After a successful six-episode event series in 2016,The X-Filesare returning once again for Season 11, with Fox dropping the newX-Files Season 11 trailertoday during New York Comic Con. While Fox hasn’t renewed the series beyond this upcoming season quite yet, Season 10 was such a big hit that some may think the renewal will ultimately happen, but if Season 12 is in fact announced, it may have to go on without Gillian Anderson. The actress revealed during a New York Comic Con interview that she thinks this last season will be the last for her. Here’s what she had to say, when asked if she was open to returning for Season 12 and beyond.
“No, no, I think this will be it for me.”
The answer is quite surprising to many fans, although there hasn’t been any indication that a 12th Season is even being considered. Still, during the New York Comic Con panel today,X-Files creator Chris Carterteased that this season will end on a big cliffhanger, just like Season 10 did, but, obviously, no details about this cliffhanger were given. It’s possible that the cliffhanger this time around could in fact involve the death of Dana Scully, but that’s just speculation at this point. When asked why she wanted to return for Season 11, and not a potential Season 12, the actress had this to say
“Because it felt like it wasn’t over. It didn’t feel like we necessarily deliver everything the fans were expecting of us last time, and so it was that.”
The actress also admitted that she didn’t know how she’d feel about saying goodbye to her iconic characterDana Scully, revealing that she won’t know how it feels until a few years after she’s been fully removed from the character. She did admit that, “there’s always been this ‘maybe one more’ thing hanging over” the series, so it’s possible that if the show is renewed, she still might be back as Dana Scully, alongside her longtime partner Fox Mulder (David Duchovny). That will likely depend on how popular this new season truly is when the show returns in early 2018.
The all-new 10-episode installment once again will be executive-produced by creator Chris Carter, with stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson returning in their roles as iconic FBI AgentsFox Mulderand Dana Scully. The event series will air during the 2017-2018 season. Production is set to begin in summer 2017. “Iconic characters, rich storytelling, bold creators, these are the hallmarks of great TV shows. And they are some of the reasons whyThe X-Fileshas had such a profound impact on millions of fans worldwide,” said David Madden, President, Fox Broadcasting Company. “Chris' creativity, along with the brilliant work of David and Gillian, continue to propel this pop culture phenomenon, and we can’t wait to see what fresh mysteries Mulder and Scully uncover in this next chapter ofThe X-Files.”
In 2016,The X-Filesdrew an average Multi-Platform audience of nearly 16 million viewers and was last season’s No. 2 broadcast drama. It also was the season’s most talked-about event series on Twitter.The X-Filesoriginally premiered in September 1993. Over the course of its nine-season run, the influential series went from breakout sci-fi favorite to massive global hit, and became one of the most successful television dramas of all time. The show, which earned 16 Emmy Awards, five Golden Globes and a Peabody Award, follows FBI special agents Scully (Anderson) and Mulder (Duchovny) as they investigate unexplained cases, X-Files, for which the only answers involve paranormal phenomena. If theX-Files revival event seriescan match or exceed the ratings of the six-episode season, it wouldn’t be surprising if Fox ordered a new season, but then it will be interesting to see if Gillian Anderson would really be finished with the series or not. The actress doesn’t clarify any more about her status with the show in herScreen Rantinterview, but hopefully we’ll have more about the show soon.
