Apr-18-2000
The X-Files Magazine [US, #14, Summer 2000]
The Next Files
[Typed by Gayle]
You have to hand it to Frank Spotnitz. No matter how busy he is, The X-Files executive producer always makes time to answer our questions. And right now, in the midst of wrapping up the show for the year, putting together the Lone Gunmen spinoff and juggling many more new projects at Ten Thirteen Productions, you can bet he’s pretty busy.
The X-Files Official Magazine: You described Season Seven as “the year of the actor.” How did David Duchovny’s new episode and Gillian Anderson and William B. Davis’ first episodes take shape?
Spotnitz: David’s getting to be an old hand at this. This is the second one he’s written by himself. He co-wrote “The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati,” and he contributed story ideas in previous seasons. He’s the veteran. Gillian came to Chris early in the season with an idea that she’s worked on very, very hard. I think it’s going to be exceptional and unlike anything we’ve done before. Bill Davis, we talked about his idea for months and months before we finally hit upon just the right way to approach it. He went off and started writing and then we went through the revisions process, like any other writer. What I really liked about it [was the pairing of Scully with the CSM] because the truth is you haven’t seen much of those characters together at all. When you think back on the mythology of the show, there are obvious connections to draw between those two characters. I thought it was a really interesting idea.
The X-Files Official Magazine: How did you manage to schedule the episodes to allow the actors enough time to prepare for their behind-the-camera duties?
Spotnitz: For their own separate reasons, it turned out that David and Gillian’s episodes needed to be shot in the order that they were, but it really works out perfectly. David is light in Gillian’s episode, so he can be prepping his directorial effort while that is shooting. Everything just fell into place. We had to be very clever in the way the script preceding Gillian’s was written. She had to be very light in that to make time for her to prep her directing. That story works out very nicely because Scully comes in by telephone. It really is a Mulder case.
The X-Files Official Magazine: Can you reveal anything about the finale?
Spotnitz: Of course not. [Laughs]. What I would say is that Chris has always had in his mind what the end of the mythology is. I think you will see important ideas about the relationship between Mulder and Scully, what they mean to each other, and about what the catch phrase of the series, “The Truth is Out There,” means. Beyond that, I would be as vague as I always am about these things.
The X-Files Official Magazine: Will any characters die?
Spotnitz: I wouldn’t be surprised.
The X-Files Official Magazine: What other developments are in the works at Ten Thirteen?
Spotnitz: There are a number of movies I can only hint about because none of them are definite yet. There are a lot of things going on actually, it’s just which one of these horses will exit the gate. We’re preparing ourselves for life after The X-Files, whether that’s the end of this year or the end of next year. The movie development process being what it is you need to start thinking about it early because it takes a long time for things to become reality. We’re as busy as we’ve ever been in that respect. There are so many ideas floating around.
Tags: frank spotnitz, x-files