Ryan Coogler has confirmed his long-rumored The X-Files reboot is still happening. Not only that, it’s “immediately next” on his slate of upcoming projects.
While appearing on a recent episode of Last Podcast on the Left, the director said he was “fired up” to get to work on the series once he’s done promoting his new film, the vampire thriller Sinners.
“I’m working on X-Files. That’s what’s immediately next,” Coogler said. “So, I’ve been excited about that for a long time, and I’m fired up to get back to it, and that, you know, some of those episodes, if we do our jobs right, will be really fucking scary.”
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Coogler also confirmed he has spoken to Gillian Anderson and said he’s keeping his “fingers crossed” about her potential return as Agent Dana Scully.
Watch the interview below. The X-Files segment starts around 27:30.
Few details are known about Coogler’s vision for a reboot of The X-Files, other than creator Chris Carter telling CBC’s Gloria Macarenko in 2023 that the Black Panther director was going to “remount” the beloved sci-fi series with “a diverse cast.”
It’s worth noting that while Anderson quit the series after its 11th season and has been adamant about not reprising the role, she conceded in a 2024 interview with TODAY that she was “not saying no” to a reboot helmed by Coogler, whom she described as “a bit of a genius.”
“Whether I am involved in it is a whole other thing,” Anderson said. “I’m not saying no. I think he’s really cool and I think if he did it, it would probably be done incredibly well. And maybe I’ll pop in for a little something something.”
The X-Files originally aired on Fox from 1993 to 2002 and has been adapted into two feature films: 1998’s The X-Files and 2008’s The X-Files: I Want to Believe. It was revived for a 10th season in 2016, followed by its 11th and final season in 2018. All episodes are now streaming on Hulu.
