The X Files introduced audiences to liver eating immortals parasitic black oil and a badass FBI agent named Dana Scully Gillian Anderson. The groundbreaking show and its deep lore changed the television landscape forever and created the foundation for popular shows like Supernatural Stranger Things and American Horror Story.
Files but the electric chemistry between Anderson and David Duchovny kept the show fresh and interesting for a quarter of a century. Like aliens and probes and shady governments and coverups Mulder and Scully frequently intertwine but Gillian Anderson recently revealed one huge thing that has separated her co-star David Duchovny.
The X Files revolutionized the science fiction genre, and episodic television but was not so quick to shake off traditional gender roles. During an interview with The Daily Beast Anderson revealed that she often felt pressured to play the sidekick role and that she was offered less money than Duchovny .In the 70s and 80s popular cop and crime shows often featured male stars rescuing damsels in distress. Even Twin Peaks and Kojak two shows that directly influenced The X Files followed this traditional setup but Andersons character did not follow this trend. Instead the series featured an empowered and intelligent woman who did not follow traditional gender norms.
So much of Scully goes against accepted norms of the 70s and 80s. Her mother Sheila Larken describes young Scully as a tomboy who preferred to play with her brothers instead of her sister. As a young adult she began her career in medicine before joining the FBI, both of which are male dominated fields. Scully also breaks norms by being the skeptic in the partnership between herself and Mulder.
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