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X (The X-Files)

April 25, 2024

X, sometimes referred to as Mr. X, is a fictional character on the American science fiction television series The X-Files. He serves as an informant, leaking information to FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully to aid their investigation of paranormal cases, dubbed X-Files. The character serves as a replacement for Deep Throat, who had been killed off in the first season finale, "The Erlenmeyer Flask". X himself would be killed off after appearing in several seasons, eventually being replaced by Marita Covarrubias.

X
The X-Files character
First appearance"The Host"
Last appearance"The Truth"
Created byChris Carter
Portrayed bySteven Williams
Natalija Nogulich (deleted scenes)
In-universe information
GenderMale
OccupationUnknown
Affiliated withMen in Black
Federal Bureau of Investigation, The X-Files
Duration1994–1996, 2002

X is portrayed in the series by Steven Williams, and made his debut in the second season episode "The Host", although the character would not appear on-screen until "Sleepless", two episodes later. The role had originally been conceived as female, with Natalija Nogulich cast in the role; however, her initial scenes were deemed unsatisfactory by the producers, leading to her replacement. Williams' portrayal of X was intended to introduce a personality completely different from the character's predecessor, Deep Throat, and was positively received by critics and fans.

Conceptual history edit

The character of X was originally intended to be a woman, and Natalija Nogulich had been cast in the role. However, Nogulich was replaced by Steven Williams after shooting her first scene, as the writing staff felt Nogulich was not able to create the "right chemistry" with her co-stars.[1] Williams had previous experience with writers Glen Morgan and James Wong,[2][3] although it was series creator Chris Carter who suggested him for the part.[4]

Williams' portrayal of the role was intended to act as a counterpoint to Jerry Hardin's portrayal of X's predecessor, Deep Throat. Whereas Deep Throat had been a selfless character, X was written and performed as a scared, selfish character.[5] Prior to the episode "One Breath", Glen Morgan had felt that the character of X was not "going over too well" with fans of the series, as he seemed to simply be a copy of Deep Throat. Believing Williams to be an actor worth having as a series regular, he included in the episode a scene in which X murders witnesses who have seen him speaking to Fox Mulder. Morgan felt that such a scene reflected X's paranoia and the difference between him and his predecessor, noting that "Deep Throat was a guy willing to lose his life for letting out the secret, whereas X is a guy who's still scared".[6] Williams has stated that he has never attempted to rationalize the character's motives or imagine a backstory for him, preferring to play the role with as little background as possible; he once stated "the less I know about him, the more interesting he becomes."[7]

Williams' background in fight choreography, stemming from his role in Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985), allowed him to prepare for, and to help create, the character's action scenes, including choreographing the character's brawl with Mitch Pileggi's character Walter Skinner in the episode "End Game".[8] Williams has also stated that his portrayal of the role is based in part on Avery Brooks' character Hawk on the series Spenser: For Hire.[9]

Character arc edit

X was introduced on the series via a phone call made to Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) in the second season episode "The Host", telling Mulder that he had "a friend in the FBI".[10][11] However, the character did not appear on-screen until "Sleepless", two episodes later, aiding Mulder in an investigation by leaking information on a secret military project from the Vietnam War.[2][12] While X's loyalties and his own agenda were often unclear, he proved more than once that he at least does not want Mulder dead. In the episode "End Game", he is approached by Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who pleads that she needs to know where Mulder is, believing his life to be in danger. Initially X refuses, and is subsequently confronted by Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi), who seemed to recognize X. He relinquishes Mulder's location, though not until after a brief but intense scuffle with Skinner.[13][14] In the episode "731", X's loyalty to Mulder is further confirmed. Trapped on a train car equipped with a time bomb, Mulder, about to escape, is attacked brutally by the Red Haired Man, a Men in Black assassin. X fatally shoots the Red Haired Man as he is about to step off the car, then boards the car with only enough time left to save either Mulder or the alien-human hybrid the car was transporting. He opts to save Mulder, and carries him off to safety just as the car explodes.[15][16]

In the season 4 opener "Herrenvolk", X's position as an informant is discovered by the Syndicate. When suspicion arises after the finding of photographs that were taken of The Smoking Man (William B. Davis) by X, false information is planted at the First Elder's behest, in order to root out the leak. Attempting to relay the information to Mulder, X goes to his apartment and is surprised by fellow Men in Black operative, the Gray Haired Man, who fatally shoots him. With his last strength, X crawls to Mulder's doorstep and writes in his own blood "SRSG", meaning "Special Representative to the Secretary General" of the United Nations, and thus, this clue leads Mulder to Marita Covarrubias (Laurie Holden).[17][18] After his death, X appears two more times—in The Lone Gunmen origin story "Unusual Suspects," set before his death, and as a ghost in the season 9 finale, "The Truth".[19][20][21]

Reception edit

If Deep Throat was a cheat code to the quest for truth, X is a [sic] walkthrough written by somebody who doesn't want to share his secrets, doesn't like you, and might not even be playing the same game.

