Hulu’s New ‘The X-Files’ Pilot Has Officially Wrapped Filming
I’m pretty excited about Hulu’s new take on The X-Files.
The classic sci-fi series ran for 11 seasons, spawned two feature films, and remains one of the greatest genre television shows ever made. I’d put it right up there with Star Trek in terms of influence and legacy.
I’m especially excited because I think Ryan Coogler is exactly the kind of filmmaker who understands how to honor beloved genre material while still making it feel fresh. Hopefully he avoids the trap that Jordan Peele fell into with his Twilight Zone revival, which, for me, was an absolute slog. I wanted to love it, but I found it heavy-handed, preachy, and in the vein of After School Special.
For me, The X-Files was always at its best when it leaned into the mythology. The ongoing conspiracy involving aliens, the Syndicate, the Smoking Man, and the government’s cover-up kept me glued to the television every week and eventually spilled over into both feature films. That’s not to say the standalone episodes weren’t incredible. Classics like Home, Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose, Jose Chung’s From Outer Space, and Bad Blood remain some of the greatest hours of television ever produced.
Now we’re getting an entirely new generation of investigators.
Speaking with The Direct, star Himesh Patel confirmed that filming has officially wrapped on Hulu’s pilot while revealing that he and Danielle Deadwyler will be stepping into completely original roles.
“I don’t want to say anything that’s going to get me disappeared. Needless to say, myself and Danielle Deadwyler are playing completely new characters, and we just wrapped on the pilot. If we get to do more… we’ll see where we go from there.”
That last line is the one that caught my attention.
Despite all the excitement surrounding the project, it sounds like Hulu has only ordered a pilot so far. A full series pickup hasn’t happened yet, meaning everyone involved is still waiting to find out whether The X-Files will officially return for a full season.
Personally, I’m crossing my fingers. If Ryan Coogler can capture even a fraction of what made the original series special while putting his own stamp on it, I think this has the potential to become one of Hulu’s biggest genre shows.
I want to believe.
Here are the stars joining lead stars Danielle Deadwyler and Himesh Patel:
- Amy Madigan (Weapons, Antlers)
- Steve Buscemi (Monsters, Inc., Boardwalk Empire)
- Ben Foster (30 Days of Night, Pandorum)
- Devery Jacobs (Blood Quantum, The Order)
- Lochlyn Munro (Freddy vs. Jason, Scary Movie)
- Tantoo Cardinal (The Last Manhunt, Legends of the Fall)
- Joel D. Montgrand (Finality of Dusk, Dark Winds)
- Sofia Grace Clifton (Rabbit Hole, The Marrow)
In the new take, two highly decorated but vastly different FBI agents —played by Deadwyler and Patel — form an unlikely bond when they are assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena.
Coogler wrote and directed the Hulu pilot.
The show’s original showrunner, Chris Carter, will be a non-writing executive producer on the series. Sev Ohanian and Zinzi Coogler, who are Coogler’s partners at their Proximity Media banner, are also non-writing EPs on the show.
Categorized:News Streaming / Home Video TV