XFN Exclusive: Chris Carter on #XFilesRevival

There's just so many people that you'd want to talk to at this moment in X-Files history; the first of which is the show's creator, Mr. Chris Carter. This conversation takes place on March 25th, 2015 as he drives down the California coast and as I sit 3,938 miles away, by my desk with a weak cup of coffee. After the deserved congratulations are exchanged, I tell him that we need to know just how excited he is to come back to The X-Files.

"I'm very excited." Carter starts. "I've known about (the greenlight) for quite a long time, the negotiations took so many months, I can't believe it! They were just finalized on Monday, so this is all brand new."

As we first reported during the late summer and in interviews Chris Carter engaged in during the fall of 2014, there were a few mentions of interest in turning the XF3 project into a mini-series instead of a movie. Multiple media outlets had reported that talks started to heat up in November 2014, with a formal declaration of intention by FOX TV at the TCA's in January 2015. With the fandom, the cast, and the crew now joining in the conversation, the final and official confirmation that the show will be back has been received with the highest of praises.

Carter seems pleased with the reaction. "Certainly, everyone else is really excited which makes me excited. But as I said, it's been a long time in the making."

The Details.

Carter confirms that the show will return over the summer to the place that saw the beginning of it all: Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. At XFN, we've already received reports from former crew of the show that are nothing but ecstatic at the thought of shooting more X-Files in the city known for its mood.

"We already know that Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny are set to go, but who else will be back?" I have a list of burning questions and it's lengthy.

"I have ideas for everyone," he explains at my mention of the possibility of having Mitch Pileggi, Annabeth Gish, and Robert Patrick reprise their iconic roles. "Their availability is subject to their regular paying jobs. Of course, I'd like to bring everyone possible back, but it's who's going to fit into the story and who's available."

We've already heard through the grapevine from the man himself that William B. Davis was consulted about his availability. Likewise, the possibility of repopulating the X-Files realm with fresh blood is a topic that has been thrown around as well. Amanda Peet, Xzibit and Billy Connolly were brought over for The X-Files: I Want To Believe, so what's in store for the revival?

"Well, I don't want to reveal all my tricks, but I can tell you there will be some obvious choices and there will be some surprises." Carter laughs dubiously at this.

As for the people behind the camera, Carter is able to confirm that he would like to bring back as many people he's worked with in the past as he can. The show will count once again on the talents of composer Mark Snow, but the return of cinematographer and director Bill Roe would depend on his ability to free up time away from his current job at Castle. He's also not the only former X-Files alum working over at Castle, director Rob Bowman is both executive producing and directing for the ABC show.

When queried about the writers and producers that could join his team, Carter confirms that Glen Morgan will be coming back in a productorial position. "We've lured Darin Morgan and Jim Wong, we're very excited about that and we're working on the rest." He adds. Hopefully we can get a confirmation on Frank Spotnitz soon enough.

"Are you excited to be leading this writer's room again?" I ask.

"Yes, very excited." He pauses to explain. "The exciting thing to me is that I love to tell X-Files stories... so the opportunity to tell these stories in a very new political environment, it is exciting."

What can we expect on the screen?

Chris Carter mentions that there will be a nice mix of mythology and stand alone episodes, but what is the set up after all is said and done? Will this be the final ride or are we keeping the door open?

"It's a good question," he snickers. "I don't want to answer it exactly because I wanna keep people guessing." If the man of mystery and I were in the same room, I'm betting that statement would have come with a wink.

The reality is that it's been seven years since the last movie, and we always wonder what would be the storyline to tackle? How would time affect these characters, and how would time shift the way in which these stories would be told? After all, the world has changed, and so has TV and you would expect that time has also shown face in Mulder and Scully's universe.

But Carter is firm in his response, "I don't think it will actually change anything, of course, with the new technology we'll certainly see Mulder and Scully carrying different cell phones." At this point in our conversation, our call becomes an X-File in and of itself when a grey whale surfaces catching Carter's attention as he drives... and while this is quite an epic experience, and I feel it brings a good omen for what's to come, I wonder if there is a Monica Reyes joke in there somewhere.

Still, he assures me that time won't influence the stories, per se. "We're going to tell X-Files the way that we've always told them; we will of course set them in the time and place that they exist. We're telling contemporary stories about contemporary situations, true to Mulder and Scully's characters and their relationship and the passage of time."

"But where do we land? Are we going to have a time jump? Are we going to address the 2012 deadline? And what about William?" I ask.

"I've thought about that," he says referring to the colonization date. "I don't know exactly how I'm going to address it, in a big way, a mild way, a modern way, a mention or a plot point." Then he adds, "And of course you can't avoid to deal with the William (arc) in some way or another."

"What kind of stories from our current reality, the Normal or Weird news on the shows do you think will make it to the screen?" I ask about the influences he may have from our time.

"I read all the time, I'm always on the internet... I just love the information you sent to me." Back in 2014, when the Venezuelan conflicts and the Chavista government killed over forty protesters, we shared a report on the situation from the inside since I've been living in Venezuela for a good part of the last two years. He continues, "I catalogue (the stories), I collect them and I'll use them as they're fit to be used in the stories we're telling."

Carter also clarifies that while he thinks that IDW's The X-Files: Season 10 plot lines are very interesting, they won't be used in the revival of the TV show.

I also manage to sneak in a few other stray questions before wrapping up our call. For those interested, Chris Carter will address that thing he wanted to fix back in the day. He also wonders about the possibility of updating the iconic titles for the show. "You know I've thought about that long and hard; it would be kind of sacrilegious to mess with them, that said, I'd like to explore if not a tweak, a little update."

Certainly with High Definition quality available, crisp images would be a great treat.

Imagining what's coming we can't avoid reminiscing on what's already been part of the lore of The X-Files team in the production phase, like the pranks to mislead the spoiler hunters and paparazzi, and so many other stories that we've shared over the years. So I ask, "Have you picked out the name for your location and basecamp signs?"

"We haven't chosen that yet," he laughs. "But I promise you that it will be something new, and perfect." We suggest NOT ID4, DOCTOR GOOGLE and BARKING DOGS.

So what are Chris Carter's final words in this conversation for the fans who have been out there campaigning and hoping since 2008 for a new spin on this ride? What's the message to those that never gave up?

"We'll do everything we can to make it so that it's worth the wait."

Personally, I couldn't be more thrilled to be living this moment of X-Files history.

 
 
FONTE: X-Files News (USA)

 

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