My Encyclopedia of My X-Files Fic Lists, Analyses, Fan Vids, and Fan Fiction Resources
So, I pushed all my little anthills into one dust pile because I got sick and tired of having to manually search through my colonies to find that ONE drone.
The X-Files's Season 9:
Did 20th Century Fox or CC End the Show?
While going through the past, I was struck by how much power
Chris Carter seemed to wield when closing the show.
November 3, 2000:
“I know Fox would love it to be on the air next year, but there are many factors,” Carter said. “David doesn’t have a contract for next year, and I’m sure he’d be looking for a rich deal. I don’t have a contract for next year. Most importantly, I want to make sure I’m working toward something. I don’t want to ever let this show peter out or just die of its own weight. This show has to be good for me to continue, and that’s what I’m working to do this year. If I’m satisfying myself that it can be good, I would certainly consider it.”
January 18, 2002:
The truth about Fox’s “The X-Files” is finally out there: Come May, the series will end, after nine seasons.
Executive producer Chris Carter told Fox programmers on Wednesday that he wants to end the show this season. [...]
January 25, 2002:
Spotnitz also doesn’t see a connection between FOX’s pickup of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator Joss Whedon’s science-fiction series “Firefly,” and “X” creator Chris Carter’s subsequent announcement that his show was over. “No, it’s just a coincidence, because the decision really was Chris’, and the timing of it was Chris’. He came to them. He had thought about it over the Christmas vacation. We delivered two really strong episodes at the beginning of January, and the audience wasn’t any bigger. He said, ‘Let’s get out while we’re ahead. We don’t want to limp out.'”
May 17, 2002:
CC: I thought that [Season 9] was a new show that could have built a new audience, but I wasn’t interested in seeing “The X-Files” damaged at all or criticized unfairly, so I decided to call it a day and focus on the upcoming movies.
At first glance, this is at odds with previous, corroborating Ten Thirteen statements, i.e. if CC left, then Fox would continue the show without him. The creation remains with the company, not the creator, after all.
March 31, 1997:
By the new year, Carter was spending almost no time on The X-Files, and it should have come as no surprise when he announced his intention to leave both shows, The X-Files after season five and Millennium after season two (reportedly the most that Fox had promised him). “I think five years is a good length of time to do something,” he said. “I have said to David and Gillian that I just want to do five really good years and then be able to look back and say that we did our best work. Anything past that is gravy to me.” [...]
Although Carter implied that he would prefer for the show to end upon his departure, Fox responded to his announcement by commencing a search for his replacement – after all, stars Duchovny and Anderson are contracted through to the end of season six, and although Fox has already sold the show into record-breaking syndication deals, it has no plans to kill the only series that continues to show growth.
November 3, 1999:
"I don't know what their plans are. But it's their show. They can put it on without any of the principals being involved."
April 22, 2008:
AVC: Lost, a show that’s obviously been influenced by The X-Files, made a big deal about announcing a definitive end point. Was that ever considered for The X-Files?
CC: No, the reason… We went to season five and we did the movie. Actually, at the end of season four, I could have left, and I might have opted to. My contract was up, and I could have left, and it would have been a successful show. But it was clear that Fox was going to—because it was a powerhouse for their schedule and for their network—the show was going to go on, and it would have gone on without me. And I had made a pledge to the actors that I would stay with the show as long as they did. And that kept me going, so there was not an end point imagined, which was a result of the fact that Fox was not going to end that show anytime without a reason to end it. And I think that it’s a luxury for the creators of Lost to be able to have an end point, and to have a network that supports it. I’m sure the network is not happy about it, because it is a business first, and entertainment second. And they get to put one before the other, which is a luxury that I didn’t actually have or imagine.
Be that as it may, these two accounts-- Carter's thin line of creative control and Carter's ability to close The X-Files-- appear contradictory.
Turns out, both are true: CC was able to close the show because 20th Century Fox had lost interest.
January 18, 2002:
Fox executives had been having informal discussions about the show’s future, but Carter pulled the trigger, according to Sandy Grushow, chairman of the Fox TV Entertainment Group.
