©Courtesy of “Creed”
It’s official. Production of the Ryan Coogler-led reboot of the “X-Files” franchise is underway at Hulu. The project was ordered after several years of development. The pilot episode was penned and directed by Coogler, with filming completed earlier this year.
Danielle Deadwyler (“Rooster“) and Himesh Patel (“The Odyssey“) will lead the series, playing two experienced but very different FBI agents who unexpectedly become close friends when they are placed in charge of a dormant unit dealing with mysterious cases.
Director Coogler, responsible for films like “Sinners,” “Creed,” and “Black Panther,” has been working on this project for several years and is serving as an executive producer alongside Jennifer Yale, who handles the showrunners’ duties for “Underground” and “See.” Coogler makes the following statement:
“I’ve loved The X-Files for a long time, so getting the chance to write and direct the pilot has meant a great deal to me. What Chris Carter created is special, and we wanted to honor everything that made the original series connect with so many people while also finding our own way into that world. Danielle and Himesh, along with the rest of our cast, have brought such original perspectives and performances to these characters, and watching that come together has been one of the most rewarding parts of the experience. I couldn’t have asked for better collaborators than my crew, colleagues at Proximity Media and our partners at Onyx Collective and 20th Television. I’m grateful for the trust and support they’ve given us as we take on this new chapter.”
The original series featured David Duchovny’s FBI agent Fox Mulder and Gillian Anderson’s FBI agent Dana Scully, who investigated mysterious cases including a cosmic conspiracy related to alien invasions alongside occasional supernatural occurrences.
A total of 218 episodes were created across eleven seasons, alongside the production of two feature films – the series ultimately establishing itself as a milestone in genre television.
The order was not a sure thing. Earlier in the year, Hulu famously declined yet another influential 1990s series sequel – “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Chloe Zhao, known for “Eternals” and “Hamnet,” was involved in the project and also worked on a pilot.