files (season 10) and The X-Files (season 11)

[edit] Home video release

Main article: Series overview and home release and The X-Files merchandise

[edit] Spin-offs

[edit] The Lone Gunmen

The Lone Gunmen is an American science fiction television series created by Carter and broadcast on Fox, and was crafted as a more humorous spin-off of The X-Files. The series starred the eponymous Lone Gunmen, and was first broadcast in March 2001, during The X-Files's month-long hiatus. Although the debut episode garnered 13.23 million viewers, its ratings began to steadily drop. The program was cancelled after thirteen episodes. The last episode was broadcast in June 2001 and ended on a cliffhanger which was partially resolved in a ninth-season episode of The X-Files titled "Jump the Shark".Template:Sfn

[edit] Comic books

Main article: The X-Files (comics), The X-Files Season 10 (comics), and The X-Files Season 11 (comics)

[edit] Influence

[edit] Critical reception

[edit] Overall

[edit] First seven seasons

[edit] Eighth and ninth seasons

[edit] Tenth season

[edit] Accolades

Main article: List of accolades received by The X-Files

[edit] Fandom

[edit] Merchandise

Main article: The X-Files merchandise

[edit] Legacy

See also: The X-Files (franchise)

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] External links

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