Mulder ran out of things to do
20th Television
Duchovny sued Fox, and the case eventually settled out of court for $20 million. Duchovny had signed a contract to remain on “The X-Files” through the seventh season. Once his contract was up, he elected not to re-up.
Rumors at the time speculated that Duchovny was leaving the show to pursue a film career. Also, in a few interviews in 1999, Duchovny had also said that there wasn’t anywhere else for Mulder to do as a character. He said that he thought five years had been enough, and that seven years was most certainly enough. Mulder’s arc was finished. The studio agreed to keep Mulder on the show in a limited capacity, but all of the creative attention was refocusing on Doggett, much to both Duchovny’s and Gillian Anderson’s chagrin. After only so much time, Mulder was off the show. Duchovny and Anderson would eventually return to “The X-Files” in 2008 for the lackluster feature film “The X-Files: I Want to Believe.” They would also both return in 2016 for a pair of brief, follow-up seasons (with only 16 episodes between the two of them). One can speculate that Duchovny and Anderson were more cautious about their contracts following Fox’s previous debacle.
“The X-Files” was a topical show that used fantasy creatures and farfetched government conspiracies to reflect the post-Cold War angst felt by Americans who had started mistrusting their own government. It was a product of the 1990s. After 11 seasons, two feature films, and a lawsuit, it’s likely “The X-Files” will not return. But the reruns are out there.
Why David Duchovny Walked Away From The X-Files After 7 Seasons
20th Television
When Duchovny left the show, there was a lot of fan speculation as to why, leading to ongoing argumentative chicken-and-egg discussions online. Did Duchovny leave because the show wasn’t as good as it used to be, or was the show not as good as it used to be because Duchovny was eyeballing the door for a year?
The truth is, it turns out, not all that out-there. Duchovny left the show because of a problem that is becoming increasingly common with actors: The studios are finding creative ways to deny them their royalties.
The Bones case
Something similar happened with Duchovny in 1999 as it did with the “Bones” cast in 2019. “The X-Files” was an enormous hit TV series, and was syndicated in markets around the world. Reruns were common, and show creator Chris Carter was making millions thanks to the distribution deals. Thanks to some shady accounting at Fox, however, Duchovny was cut out of a lot of said deals, with money promised to him being actively denied. The story goes that Carter knew about Duchovny being ripped off, but refused to tell him. The truth came to light eventually, and Duchovny and Carter’s relationship became strained.
Mulder ran out of things to do
Duchovny sued Fox, and the case eventually settled out of court for $20 million. Duchovny had signed a contract to remain on “The X-Files” through the seventh season. Once his contract was up, he elected not to re-up.
Rumors at the time speculated that Duchovny was leaving the show to pursue a film career. Also, in a few interviews in 1999, Duchovny had also said that there wasn’t anywhere else for Mulder to do as a character. He said that he thought five years had been enough, and that seven years was most certainly enough. Mulder’s arc was finished. The studio agreed to keep Mulder on the show in a limited capacity, but all of the creative attention was refocusing on Doggett, much to both Duchovny’s and Gillian Anderson’s chagrin. After only so much time, Mulder was off the show. Duchovny and Anderson would eventually return to “The X-Files” in 2008 for the lackluster feature film “The X-Files: I Want to Believe.” They would also both return in 2016 for a pair of brief, follow-up seasons (with only 16 episodes between the two of them). One can speculate that Duchovny and Anderson were more cautious about their contracts following Fox’s previous debacle.
“The X-Files” was a topical show that used fantasy creatures and farfetched government conspiracies to reflect the post-Cold War angst felt by Americans who had started mistrusting their own government. It was a product of the 1990s. After 11 seasons, two feature films, and a lawsuit, it’s likely “The X-Files” will not return. But the reruns are out there.
Rumors at the time speculated that Duchovny was leaving the show to pursue a film career. Also, in a few interviews in 1999, Duchovny had also said that there wasn’t anywhere else for Mulder to do as a character. He said that he thought five years had been enough, and that seven years was most certainly enough. Mulder’s arc was finished. The studio agreed to keep Mulder on the show in a limited capacity, but all of the creative attention was refocusing on Doggett, much to both Duchovny’s and Gillian Anderson’s chagrin. After only so much time, Mulder was off the show.
Duchovny and Anderson would eventually return to “The X-Files” in 2008 for the lackluster feature film “The X-Files: I Want to Believe.” They would also both return in 2016 for a pair of brief, follow-up seasons (with only 16 episodes between the two of them). One can speculate that Duchovny and Anderson were more cautious about their contracts following Fox’s previous debacle.
“The X-Files” was a topical show that used fantasy creatures and farfetched government conspiracies to reflect the post-Cold War angst felt by Americans who had started mistrusting their own government. It was a product of the 1990s. After 11 seasons, two feature films, and a lawsuit, it’s likely “The X-Files” will not return.
But the reruns are out there.