—The A.V. Club's Zack Handlen on the series' informants.[22]

The character of X has been well-received by critics. Entertainment Weekly included the character in the list of the top 20 Black Sci-Fi Icons in 2009, at number 17.[23] Emily VanDerWerff, writing for The A.V. Club, has praised the "gravitas" of Williams' acting, adding that she wished that the writers "had figured out a way to have him around more often than they did".[24] VanDerWerff's fellow writer Zack Handlen felt that the character's assassination in "Herrenvolk" was "appropriately shocking", calling the scene "one of the most memorable death's [sic] in the series"; although he felt that the immediate introduction of the character's successor, Marita Covarrubias, "deflates the importance of X's loss" in the episode.[25] Handlen has also called X "the best of Mulder's informants", explaining that this is "because he's always pissed off, he's always reluctant to provide information, and you can't ever be sure what play he's really running".[22] Series writer Frank Spotnitz has called X "the meanest, nastiest, most lethal killer on the planet".[26]

Steven Williams has noted that he feels the episodes "Nisei" and "731" were chiefly responsible for the character's popularity with fans.[27] In 1997, Williams was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series for his work as X, alongside Gillian Anderson, William B. Davis, David Duchovny and Mitch Pileggi.[28]

Footnotes edit

  1. ^ Paul Rabwin (narrator). Deleted Scenes: Sleepless. The X-Files: The Complete Second Season (DVD). Fox Broadcasting Company. Event occurs at 00:59–01:19.
  2. ^ a b Lowry, pp. 169–170
  3. ^ Lovece, p. 116
  4. ^ Edwards, p. 99
  5. ^ Lovece, pp. 28–29
  6. ^ Edwards, pp. 104–105
  7. ^ Lowry, p.76
  8. ^ Lowry, p.77
  9. ^ Watson, Bret (February 9, 1996). ""X Files"'s supporting cast". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  10. ^ Daniel Sackheim (director); Chris Carter (writer) (September 23, 1994). "The Host". The X-Files. Season 2. Episode 2. Fox.
  11. ^ Lowry, pp. 164–165
  12. ^ Rob Bowman (director); Howard Gordon (writer) (October 7, 1994). "Sleepless". The X-Files. Season 2. Episode 4. Fox.
  13. ^ Rob Bowman (director); Frank Spotnitz (writer) (November 11, 1994). "End Game". The X-Files. Season 2. Episode 17. Fox.
  14. ^ Lowry, pp. 202–204
  15. ^ Rob Bowman (director); Frank Spotnitz (writer) (December 1, 1995). "731". The X-Files. Season 3. Episode 10. Fox.
  16. ^ Lovece, pp. 206–208
  17. ^ R. W. Goodwin (director); Chris Carter (writer) (October 4, 1996). "Herrenvolk". The X-Files. Season 4. Episode 1. Fox.
  18. ^ Meisler (1998), pp. 19–25.
  19. ^ Kim Manners (director); Chris Carter (writer) (May 12, 2002). "The Truth". The X-Files. Season 9. Episode 19 & 20. Fox.
  20. ^ Kim Manners (director); Vince Gilligan (writer) (November 16, 1997). "Unusual Suspects". The X-Files. Season 5. Episode 3. Fox.
  21. ^ Meisler (1999), pp. 12–23
  22. ^ a b Handlen, Zack (June 27, 2010). ""F. Emasculata"/"Soft Light"/"Our Town"/"Anasazi" | The X-Files/Millennium". The A.V. Club. Retrieved December 30, 2011.
  23. ^ Bernardin, Marc (January 19, 2009). "The X-Files, Steven Williams | 20 Black Sci-Fi Icons". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  24. ^ VanDerWerff, Emily (July 18, 2010). ""The Walk"/"Oubliette"/"Nisei" | The X-Files/Milllennium | TV Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  25. ^ Handlen, Zack (September 25, 2010). ""Herrenvolk"/"Pilot" | The X-Files/Millennium | TV Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  26. ^ Chris Carter, Kim Manners and Frank Spotnitz (2000). The Truth Behind Season 3. The X-Files: The Complete Third Season (DVD). FOX Home Entertainment. Event occurs at 05:45–05:51.
  27. ^ Steven Williams (narrator). Behind the Truth: X. The X-Files: The Complete Second Season (DVD). Fox. Event occurs at 00:37–00:45.
  28. ^ . Screen Actors Guild. Archived from the original on May 4, 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2012.