January 22, 2002:
Carter “had been thinking provisionally about ending the show for a couple of years” because of several “business” reasons, including [D]uchovny’s desire to leave, and Carter’s own contract expiring (he signed a new one for this season).
The Complete X-Files:
"Scary Monsters" features the return of Leila Harrison, who refers the X-Files team to a psychotic young telepath who can create the illusion of giant killer insects. The show was significant for The X-Files cast and crew for another reason during its production; Chris Carter announced that The X-Files would end with this season.
Robert Patrick recalls when he heard the news: "We were halfway through season nine, and Chris came on the set and watched me shoot a scene. And he hadn't done that since the first scene I had shot. And when the scene was over, I said, 'Is everything all right?' And he said, 'Walk with me.' And we walked to my trailer, and in this very calm, Chris Carter way, he said, 'I wanted you to be the first to know, this is it.' I said, 'What do you mean this is it?' And he went, 'This is going to be the end.'"
Patrick was devastated. It was then that he noticed that Fox's new series 24 was being heavily promoted by the network even though its ratings were not significantly better than The X-Files. "I was asking people, 'Boy, it seems like you're spending a lot of money promoting this 24. What's going on with our show?'" Patrick recalls. "I vaguely remember getting the feeling like we had been abandoned by Fox. That's probably one of the reasons why Chris decided not to do it."
In a sordid sort of way, it's probably a good thing The X-Files continued until Season 9: if CC hadn't agreed to come back (via a yearly contract basis, signed after Season 7 and again after Season 8), then the studio would have gone on without him.
On the flip side, however, Frank Spotnitz was planning to helm S9 in Carter's absence--
November 21, 2001:
The X-Files writer-producer Frank Spotnitz told us that he’s not sure if there will be a 10th season of the SF series, but he added that this year’s episodes are being crafted with an eye towards the possibility. “One of the first things this season, before we even knew if [series creator] Chris [Carter] was coming back, was figuring out how the show would work for season nine, and then how it could work for seasons 10 and 11 and beyond if the audience were there,” Spotnitz said in an interview.
What could have been, we'll never know.
CONCLUSION
tl;dr 20th Century Fox lost interest and Chris Carter seized the opportunity to end on a (relative) high note.
Ultimately, the writers and actors were glad CC stayed aboard-- they gave him great testimonials, enthused about his capabilities, and supported him in his endeavors. While fans (myself included) weren't satisfied with the results, there was, perhaps, a bigger picture at play: outlasting or losing to Fox.
The X-Files's Season 9:
Did 20th Century Fox or CC End the Show?
While going through the past, I was struck by how much power
Chris Carter seemed to wield when closing the show.
November 3, 2000:
“I know Fox would love it to be on the air next year, but there are many factors,” Carter said. “David doesn’t have a contract for next year, and I’m sure he’d be looking for a rich deal. I don’t have a contract for next year. Most importantly, I want to make sure I’m working toward something. I don’t want to ever let this show peter out or just die of its own weight. This show has to be good for me to continue, and that’s what I’m working to do this year. If I’m satisfying myself that it can be good, I would certainly consider it.”
January 18, 2002:
The truth about Fox’s “The X-Files” is finally out there: Come May, the series will end, after nine seasons.
Executive producer Chris Carter told Fox programmers on Wednesday that he wants to end the show this season. [...]
January 25, 2002:
Spotnitz also doesn’t see a connection between FOX’s pickup of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” creator Joss Whedon’s science-fiction series “Firefly,” and “X” creator Chris Carter’s subsequent announcement that his show was over. “No, it’s just a coincidence, because the decision really was Chris’, and the timing of it was Chris’. He came to them. He had thought about it over the Christmas vacation. We delivered two really strong episodes at the beginning of January, and the audience wasn’t any bigger. He said, ‘Let’s get out while we’re ahead. We don’t want to limp out.'”
May 17, 2002:
CC: I thought that [Season 9] was a new show that could have built a new audience, but I wasn’t interested in seeing “The X-Files” damaged at all or criticized unfairly, so I decided to call it a day and focus on the upcoming movies.
