The X-Files is a phenomenon and with every last season rumors persist that it will return perhaps this time the show should be rebooted instead.





The X-Files may have been a cultural phenomenon, but the iconic TV show has run its course and a twelfth season would not be a good idea. It tapped into 90s UFO paranoia and government conspiracy so well that it spawned eleven seasons, two films, several novels and a comic book series. The legacy of The X-Files is so ingrained into the cultural zeitgeist that any media representation of aliens, UFOs or shady government agencies immediately draws comparisons with the 90s hit. However, while The X-Files shouldn’t be brought back for a twelfth season, it may actually be time for the entire show to be rebooted instead.


The X-Files and its titular FBI agents have been around since 1992 and is currently the longest-running science fiction show in US television history. The premise is simple, two FBI agents investigating the paranormal and the great American UFO conspiracy. It became a cultural phenomenon and the theme tune is instantly recognizable, even to this day. The show made stars of Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny as FBI agents Dana Scully and Fox Mulder. Each episode often stood on its own and audiences tuned in regularly to catch the "Monster of the Week" episodes, but it was the central plot, hinted at in season 1, that got people talking. There was a single mystery running through the first six seasons regarding a government conspiracy to work with an alien race. The original "mytharc" set internet forums ablaze, with fan theories and adoration.


While The X-Files keeps coming back, its plotlines have been squeezed dry. The show’s original mytharc concluded after season 6, episode 12 “One Son” when a group of alien rebels destroyed The X-Files big-bad, the Syndicate. Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully spent several seasons investigating the show’s central mystery: Are aliens real? This culminated in the reveal of an alien masterplan in the film The X-Files: Fight the Future and seasons 5 and 6. With the main story unveiled, but the show continuing to be popular, the showrunners had to devise new mysteries and have kept doing so ever since.


 The subsequent story arcs have never been as strong, having lost a lot of the original mystery of the show and trying to force conspiracy when all the cards have been dealt. Despite this, each new season continues to generate hype and it’s impossible to ignore how influential the show has been. The combination of this enduring influence, coupled with the tired, repetitive feel of recent series means that The X-Files is the perfect candidate for a reboot, beginning the search for answers again.