It’s official: the truth is moving to Hulu. After months of rumors and cryptic teases, Ryan Coogler’s reimagining of “The X-Files“ has finally secured a pilot order. Here is the breakdown of what we know about the return of the FBI’s spookiest division.
The New Faces of the Unexplained
While we aren’t looking at a Mulder and Scully retread, the DNA of the original remains; the pilot will follow two “highly decorated but vastly different” FBI agents assigned to a long-closed department handling paranormal cases.
Danielle Deadwyler (Till, The Harder They Fall) is officially on board as one of the leads. The search for her partner is still on. Though they will have big shoes to fill, Maulder’s.
The good news is that Ryan Coogler is taking a hands-on approach—he’s set to write, direct, and executive produce. Jennifer Yale (See, Outlander) will step in as the showrunner. Fans of the original can breathe easy. Creator Chris Carter is attached as an executive producer, ensuring the reboot stays true to its roots.
A Personal Mission for Coogler
This isn’t just another gig for Coogler. Much like how he revitalized the Rocky franchise with Creed as a tribute to his father, this project is for his mother, Variety reports.
“Like my relationship with ‘Rocky’ with my dad, ‘The X-Files’ is one of those things with my mom,” Coogler told Variety in October 2025. “My mom means the world to me…so this is a big one for me. I want to do right by her and the fans. My mom has read some of the stuff I wrote for it. She’s fired up.”
The Long Road to the Pilot
Talks of this reboot first surfaced in 2023 when Chris Carter mentioned Coogler’s interest in a modern take on the series. Under his Proximity Media banner and as part of an overall deal with Disney, Coogler has been quietly developing the project through Onyx Collective and 20th Television. All while making one of the largest films we’ve seen come out of the genre in decades, Sinners. And it continues to rack up awards left and right.
With a pilot order now locked in, it won’t be long before we see if the two new agents can capture the same lightning in a bottle as the original.
History And Legacy
To understand why a Ryan Coogler reboot is such a big deal, you have to look at the massive shadow the original series cast over pop culture. “The X-Files” didn’t just have fans; it changed the way people watched TV.
When the show premiered on Fox in September 1993, it was a total underdog. Created by Chris Carter, it introduced the world to the ultimate “Odd Couple.” Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) is the intuitive “believer” obsessed with finding his sister. Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), the medical doctor and “skeptic,” was sent to investigate cases using scientific methods. The two, who had amazing chemistry, thrived together as they investigated the strange and otherworldly.
The show became a massive hit by blending two storytelling styles: “Monster of the Week” (stand-alone horror/sci-fi stories) and “Mytharc” (a complex, season-long government conspiracy involving alien colonization).
At its peak in 1998, the show was so popular that it jumped to theaters with the movie The X-Files: Fight the Future, which bridged the gap between Seasons 5 and 6.
The show was a franchise juggernaut, spawning Millennium (1996) and the short-lived but fan-favorite The Lone Gunmen (2001). However, David Duchovny left as a series regular after Season 7, leading to new leads played by Robert Patrick (Agent Doggett) and Annabeth Gish (Agent Reyes). The original run ended in 2002 with Season 9.
After a second film in 2008 (I Want to Believe), the series went dark for nearly a decade until Fox brought it back for two “Event Series,” a 6-episode return that pulled massive ratings, proving the hunger for the “Truth” was still there. An eleventh season delivered a 10-episode run that delved deeper into Mulder and Scully’s son, William. But that’s where their story ended.
Featuring a library of over 200 episodes, “The X-Files” is one of the most beloved and long-running series in history. If you want to relive the original series, you can find it streaming on Hulu, Prime Video, and more.