At first glance, this is at odds with previous, corroborating Ten Thirteen statements, i.e. if CC left, then Fox would continue the show without him. The creation remains with the company, not the creator, after all.
March 31, 1997:
By the new year, Carter was spending almost no time on The X-Files, and it should have come as no surprise when he announced his intention to leave both shows, The X-Files after season five and Millennium after season two (reportedly the most that Fox had promised him). “I think five years is a good length of time to do something,” he said. “I have said to David and Gillian that I just want to do five really good years and then be able to look back and say that we did our best work. Anything past that is gravy to me.” [...]
Although Carter implied that he would prefer for the show to end upon his departure, Fox responded to his announcement by commencing a search for his replacement – after all, stars Duchovny and Anderson are contracted through to the end of season six, and although Fox has already sold the show into record-breaking syndication deals, it has no plans to kill the only series that continues to show growth.
November 3, 1999:
"I don't know what their plans are. But it's their show. They can put it on without any of the principals being involved."
April 22, 2008:
AVC: Lost, a show that’s obviously been influenced by The X-Files, made a big deal about announcing a definitive end point. Was that ever considered for The X-Files?
CC: No, the reason… We went to season five and we did the movie. Actually, at the end of season four, I could have left, and I might have opted to. My contract was up, and I could have left, and it would have been a successful show. But it was clear that Fox was going to—because it was a powerhouse for their schedule and for their network—the show was going to go on, and it would have gone on without me. And I had made a pledge to the actors that I would stay with the show as long as they did. And that kept me going, so there was not an end point imagined, which was a result of the fact that Fox was not going to end that show anytime without a reason to end it. And I think that it’s a luxury for the creators of Lost to be able to have an end point, and to have a network that supports it. I’m sure the network is not happy about it, because it is a business first, and entertainment second. And they get to put one before the other, which is a luxury that I didn’t actually have or imagine.
Be that as it may, these two accounts-- Carter's thin line of creative control and Carter's ability to close The X-Files-- appear contradictory.
Turns out, both are true: CC was able to close the show because 20th Century Fox had lost interest.
January 18, 2002:
Fox executives had been having informal discussions about the show’s future, but Carter pulled the trigger, according to Sandy Grushow, chairman of the Fox TV Entertainment Group.
January 22, 2002:
Carter “had been thinking provisionally about ending the show for a couple of years” because of several “business” reasons, including [D]uchovny’s desire to leave, and Carter’s own contract expiring (he signed a new one for this season).
The Complete X-Files:
"Scary Monsters" features the return of Leila Harrison, who refers the X-Files team to a psychotic young telepath who can create the illusion of giant killer insects. The show was significant for The X-Files cast and crew for another reason during its production; Chris Carter announced that The X-Files would end with this season.
Robert Patrick recalls when he heard the news: "We were halfway through season nine, and Chris came on the set and watched me shoot a scene. And he hadn't done that since the first scene I had shot. And when the scene was over, I said, 'Is everything all right?' And he said, 'Walk with me.' And we walked to my trailer, and in this very calm, Chris Carter way, he said, 'I wanted you to be the first to know, this is it.' I said, 'What do you mean this is it?' And he went, 'This is going to be the end.'"
Patrick was devastated. It was then that he noticed that Fox's new series 24 was being heavily promoted by the network even though its ratings were not significantly better than The X-Files. "I was asking people, 'Boy, it seems like you're spending a lot of money promoting this 24. What's going on with our show?'" Patrick recalls. "I vaguely remember getting the feeling like we had been abandoned by Fox. That's probably one of the reasons why Chris decided not to do it."
In a sordid sort of way, it's probably a good thing The X-Files continued until Season 9: if CC hadn't agreed to come back (via a yearly contract basis, signed after Season 7 and again after Season 8), then the studio would have gone on without him.
