Himesh Patel And Danielle Deadwyler Join Ryan Coogler's X-Files

Coogler's Hulu reboot just got a whole lot more exciting.

The truth is out there. And right now, the truth is that Ryan Coogler might be about to do for the X-Files what he did for Black Panther and Sinners: take something beloved and make it undeniable.

Hulu’s reboot of the classic sci-fi series just got a whole lot more interesting. Himesh Patel has been cast as the male lead in Coogler’s X-Files pilot, joining previously announced co-lead Danielle Deadwyler. The two will play a pair of highly decorated but vastly different FBI agents who form an unlikely bond after being assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena. Think monsters of the week. Think government conspiracies. Think two brilliant actors doing things David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson never got the chance to do.

Here is what makes this casting genuinely exciting. Patel and Deadwyler are not playing new versions of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully. These are entirely new characters, which means Coogler has the creative freedom to build something fresh inside a universe that generations of fans already love. No one is walking into this project chained to someone else’s legacy. That is a smart call.

The pairing also has real pedigree behind it. Both Patel and Deadwyler appeared in the HBO Max limited series Station Eleven, which earned widespread critical praise and introduced a lot of viewers to just how good these two can be. Patel earned an Emmy nomination for his work in that series. Deadwyler has been turning heads ever since her performance in Till in 2022 and has not slowed down since. Casting director Francine Maisler, who put together the ensemble for Coogler’s Oscar-nominated Sinners, is handling the casting on this project too. That is not a coincidence.

Coogler himself is coming into this with serious momentum. Sinners picked up 16 Oscar nominations and delivered wins including Michael B. Jordan for best actor and Coogler for best original screenplay. Now he turns his attention to one of the most iconic genre properties in television history, writing and directing the pilot himself under his Proximity Media banner. Jennifer Yale serves as showrunner and executive producer. Original X-Files creator Chris Carter is on board as a non-writing executive producer, alongside Sev Ohanian and Zinzi Coogler of Proximity Media.

As for whether Gillian Anderson might show up, do not rule it out. Anderson has publicly said she has read Coogler’s script and urged fans to keep an open mind. “Give it a chance,” she said, “because it’s going to be f---ing cool.” When Agent Scully signs off on the script, that means something.

The pilot is set to film this May through June in Vancouver, the same city where the original series shot its early seasons. No series order or premiere date has been announced yet, but with this team in place, the only real question is how soon Hulu pulls the trigger.

— REAVES // @wildreaves