The X-Files(TV show/series, 1993-2018)

The eleventh and final season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files premiered on January 3, 2018, on Fox. The season consists of ten episodes and concluded on March 21, 2018. It follows newly re-instated Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson). The season's storyline picks up directly after last season's finale and the search for Mulder and Scully's son William is the main story arc of the season. ()

The tenth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing in the United States on January 24, 2016, on Fox. The season consists of six episodes and concluded airing on February 22, 2016. When Fox initially announced the string of episodes, the network referred to them collectively as an "event series". After the episodes' release, Fox began referring to the string of episodes on their website as "season 10", as did streaming sites like Amazon Prime and Hulu, and myriad critics. The season, which takes place fourteen years after the ninth season (2001–02) and seven years after the film The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008), follows newly re-instated Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) as they learn more about the existence of extraterrestrials and their relationship with the government. Ever since The X-Files: I Want to Believe debuted in theaters, there was talk of a third X-Files movie to wrap-up the series' remaining storylines. However, for years these talks never resulted in action until on March 24, 2015, Fox announced that the series would return as a short-format event series with six episodes. After the season aired, it received mixed reviews from critics. Th... ()

The ninth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing in the United States on November 11, 2001, concluded on May 19, 2002, and consists of twenty episodes. The season takes place after Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) goes into hiding, following the events of the eighth season finale, "Existence". As such, the main story arc for the season follows Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), John Doggett (Robert Patrick), and Monica Reyes (Annabeth Gish) on their hunt to reveal a government conspiracy involving the elaborate and malevolent creation of "Super Soldiers". For this season, former series' leads Duchovny and Anderson scaled back their involvement with the show, with Duchovny only starring in the two episodes that formed the season finale, "The Truth". Doggett and Reyes became the show's central characters, and former recurring character Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) became a main character. Series creator Chris Carter had hopes that the show could continue on with new leads, and the opening credits were accordingly redesigned again. Season nine received mixed reviews from critics and garnered a negative reaction from many long-time fans and viewers, partially because Duchovny did not make regular appearances on the show, after fulfilling hi... ()

The eighth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing in the United States on November 5, 2000, concluded on May 20, 2001, and consisted of twenty-one episodes. Season eight takes place after Fox Mulder's (David Duchovny) alien abduction in the seventh season. The story arc for the search of Mulder continues until the second half of the season, while a new arc about Dana Scully's (Gillian Anderson) pregnancy is formed. This arc would continue, and end, with the next season. The season explores various themes such as life, death, and belief. For this season, Duchovny elected to return only as an intermittent main character, appearing in only half of the episodes. Actor Robert Patrick was hired as a replacement for Mulder, playing John Doggett. The season also marked the first appearance of Annabeth Gish as Monica Reyes, who would become a main character in the ninth season. In addition to the cast change, series creator Chris Carter updated the opening credits, which had remained unchanged since the first season. Season eight was received well by critics but was less warmly received by fans, many of whom were unhappy that Duchovny reduced his role and that Patrick took over as co-lead alongside Anderson. Ratings for the season were ini... ()

The seventh season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on November 7, 1999, concluded on May 21, 2000, and consists of twenty-two episodes. Taking place after the destruction of the Syndicate, this season marks the end of various other story lines; during this season, Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) learned the true fate of his sister, Samantha. Before the broadcasting for the season began, Duchovny sued Fox and eventually announced his decision to leave the show. As a result, the season would be the last to feature Duchovny in a full-time capacity until the show's tenth season (which aired in 2016), although he would return in seasons 8 and 9 as an intermittent main character. Due to this eventual character change, this season would be the last to feature the original opening sequence for the series, as two years later, the intro was updated in an attempt to renew and revive the series. The seventh-season premiere "The Sixth Extinction", debuted with a Nielsen rating of 10.6 and was viewed by 17.82 million viewers, marking a noticeable drop in viewership since the sixth season. The series fell from number 12 to number 29 for the 1999–2000 television year. Critically, the show's seventh season rec... ()

The sixth season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on November 8, 1998, concluding on the same channel on May 16, 1999, and consisted of twenty-two episodes. The season continued from the 1998 feature film and focused heavily on FBI federal agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully's (Gillian Anderson) separation from the X-Files Division and the demise of the Syndicate—a "shadow government" group attempting to cover up the existence of extraterrestrials—in the two-part episode "Two Fathers" and "One Son". The season was the first to be filmed in Los Angeles, after production was moved from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This move was done largely at the behest of Duchovny, who wished to be closer to his wife, Téa Leoni. Series creator Chris Carter opposed the move, although series director Kim Manners and Anderson approved of it, although to a less-vocal degree than Duchovny. The first half of the season also saw Mimi Rogers and Chris Owens' characters—Diana Fowley and Jeffrey Spender, respectively—become recurring characters. Despite debuting with high viewing figures and ranking as the twelfth most watched television series during the 1998–99 television year, the season saw... ()