On the flip side, however, Frank Spotnitz was planning to helm S9 in Carter's absence--
November 21, 2001:
The X-Files writer-producer Frank Spotnitz told us that he’s not sure if there will be a 10th season of the SF series, but he added that this year’s episodes are being crafted with an eye towards the possibility. “One of the first things this season, before we even knew if [series creator] Chris [Carter] was coming back, was figuring out how the show would work for season nine, and then how it could work for seasons 10 and 11 and beyond if the audience were there,” Spotnitz said in an interview.
What could have been, we'll never know.
CONCLUSION
tl;dr 20th Century Fox lost interest and Chris Carter seized the opportunity to end on a (relative) high note.
Ultimately, the writers and actors were glad CC stayed aboard-- they gave him great testimonials, enthused about his capabilities, and supported him in his endeavors. While fans (myself included) weren't satisfied with the results, there was, perhaps, a bigger picture at play: outlasting or losing to Fox.
On the note of season 7/season of secret sex, why does everyone seem so sure that scully was playing with mulder’s tie in rush? I still can’t see this
Rush's Tie Twirl and Timeline
I can understand that, anon. So, here's the clip!
To prove the tie twirl, I must explain the slight shift from Position A to B.
At the beginning of the clip, Scully is at rest in Position A: parallel to Mulder, shoulders straight across, distance between them.
The shift to Position B begins after she looks down and says, "Mulder...": her right arm moves forward, angling her body towards him, closer in.
While she continues, there is a distinctive rustling of either material-on-material friction or her fingers rubbing material between them.
Her attention remains fixed where her hand is.
Position A is regained after she says, "Please? Just..." and pouts:
her arm snaps abruptly back to her side, leveling her shoulders (and dropping whatever she was fondling.)
When she finishes, "...for me?" we get a glimpse of Mulder's face before Scully switches gears and becomes serious again.
Now, granted, Scully could have been fiddling with Mulder's coat or a button hole or a bunch in his shirt or his hand or her hand (though there isn't an audible skin-on-skin noise) if not his tie, but she was fiddling with something. Otherwise moving her hand forward, keeping it in empty air, then pulling it back only after pleading her case wouldn't make sense.
So, the most plausible explanation would be....
-Timeline: Production Drafts-
Here's a fun little aside I've thought up.
One of the quirks in Rush is its timetable, specifically a date printed on one of the teenager's exam papers (here.) If taken at face value, this would place the episode around Thanksgiving, before New Year's 2000.
After investigating the production dates, I discovered (and will prove) the episode was crafted after Millennium.
Millennium, September 13, 1999:
Rush, September 17, 1999 and Rush, September 24, 1999 respectively:
Which means Millennium's kiss (courtesy of John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz) was written no later than September 17.
Which means Rush was written after the kiss was penned.
Which means Rush was created off in the "after" era.
Couldn't find filming dates of either episode (probably wouldn't matter, regardless), but the on-screen goof can probably be explained by an oversight: Rush was aired December 5, which means a lot of its production was taking place during November (leading up to Thanksgiving.) Some exhausted or misinformed crew member must have accidentally included the wrong detail.
(Besides, timelines were never clear in The X-Files, anyway.)
-Bonus-
Want more content?
You can find a gifset of Scully's insane levels of flirtation (and territoriality) here. And this gifset. And this one. And this. And that.
And Mulder's crack here.
@agent-troi's Rush meta here (including a line from Mulder) and here.
My entrance meta here. @fringephile's thoughts/screenshots here. @scullysbagelbites's thoughts here. @unremarkablehouse's thoughts on Scully's turtleneck (hickies) here and etc. here.
My season of secret sex meta here.
Lastly, this is an open invitation to everyone: include your Rush thoughts in the reblogs or tags below. It's open season. Have at!
Fail Better with Gillian Anderson:
the Private Plane
In 2024, the detail of DD's private plane stuck with me. I've since scoured hill and dale for an explanation; but although there have been mentions here and there around '98-'99 (e.g. he's usually a nervous flier, has said he doesn't like private, and would prefer to opt for commercial), the real reason eluded me.
Until now.
March 1998:
Duchovny is given one return journey a month by Fox TV between Vancouver and Los Angeles in a private plane, a concession he was granted when he got married. This evening he is flying home to spend his first night in he and Leoni's new home.
