‘The X-Files’: Can The Fox Series Continue Beyond Season 11?

The much-anticipated Season 11 of “The X-Files” could be the show’s final run.

In a recent interview with the New York Post, series creator Chris Carter said that he thinks the Fox series will go on as long as stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson want to do it. “It’s really Mulder and Scully, David and Gillian,” Carter said of the series. “Beyond that, it would be someone else’s role to figure out how the show might morph from there.”

Unfortunately for fans, Anderson confirmed to TV Insider that Season 11 is going to be her last. “I’ve said from the beginning this is it for me,” the 49-year-old actress told the news outlet. “I was a bit surprised by people’s [shocked] reaction to my [previous] announcement… because my understanding was that this was a single season.”

During a roundtable interview at New York Comic Con last October, Anderson was asked if she would still be open to reprise her role as Dana Scully beyond Season 11. And the actress said (via Screen Rant), “No, no, I think this will be it for me.”

When asked why she decided to return for Season 11, Anderson explained, “Because it felt like it wasn’t over. It didn’t feel like we necessarily deliver everything the fans were expecting of us last time, and so it was that.”

Duchovny, meanwhile, is up for a potential Season 12. “I’m open. I love working with these people and I love the show. I’m always open,” the actor said (via TV Insider) at New York Comic Con when asked if he would return as Fox Mulder if the network ordered another season of the sci-fi drama.

“It’s a struggle to get everyone together at the same time, regardless of what Chris says,” Duchovny admitted. “[But] if they want to do it, I’m open to do it.”

According to TV Insider, Carter had planned an open-ended conclusion for Season 11. So it will be interesting to see how the series will potentially continue without one of its lead characters.

“The X-Files” Season 11 premieres on Wednesday, Jan. 3 at 8 p.m. EST on Fox.