References edit

  • Edwards, Ted (1996). X-Files Confidential. Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 0-316-21808-1.
  • Lovece, Frank (1996). The X-Files Declassified. Citadel Press. ISBN 0-8065-1745-X.
  • Lowry, Brian (1995). The Truth is Out There: The Official Guide to the X-Files. Harper Prism. ISBN 0-06-105330-9.
  • Meisler, Andy (1998). I Want to Believe: The Official Guide to the X-Files Volume 3. Harper Prism. ISBN 0-06-105386-4.
  • Meisler, Andy (1999). Resist or Serve: The Official Guide to the X-Files Volume 4. Harper Prism. ISBN 0-06-107309-1.

April 25, 2024
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X sometimes referred to as Mr X is a fictional character on the American science fiction television series The X Files He serves as an informant leaking information to FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully to aid their investigation of paranormal cases dubbed X Files The character serves as a replacement for Deep Throat who had been killed off in the first season finale The Erlenmeyer Flask X himself would be killed off after appearing in several seasons eventually being replaced by Marita Covarrubias XThe X Files characterFirst appearance The Host Last appearance The Truth Created byChris CarterPortrayed bySteven WilliamsNatalija Nogulich deleted scenes In universe informationGenderMaleOccupationUnknownAffiliated withMen in BlackFederal Bureau of Investigation The X FilesDuration1994 1996 2002 X is portrayed in the series by Steven Williams and made his debut in the second season episode The Host although the character would not appear on screen until Sleepless two episodes later The role had originally been conceived as female with Natalija Nogulich cast in the role however her initial scenes were deemed unsatisfactory by the producers leading to her replacement Williams portrayal of X was intended to introduce a personality completely different from the character s predecessor Deep Throat and was positively received by critics and fans Contents 1 Conceptual history 2 Character arc 3 Reception 4 Footnotes 4 1 ReferencesConceptual history editThe character of X was originally intended to be a woman and Natalija Nogulich had been cast in the role However Nogulich was replaced by Steven Williams after shooting her first scene as the writing staff felt Nogulich was not able to create the right chemistry with her co stars 1 Williams had previous experience with writers Glen Morgan and James Wong 2 3 although it was series creator Chris Carter who suggested him for the part 4 Williams portrayal of the role was intended to act as a counterpoint to Jerry Hardin s portrayal of X s predecessor Deep Throat Whereas Deep Throat had been a selfless character X was written and performed as a scared selfish character 5 Prior to the episode One Breath Glen Morgan had felt that the character of X was not going over too well with fans of the series as he seemed to simply be a copy of Deep Throat Believing Williams to be an actor worth having as a series regular he included in the episode a scene in which X murders witnesses who have seen him speaking to Fox Mulder Morgan felt that such a scene reflected X s paranoia and the difference between him and his predecessor noting that Deep Throat was a guy willing to lose his life for letting out the secret whereas X is a guy who s still scared 6 Williams has stated that he has never attempted to rationalize the character s motives or imagine a backstory for him preferring to play the role with as little background as possible he once stated the less I know about him the more interesting he becomes 7 Williams background in fight choreography stemming from his role in Missing in Action 2 The Beginning 1985 allowed him to prepare for and to help create the character s action scenes including choreographing the character s brawl with Mitch Pileggi s character Walter Skinner in the episode End Game 8 Williams has also stated that his portrayal of the role is based in part on Avery Brooks character Hawk on the series Spenser For Hire 9 Character arc editX was introduced on the series via a phone call made to Fox Mulder David Duchovny in the second season episode The Host telling Mulder that he had a friend in the FBI 10 11 However the character did not appear on screen until Sleepless two episodes later aiding Mulder in an investigation by leaking information on a secret military project from the Vietnam War 2 12 While X s loyalties and his own agenda were often unclear he proved more than once that he at least does not want Mulder dead In the episode End Game he is approached by Dana Scully Gillian Anderson who pleads that she needs to know where Mulder is believing his life to be in danger Initially X refuses and is subsequently confronted by Walter Skinner Mitch Pileggi who seemed to recognize X He relinquishes Mulder s location though not until after a brief but intense scuffle with Skinner 13 14 In the episode 731 X s loyalty to Mulder is further confirmed Trapped on a train car equipped with a time bomb Mulder about to escape is attacked brutally by the Red Haired Man a Men in Black assassin X fatally shoots the Red Haired Man as he is about to step off the car then boards the car with only enough time left to save either Mulder or the alien human hybrid the car was transporting He opts to