The article also provides a snippet of DD and Blue's monthly route
(with CC quietly on board discussing Chinga.)
Fail Better with Gillian Anderson:
the Private Plane
In 2024, the detail of DD's private plane stuck with me. I've since scoured hill and dale for an explanation; but although there have been mentions here and there around '98-'99 (e.g. he's usually a nervous flier, has said he doesn't like private, and would prefer to opt for commercial), the real reason eluded me.
Until now.
March 1998:
Duchovny is given one return journey a month by Fox TV between Vancouver and Los Angeles in a private plane, a concession he was granted when he got married. This evening he is flying home to spend his first night in he and Leoni's new home.
The article also provides a snippet of DD and Blue's monthly route
(with CC quietly on board discussing Chinga.)
HJ: We mostly had serious conversations about our lives. [West: Yeah, yeah. Yeah] And, like, how we, you know, like, similarities in growing up and stuff like that. [...]
I'll point out - and maybe some of you at home know this - but you both have famous parents, right?
HJ: Yes. [Laughs.]
West: That, that was the similarities that Harlow was alluding to.
Interviewer: Talk a little about, what is that like? Do you, like, when you get a job like this and your parents are actors, do you feel an added pressure? [Both nodding.] Because you don't - you know what I'm asking you? [Both: Yeah, yeah.] Can you talk a little bit about it?
HJ: I don't, I think it probably depends on the kind of person you are and how you, like, respond to, to pressure and stress. [West nods.] But I, I felt the pressure for sure. And I've felt it in so many different ways. And, like, I've even gone into audition rooms and, like, the first thing they'll say to me is, like, 'I love your mom!' Like, now I have to, like, kind of embarrass myself in front of you by doing my, like, paltry acting. [West: No.] You know what I mean? So yeah, there was pressure because it feels like you have big shoes to fill.
Interviewer: It feels like you have big shoes to fill. What about you, West?
WD: Yeah, I think so. I think I try my best to just let that be... not something that I'm thinking about when I'm on set. [Interviewer: Okay.] I, I, I love, I think... it's complicated. But I think it's fun when people have, like, great stories to tell me about my parents; and when they like my parents, it makes me feel proud-- [Interviewer: Oh, that's so nice!] --to come from them. And I think, I think, I, I, I love acting. And so I think just trying to focus on that. And-- but it's hard. I mean, the noise is there. So, just, you just do the best that you can and hope that people start liking you-- [HJ: You!] --in the way that they like your parents.
Interviewer: Exactly. And how do the parents feel about this particular job? Like, were they psyched for you?
WD: So, our moms did a movie called Flirting with Disaster when they were-- [HJ: Years ago.] --they were both young.
HJ: Kind of, maybe our age?
WD: Older than us. [HJ: Oh, older than us.] But young. And so that was really fun-- [Interviewer: Oh!] --when we found out that we were working together, to tell our moms. And, yeah. [HJ: Yeah, it was really cute.]
Interviewer: So, everybody was really supportive?
West: Yeah.
HJ: Yeah, really supportive. My parents - my mom was, like, over the moon: she was, like, crying. When she found that, like, I had gotten the job [...] she was so cute. [...]
Interviewer: You know, because a lot of times I think maybe parents in Hollywood would be, like, 'I don't want you to go down that road.'
HJ: Yeah.
WD: That was my mom.
Interviewer: 'It's not an easy life.' Um, I'm a novelist. My daughter and I wrote, have written two books together as of this time. And I don't want her to be a novelist necessarily, unless it's absolutely what she wants to do, right? But it's so hard to be successful at it. And I would say to her, you know, 'You can do it with me;' and it was fun. But if she wants to go out on her own, I might say to her, 'Just be aware it's not as easy as we've now made it look 'cause I've been doing it for so long.' So, I wasn't sure if your parents had any warnings like that.
