The X-Files Is Back: Ryan Coogler Reveals New Lead and Showrunner for Hulu Reboot
Nearly three years in the making, Ryan Coogler’s X-Files reboot is officially moving at Hulu: a pilot order is in, and both a lead star and showrunner are locked as the sci-fi classic readies a new chapter.
Well, it finally happened: Ryan Coogler's The X-Files reboot just scored a pilot order at Hulu, nearly three years after he first started cooking it up. And yes, there is a lead attached, a showrunner in place, and a logline that makes it clear this isn't just a nostalgia play.
So what is this thing?
"The reboot follows two highly decorated but vastly different FBI agents who form an unlikely bond when they are assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena."
Classic X-Files recipe, new ingredients. The pilot will be written and directed by Coogler.
The team and the lead
Danielle Deadwyler has been tapped as one of the co-leads. She earned a BAFTA nomination for Till and has quietly been stacking strong work across TV: Paradise Lost, P-Valley, Station Eleven, and From Scratch, plus a one-episode guest spot in The Bear Season 4. She also has two high-profile gigs on deck: HBO's Steve Carell comedy Rooster and Euphoria Season 3.
Jennifer Yale (The Copenhagen Test) is running the show and executive producing.
The key players
- Creator of the original: Chris Carter
- Pilot: written and directed by Ryan Coogler
- Showrunner/EP: Jennifer Yale
- Executive producers: Ryan Coogler, Sev Ohanian, Zinzi Coogler, Simone Harris, Chris Carter
- Producers/Studios: Proximity Media, Onyx Collective, 20th Television
- Deal note: Part of Coogler's five-year exclusive television pact with Disney
Why this is interesting
Hulu opting for a pilot (not a straight-to-series) tells me Coogler wants to set the tone himself before anyone commits to a full season. Deadwyler as co-lead is a sharp, confident pick. And getting Yale onboard signals a proper rebuild rather than a plug-and-play revival.
A quick refresher
The original X-Files ran for nine seasons on Fox from 1993 to 2002, then returned for Seasons 10 and 11 in 2016 and 2018. It followed FBI agents investigating the weird and unexplainable, anchored by David Duchovny as Fox Mulder and Gillian Anderson as Dana Scully. The ensemble over the years also included Robert Patrick (John Doggett), Annabeth Gish (Monica Reyes), William B. Davis (Cigarette Smoking Man), and Mitch Pileggi (Walter Skinner).
Now we wait to see how Coogler's version reframes the paranoia and the monsters for right now. If the pilot hits, expect this one to move fast.