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''
The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...
'' is an American
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
–
supernatural
Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...
television series that originally aired on the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
network for 9 seasons from September 10, 1993, to May 19, 2002.
The series centers on
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
special agents
Fox Mulder
Fox William Mulder () is a fictional FBI Special Agent and one of the two protagonists of the Fox science fiction-supernatural television series ''The X-Files'', played by David Duchovny. Mulder's peers dismiss his many theories on extraterrest ...
(
David Duchovny
David William Duchovny ( ; born ) is an American actor, writer, producer, director, novelist, and singer-songwriter. He is known for portraying FBI agent Fox Mulder on the television series ''The X-Files'' (1993–2002, 2016-2018) and as write ...
) and
Dana Scully
Dana Katherine Scully, MD, is a fictional character and one of the two Protagonist, protagonists in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox science-fiction, supernatural fiction, supernatural television series ''The X-Files'', played by Gillian Anders ...
(
Gillian Anderson
Gillian Leigh Anderson ( ; born August 9, 1968) is an American actress. Her credits include the roles of FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the series ''The X-Files'', ill-fated socialite Lily Bart in Terence Davies's film ''The House of Mirth'' ...
), who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called
X-File
In the fictional universe of the television series ''The X-Files'', an "X-File" is a case that has been deemed unsolvable or given minimal-priority status by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; these files are transferred to the X-Files unit. The ...
s. Mulder, an FBI profiler, is a believer in the
paranormal
Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Nota ...
, and the skeptical Scully, a medical doctor, is assigned to make scientific analyses of Mulder's discoveries which could ultimately be used to discredit his work. Throughout the series the two develop a close friendship. During the
eighth and
ninth
In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second.
Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...
seasons of the series, Duchovny's role was reduced from lead actor to an intermittent lead role.
The show's premise originated with
Chris Carter,
who served as an executive producer along with
R. W. Goodwin,
Frank Spotnitz
Frank Charles Spotnitz is an American television screenwriter and executive producer, best known for his work on ''The X-Files'' and ''The Man in the High Castle''. Spotnitz is also the chief executive officer and founder of Big Light Production ...
,
Howard Gordon
Howard Gordon (born March 31, 1961) is an American television writer and producer.
He is well known for his work on the Fox action series '' 24'' alongside the Showtime thriller ''Homeland'', which he co-developed with Alex Gansa and Gideon ...
,
Vince Gilligan
George Vincent Gilligan Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and director of AMC's ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2 ...
,
John Shiban
John Shiban is an American television writer and producer. He worked in both capacities on ''The X-Files'' and its spin-off ''The Lone Gunmen'', ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', ''Smallville'', ''Supernatural'', ''Legend of the Seeker'', ''Breaking Bad' ...
,
Kim Manners
Kim Manners (January 13, 1951 – January 25, 2009) was an American television producer, director and actor best known for his work on ''The X-Files'' and ''Supernatural''.
Early life
Kim Manners was raised in a show business family. His fathe ...
,
Glen Morgan
Glen Morgan (born July 12, 1961) is an American television producer, writer and director. He is best known for co-writing episodes of the Fox science fiction supernatural drama series ''The X-Files'' with his partner, James Wong. He served as ...
,
James Wong, and many others. Filming for seasons
one to
five
5 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
5, five or number 5 may also refer to:
* AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era
* 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era
Literature
* ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram
* ''5'' (comics), an awa ...
took place primarily in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
,
and for the remaining seasons in Los Angeles.
Episodes were broadcast on Fridays at 9:00 pm Eastern Time for the series' first three seasons;
the remaining six seasons aired on Sundays at 9:00 pm Eastern Time.
Episodes are approximately 45 minutes in length (not including commercials) and were broadcast in
standard definition
Standard-definition television (SDTV, SD, often shortened to standard definition) is a television system which uses a resolution that is not considered to be either high or enhanced definition. "Standard" refers to it being the prevailing sp ...
.
Two feature films based on the television series have been released as part of
''The X-Files'' franchise:
the first The First may refer to:
* ''The First'' (album), the first Japanese studio album by South Korean boy group Shinee
* ''The First'' (musical), a musical with a book by critic Joel Siegel
* The First (TV channel), an American conservative opinion ne ...
premiered in summer 1998, between seasons five and six of the series,
and a post-series film, ''
The X-Files: I Want to Believe'', was released in 2008.
On March 24, 2015, Fox officially announced the series would return for a
six-episode tenth season, which aired in 2016.
On April 20, 2017, Fox officially announced ''The X-Files'' would be returning for an
eleventh season of ten episodes, which premiered on January 3, 2018.
Many mythology collections of ''The X-Files'' episodes have been released on DVD. Since 2000,
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
20th Century Studios Home Entertainment (commonly referred to as 20th Home Video, or 20th Home Entertainment, formerly known as 20th Century-Fox Video, CBS/Fox Video, Fox Video, and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) is a home video label of Wa ...
has distributed all seasons on DVD,
and episodes are also available for download at the
iTunes Store
The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...
and
Amazon Video
Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service pri ...
,
and are available for streaming on
Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
. The show's episodes have won a number of
awards
An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration.
An award ...
, including three
Golden Globe Awards for Best Drama Series and a
Satellite Award for Best Drama Series. Various cast members' performances have been praised by critics, particularly those of Duchovny and Anderson.
Series overview
Episodes
Episodes marked with a
double dagger
A dagger, obelisk, or obelus is a typographical mark that usually indicates a footnote if an asterisk has already been used. The symbol is also used to indicate death (of people) or extinction (of species). It is one of the modern descenda ...
() are episodes in the series' alien
mythology arc.
Season 1 (1993–94)
Season 2 (1994–95)
Season 3 (1995–96)
Season 4 (1996–97)
Season 5 (1997–98)
''The X-Files'' (1998)
Season 6 (1998–99)
Season 7 (1999–2000)
Season 8 (2000–01)
Season 9 (2001–02)
''The X-Files: I Want to Believe'' (2008)
Season 10 (2016)
Season 11 (2018)
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:The X-Files Episodes
X-Files
X Files
Episodes
Episodes may refer to:
* Episode
An episode is a narrative unit within a larger dramatic work or documentary production, such as a series intended for radio, television or streaming consumption.
The noun ''episode'' is derived from the Gree ...