The fifth season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on November 2, 1997, concluding on the same channel on May 17, 1998, and contained 20 episodes. The season was the last in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; subsequent episodes would be shot in Los Angeles, California. In addition, this was the first season of the show where the course of the story was planned, due to the 1998 The X-Files feature film being filmed before it, but scheduled to be released after it aired. The fifth season of the series focused heavily on FBI federal agents Fox Mulder's (David Duchovny) loss of faith in the existence of extraterrestrials and his partner, Dana Scully's (Gillian Anderson), resurgence of health following her bout with cancer. New characters were also introduced, including agents Jeffrey Spender (Chris Owens) and Diana Fowley (Mimi Rogers) and the psychic Gibson Praise (Jeff Gulka). The finale, "The End", led up to both the 1998 film and the sixth season premiere "The Beginning". Debuting with high viewing figures and ranking as the eleventh most watched television series during the 1997–98 television year in the United States, the season was a success, with figures averaging around 20 million viewers an ... ()

The fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on October 4, 1996, concluding on the same channel on May 18, 1997, and contained 24 episodes. Following the filming and airing of the season, production began on The X-Files feature film, which was released in 1998 following the show's fifth season. The fourth season of the series focuses heavily on FBI federal agents Fox Mulder's (David Duchovny) and his partner Dana Scully's (Gillian Anderson) investigation of an alien conspiracy, which is protected by the mysterious Syndicate. Midway through the season, Scully is diagnosed with terminal cancer, a result of her previous abduction, and Mulder begins to lose his faith in the idea of extraterrestrials.Debuting with high viewing figures and ranking as the twentieth most watched television series during the 1996–97 television year in the United States, the season was a success, with figures averaging around 20 million viewers an episode. This made it, at the time, the highest rated season of The X-Files to air. The season's twelfth episode, "Leonard Betts", was chosen as the Fox lead-out program following Super Bowl XXXI, and was viewed by 29.1 million viewers, making it the highest-rated epi... ()

The third season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on Fox in the United States on September 22, 1995, concluded on the same channel on May 17, 1996, and contained 24 episodes. The season continues to follow the cases of FBI special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, portrayed by David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson respectively, who investigate paranormal or supernatural cases, known as X-Files by the FBI. The season features the conclusion of several plot-lines introduced in season two, while also introducing several new plot elements. Major plot arcs include an elaborate conspiracy being discovered when an alien autopsy video is acquired by Mulder, Scully's search for the killer of her sister, and the mystery surrounding X (Steven Williams). Pivotal characters such as the First Elder (Don S. Williams) and the alien virus black oil were first introduced in this season. In addition, the season features a wide variety of "Monster-of-the-Week" episodes, stand-alone stories not of influence to the wider mythology of the series. The season attained higher ratings than season two, the highest viewing audience the series had yet achieved. Season premiere "The Blessing Way" debuted with a Nielsen household rating of 19.94, which more than d... ()

The second season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 16, 1994, concluded on the same channel on May 19, 1995, after airing all 25 episodes. The series follows Federal Bureau of Investigation special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, portrayed by David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson respectively, who investigate paranormal or supernatural cases, known as X-Files by the FBI. The second season of The X-Files takes place after the closure of the department following the events of the first season finale. In addition to stand-alone "Monster-of-the-Week" episodes, several episodes also furthered the alien conspiracy mythology that had begun to form. Season two introduced several recurring characters—X (Steven Williams), an informant to Mulder; Alex Krycek (Nicholas Lea), Mulder's partner-turned-enemy; and the Alien Bounty Hunter (Brian Thompson), a shape-shifting assassin. The storylines were widely affected by the pregnancy of actress Gillian Anderson; it was decided that Scully would be kidnapped and abducted by aliens, explaining her absence and allowing her to appear comatose two episodes later, which ultimately added more intricacies to the mythology. The season earned seven Primetime Emmy... ()

The first season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 10, 1993, and concluded on the same channel on May 13, 1994, after airing all 24 episodes. The first season introduced main characters of the series, including Fox Mulder and Dana Scully who were portrayed by David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, respectively, and recurring characters Deep Throat, Walter Skinner, and Cigarette Smoking Man. The season introduced the series' main concept, revolving around the investigation of paranormal or supernatural cases, known as X-Files, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; it also began to lay the groundwork for the series' overarching mythology. Initially influenced by Kolchak: The Night Stalker and The Twilight Zone, series creator Chris Carter pitched the idea for the series to Fox twice before it was accepted for production. The season saw the series quickly gaining popularity, with ratings rising steadily throughout its run; and garnered generally positive reviews from critics and the media. It helped to make stars of its two lead roles, and several of its taglines and catchphrases have since become cultural staples. ()