Fox wants to believe it can talk Gillian Anderson into making another season of The X-Files.
Anderson has said on multiple occasions that the just-launched 11th season of The X-Files would be her last as Agent Dana Scully, insisting that she'd only ever agreed to come back for this "single season".
However, Fox TV chairman Gary Newman intimated to reporters at Thursday's (January 4) TCA press tour that it's conceivable that Gillian could be talked around to returning for a future iteration at some later date.
"You could've asked [writer] Chris [Carter], David [Duchovny] and Gillian at various times since the show originally premiered whether they would do more," Newman recalled.
"Some days you'd get a 'Yes', some days you'd get a 'No'. I would not exclude the possibility that there would be more. But not only is there no plan, there hasn't been a single conversation. It's too early to even speculate."
If Gillian Anderson is really gone for good, it sounds like Fox will have to do some serious lobbying to get writer Chris Carter to forge ahead without a key player like Scully.
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"For me, the show has always been Mulder and Scully," Carter admitted this week. "So the idea of doing the show without her isn't something I've ever had to consider.
"Was her character given a proper goodbye? I think you will want to sit down and watch the series finale very carefully."
For now, The X-Files has returned to telly with a season opener that has sharply divided fans. Along with revealing the true identity of the Cigarette-Smoking Man, a key aspect of the alien mythology has also been retconned.
The X-Files airs on Wednesdays on Fox in the US. Channel 5 airs the show in the UK.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
