The X-Files television series logo with large illuminated X on black background

X-Files

1993TV seriesclassic

Published October 8, 2026

The X-Files is an American science fiction drama that aired on Fox from 1993 to 2002, following FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully as they investigated paranormal cases3. The show built a massive online fandom and spawned a 2016 miniseries revival that drew about 13.5 million viewers across its premiere1.

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Overview

The show pairs a believer with a skeptic. Fox Mulder, played by David Duchovny, chases cases involving aliens, mutants, and government conspiracies, while Dana Scully, played by Gillian Anderson, pushes back with scientific explanations5. The partnership became the template for countless detective duos that followed, and the catchphrase 'I Want to Believe', printed on a poster in Mulder's office, moved into fan vocabulary as shorthand for paranormal hope.

Across nine original seasons and 202 episodes, the series mixed standalone 'monster of the week' plots with a sprawling mythology arc about alien colonization and shadow government conspiracies3. The slow-burn Mulder/Scully romance drove heavy shipping culture in fan communities years before the term 'shipping' hit the mainstream5.

Origin & Background

Platform
Fox (TV network)
Creator
Chris Carter
Date
1993

The X-Files premiered on Fox on September 10th, 1993, created by Chris Carter3. The original run went nine seasons and ended on May 19th, 2002, and the franchise added two feature films, Fight the Future in 1998 and I Want to Believe in 2008.

How It Spread

Fox announced a revival miniseries on March 24th, 2015, with Duchovny and Anderson returning under Chris Carter's direction, and the news drove roughly 110,000 X-Files mentions on Twitter in the following 48 hours. The six-episode miniseries premiered on January 24th, 2016 and drew about 13.5 million U.S. viewers for the premiere, though critics gave it mixed reviews with a 58 Metacritic score and a 51% Rotten Tomatoes rating1.

Online fandom carried the show between its original run and the revival. All nine seasons went to streaming on Hulu Plus and Netflix2, and the show's YouTube presence helped introduce the series to viewers who missed its original Fox broadcast4. The official Facebook page passed 1.2 million likes by March 2014, and Tumblr tags like #xfiles and #Iwanttobelieve stayed active across the 2010s.

The 'I Want to Believe' UFO poster is widely quoted and parodied in sci-fi TV and recreated as fan prints and T-shirts, and still gets referenced whenever conversations drift to aliens or government cover-ups5.

Timeline

1993-09-10

The X-Files premieres on Fox, launching the Mulder and Scully partnership.

1998

Feature film The X-Files: Fight the Future released during the show's original run.

2002-05-19

The original nine-season run ends with the series finale.

2008

Second feature film The X-Files: I Want to Believe released.

2014-03

The X-Files Facebook page passes 1.2 million likes, reflecting an active online fandom.

2015-03-24

Fox announces the revival miniseries with Duchovny, Anderson, and Carter returning.

2016-01-24

The six-episode revival premieres and draws about 13.5 million U.S. viewers.

Frequently Asked Questions