The creator of the iconic sci-fi seriesThe X-Files,Chris Carter, has offered some more insight into the upcoming reboot fromBlack PantherdirectorRyan Coogler. While Carter is not involved in the project, speaking withInverse, he has said that he cannot wait to see what someone else does with the world ofThe X-Files, and offers his advice regarding some of the hurdles that Coogler is likely to come across. Such as casting.
“It’s interesting, people say, ‘Aren’t you possessive of it?’ And I say, ‘No, I’m looking forward to seeing what somebody else does with it.’”
Carter revealed that he has had a “really nice conversation” with Coogler aboutThe X-Filesreboot and thinks he has some good ideas. However, Carter does think Coogler will have some of the same difficulties that he had when first bringing the show to screens.
“I just asked him what his ideas were, and he told me, and I said, ‘Those sound like good ideas.’ No matter what, he’s got a hard job. Casting is a hard job. Mounting it is a hard job. All the problems that I dealt with are going to be his problems.”
While no cast members for the reboot have yet been revealed, Carter has revealed that Cooglerintends to bring a more diverse castto the franchise when compared to the original show.
“I just spoke to a young man… Ryan Coogler… who is going to remount The X-Files with a diverse cast. So he’s got his work cut out for him, because we covered so much territory."
The Studio Initially Questioned Gillian Anderson’s ‘Sex Appeal’
The X-Files
One such problem that Carter had was castingGillian Andersonas FBI Special Agent Dana Scully. During the interview, he revealed that the studio pushed back against her casting, believing that she did not have enough sex appeal. In fact, they wanted to cast blonde bombshell Pamela Anderson.
“Where’s the sex appeal? Even though Gillian’s beautiful, she wasn’t their idea of sexy. First, because they didn’t understand what I was trying to do with the show. And she was an unknown, so that never helps.”
10 Essential X-Files Episodes You Can’t Skip
Some episodes relate to the show’s mythology, character arcs, and central plot. Others represent the very best episodes that The X-Files has to offer.
Aside from casting, Carter thinks Coogler may have another problem when it comes totelling stories of conspiracy theoriesin this, the modern age.
“Everything’s a conspiracy. No one knows what the truth is. It’s completely subjective and relative now.”
Beginning back in 1993,The X-Filesrevolves around FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who investigate the titular “X-Files,” looking into marginalized, unsolved cases involving paranormal phenomena. The acclaimed series ended its main run back in 2002, with a shorter tenth season being released in 2016 and an eleventh season coming out in 2018. A movie,The X‑Files: I Want to Believe, was released in theaters in 2008, with the franchise having also spawned several comic book spinoffs.