WD: That's how my mom - my mom was very much, kind of vehemently against it at the beginning. Now, she's a huge support system and amazing. But I think that was her concern. And she was like, 'You have to love it! You have to not imagine yourself doing anything else--' [HJ: Yeah.] '--because it's grueling. And in order to put up with that much rejection and that much, you know, just... pain.' [Interviewer: Scrutiny, yeah.] You have to, you have to really love it. But when you do, it's like, there's nothing you can do about that.
HJ: Yeah.
BONUS
West discussing mom empathy:
I think as you mature and you take on more and more as a person, you realize that that's everyone else's experience, too. And being a mother and being responsible for, for other humans. And my mom is a total protector and such an enthusiast and so positive, and she made life so happy and full and exciting. And she was doing it while dealing with all her stuff.
West discussing mixing friend groups:
I love when people I love get along. It doesn't - you know? It's so much more fun. And then you all hang out together, and sometimes it's more successful than others. I love when friends of mine start having their own little relationships. I'm like, 'Yes! Yes.' Oh, it makes me so happy.
On the note of season 7/season of secret sex, why does everyone seem so sure that scully was playing with mulder’s tie in rush? I still can’t see this
Rush's Tie Twirl and Timeline
I can understand that, anon. So, here's the clip!
To prove the tie twirl, I must explain the slight shift from Position A to B.
At the beginning of the clip, Scully is at rest in Position A: parallel to Mulder, shoulders straight across, distance between them.
The shift to Position B begins after she looks down and says, "Mulder...": her right arm moves forward, angling her body towards him, closer in.
While she continues, there is a distinctive rustling of either material-on-material friction or her fingers rubbing material between them.
Her attention remains fixed where her hand is.
Position A is regained after she says, "Please? Just..." and pouts:
her arm snaps abruptly back to her side, leveling her shoulders (and dropping whatever she was fondling.)
When she finishes, "...for me?" we get a glimpse of Mulder's face before Scully switches gears and becomes serious again.
Now, granted, Scully could have been fiddling with Mulder's coat or a button hole or a bunch in his shirt or his hand or her hand (though there isn't an audible skin-on-skin noise) if not his tie, but she was fiddling with something. Otherwise moving her hand forward, keeping it in empty air, then pulling it back only after pleading her case wouldn't make sense.
So, the most plausible explanation would be....
-Timeline: Production Drafts-
Here's a fun little aside I've thought up.
One of the quirks in Rush is its timetable, specifically a date printed on one of the teenager's exam papers (here.) If taken at face value, this would place the episode around Thanksgiving, before New Year's 2000.
After investigating the production dates, I discovered (and will prove) the episode was crafted after Millennium.
Millennium, September 13, 1999:
Rush, September 17, 1999 and Rush, September 24, 1999 respectively:
Which means Millennium's kiss (courtesy of John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz) was written no later than September 17.
Which means Rush was written after the kiss was penned.
Which means Rush was created off in the "after" era.
Couldn't find filming dates of either episode (probably wouldn't matter, regardless), but the on-screen goof can probably be explained by an oversight: Rush was aired December 5, which means a lot of its production was taking place during November (leading up to Thanksgiving.) Some exhausted or misinformed crew member must have accidentally included the wrong detail.
(Besides, timelines were never clear in The X-Files, anyway.)
-Bonus-
Want more content?
You can find a gifset of Scully's insane levels of flirtation (and territoriality) here. And this gifset. And this one. And this. And that.
And Mulder's crack here.
@agent-troi's Rush meta here (including a line from Mulder) and here.
My entrance meta here. @fringephile's thoughts/screenshots here. @scullysbagelbites's thoughts here. @unremarkablehouse's thoughts on Scully's turtleneck (hickies) here and etc. here.
My season of secret sex meta here.
Lastly, this is an open invitation to everyone: include your Rush thoughts in the reblogs or tags below. It's open season. Have at!
Have I mentioned that I think Mulder apologizing immediately when Scully pulls away from him in the hallway is directly related to his father deflecting his hug with a handshake in Colony?
one of the best things about Mulder and Scully’s particular brand of repressed codependency is that they are either so in sync that they are communicating via telepathy and microexpressions or they are somehow missing a point that’s blatantly obvious to everyone else in a 30 ft radius