save Mulder and carries him off to safety just as the car explodes 15 16 In the season 4 opener Herrenvolk X s position as an informant is discovered by the Syndicate When suspicion arises after the finding of photographs that were taken of The Smoking Man William B Davis by X false information is planted at the First Elder s behest in order to root out the leak Attempting to relay the information to Mulder X goes to his apartment and is surprised by fellow Men in Black operative the Gray Haired Man who fatally shoots him With his last strength X crawls to Mulder s doorstep and writes in his own blood SRSG meaning Special Representative to the Secretary General of the United Nations and thus this clue leads Mulder to Marita Covarrubias Laurie Holden 17 18 After his death X appears two more times in The Lone Gunmen origin story Unusual Suspects set before his death and as a ghost in the season 9 finale The Truth 19 20 21 Reception editIf Deep Throat was a cheat code to the quest for truth X is a sic walkthrough written by somebody who doesn t want to share his secrets doesn t like you and might not even be playing the same game The A V Club s Zack Handlen on the series informants 22 The character of X has been well received by critics Entertainment Weekly included the character in the list of the top 20 Black Sci Fi Icons in 2009 at number 17 23 Emily VanDerWerff writing for The A V Club has praised the gravitas of Williams acting adding that she wished that the writers had figured out a way to have him around more often than they did 24 VanDerWerff s fellow writer Zack Handlen felt that the character s assassination in Herrenvolk was appropriately shocking calling the scene one of the most memorable death s sic in the series although he felt that the immediate introduction of the character s successor Marita Covarrubias deflates the importance of X s loss in the episode 25 Handlen has also called X the best of Mulder s informants explaining that this is because he s always pissed off he s always reluctant to provide information and you can t ever be sure what play he s really running 22 Series writer Frank Spotnitz has called X the meanest nastiest most lethal killer on the planet 26 Steven Williams has noted that he feels the episodes Nisei and 731 were chiefly responsible for the character s popularity with fans 27 In 1997 Williams was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series for his work as X alongside Gillian Anderson William B Davis David Duchovny and Mitch Pileggi 28 Footnotes edit Paul Rabwin narrator Deleted Scenes Sleepless The X Files The Complete Second Season DVD Fox Broadcasting Company Event occurs at 00 59 01 19 a b Lowry pp 169 170 Lovece p 116 Edwards p 99 Lovece pp 28 29 Edwards pp 104 105 Lowry p 76 Lowry p 77 Watson Bret February 9 1996 X Files s supporting cast Entertainment Weekly Retrieved September 16 2011 Daniel Sackheim director Chris Carter writer September 23 1994 The Host The X Files Season 2 Episode 2 Fox Lowry pp 164 165 Rob Bowman director Howard Gordon writer October 7 1994 Sleepless The X Files Season 2 Episode 4 Fox Rob Bowman director Frank Spotnitz writer November 11 1994 End Game The X Files Season 2 Episode 17 Fox Lowry pp 202 204 Rob Bowman director Frank Spotnitz writer December 1 1995 731 The X Files Season 3 Episode 10 Fox Lovece pp 206 208 R W Goodwin director Chris Carter writer October 4 1996 Herrenvolk The X Files Season 4 Episode 1 Fox Meisler 1998 pp 19 25 Kim Manners director Chris Carter writer May 12 2002 The Truth The X Files Season 9 Episode 19 amp 20 Fox Kim Manners director Vince Gilligan writer November 16 1997 Unusual Suspects The X Files Season 5 Episode 3 Fox Meisler 1999 pp 12 23 a b Handlen Zack June 27 2010 F Emasculata Soft Light Our Town Anasazi The X Files Millennium The A V Club Retrieved December 30 2011 Bernardin Marc January 19 2009 The X Files Steven Williams 20 Black Sci Fi Icons Entertainment Weekly Retrieved September 16 2011 VanDerWerff Emily July 18 2010 The Walk Oubliette Nisei The X Files Milllennium TV Club The A V Club Retrieved September 16 2011 Handlen Zack September 25 2010 Herrenvolk Pilot The X Files Millennium TV Club The A V Club Retrieved September 16 2011 Chris Carter Kim Manners and Frank Spotnitz 2000 The Truth Behind Season 3 The X Files The Complete Third Season DVD FOX Home Entertainment Event occurs at 05 45 05 51 Steven Williams narrator Behind the Truth X The X Files The Complete Second Season DVD Fox Event occurs at 00 37 00 45 The 3rd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards Screen Actors Guild Archived from the original on May 4 2012 Retrieved March 18 2012 References edit Edwards Ted 1996 X Files Confidential Little Brown and Company ISBN 0 316 21808 1 Lovece Frank 1996 The X Files Declassified Citadel Press ISBN 0 8065 1745 X Lowry Brian 1995 The Truth is Out There The Official Guide to the X Files Harper Prism ISBN 0 06 105330 9 Meisler Andy 1998 I Want to Believe The Official Guide to the X Files Volume 3 Harper Prism ISBN 0 06 105386 4 Meisler Andy 1999 Resist or Serve The Official Guide to the X Files Volume 4 Harper Prism ISBN 0 06 107309 1 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title X The X Files amp oldid 1182325408, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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