"The basic story idea was one I came up with over a decade ago, working
on another show," Morgan revealed. "We didn't get to do it. I've always
wanted to, 'cause I've always loved the basic story. But there's not
many shows that would allow you to do a Werelizard."
"That was 'The Night Stalker' which was a crazy experience," Morgan
said. "Frank Spotnitz, who was an old 'X-Files' guy, was running it. And
we were told, the first day, that even though we were doing a remake of
'The Night Stalker,' we weren't allowed to do stories about monsters.
Or even use the word 'monster.' And we just couldn't believe it, 'cause
that didn't make any sense. Why you would do a remake of a show about a
man searching for monsters, and then not be able to use any monsters?"
"So I came up with the idea that: 'Well, if this idea could work,
that maybe this could prove to the network to let us do monster
episodes,'" Morgan recalled. "[But] we never got that far, 'cause the
show was canceled. But the idea always stayed with me. Of course, the
[original] 'Night Stalker' has so many similarities to the 'X-Files.' It
was a huge inspiration."
As Mulder and Scully investigate the case, the twists and turns of the
hour lead them to two new faces: Guy (Rhys Darby), a cellphone salesman,
and Pasha (Kumail Nanjiani), an animal control officer.
“This particular episode, which is a monster-of-the-week episode, I
was captivated by the twists and turns of the script, and how it was
done and how it was laid out," Darby says. "It was a little daunting,
the amount of story I had to tell. I thought it was a step up for me to
carry a lot of the episode; I was nervous. The one thing I did have in
my bag was the comedy; I knew I could make it funny…It’s pretty much
dreamy, the whole thing. It was one hell of a ride.”
"It is such a great episode," Nanjiani adds. "It is such an exciting,
interesting, unexpected take on the were-monster mythology. It's really
funny, it's really sad, it's really, really sweet. It's moving."
- Easter Eggs:
The two paint-huffing stoners (Tyler Labine and Nicole Parker Smith) previously appeared in season three episodes: "War of the Coprophages" and "Quagmire"
Mulder and pencils. Usually he
throws them into the ceiling. Here, Mulder throws his No. 2s like darts at the
ever-present "I Want to Believe" one-sheet.
How Mulder dies. Mulder remarks about how one of the victims
might have taken a midnight stroll in the nude and been attacked by a
wolf, a lion, and a bear all at the same time. "That's how I'd like to
go out," says Mulder, clearly forgetting episode "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," in which
character played by Peter Boyle said the agent's life would end as a result of
"autoerotic asphyxiation."
How Scully dies. In the same episode the Boyle
character predicted Scully's demise: "How do I die?" she asks. Bruckman
responds, "You don't." Hence Scully's "You forget …
I'm immortal" quip to Mulder in this episode.
Porta Potties. The agents first come
across Guy Mann (Rhys Darby) in a Porta Potty, which probably is
a reference to a scene in the classic episode "The Host" in
which Flukeman hides in a similar toilet.
And the guy who played the Flukeman? Darin Morgan, of course.
Guy Mann's human wardrobe is the same as Darren McGavin's character from the 1970s TV series Kolchak: The Night Stalker, which Chris Carter cites as a primary influence on The X-Files.
Alex Diakun. The motel owner is played by Canadian character actor Alex Diakun, who appeared in three prior Morgan-scripted X-Files episodes ("Humbug," "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," and "Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space'"), as well as in Millennium episode "Somehow, Satan Got Behind Me" and "Lamentation". He's the
head-transplanting lead physician in the second X-Files movie.
The red Speedo. When the motel owner
peeps into Mulder's room, he sees the agent sleeping in the infamous
red Speedo from the season-two mythology episode, "Duane Barry".
— Gillian Anderson (@GillianA) February 2, 2016
The graveyard. Mulder approaches to a
tombstone engraved with the name of the late Kim Manners, the director who helmed the most X-Files
episodes (52 in total). The epigraph
on the stone, "Let’s kick it in the ass," was a frequent Manners saying.
Jack Hardy. The tombstone Guy Mann is standing in front of is for the late Jack Hardy, an assistant director on Millennium, The Lone Gunmen, and on the second X-Files movie.
Mulder’s ringtone. After Mulder drinks himself into a stupor in the graveyard, he's woken up by his ringtone — the X-Files theme song, composed by Mark Snow.
Daggoo. The cute canine Guy Mann adopts and Scully later sneaks out of the animal shelter is a reference from time-honored Moby-Dick. In the novel, Daggoo is one of the harpooneers on the Pequod, the ship captained by the tyrannical Ahab. Scully's pet Pomeranian, Queequeg, who is
introduced in "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," is eaten by an alligator.
Queequeg is another character in Moby-Dick — a harpooneer on the Pequod and good friend to the novel's narrator, Ishmael.
1. Piper drew that!— Gillian Anderson (@GillianA) February 2, 2016
2. Mulder looks like he’s imitating it.
3. @itsSHANGELA is a damned fine actress.
#TheXFiles pic.twitter.com/dzwyLtIpjO
- Ratings (Mon, Feb 1):
Despite the rating fall, The X-Files' episode three had the biggest rating of 8.36 million viewers (2.6, -0.6 vs. last week).