Really Internet: Is Scully From ‘The X-Files’ Actually Immortal?

One of the greatest parts of the Internet is that it connects fans, and there are few things that connected fans love to do more than obsess over pop culture. Welcome to Really Internet, a column that explores some of the best and most insane Internet fan theories in an attempt to make you question everything. Today, we’re diving into a show that was practically made for fan theories: The X-Files.

Before we really get into the meat of this decades-long theory, I need to post a disclaimer. I only seriously started watching The X-Files this year, so I am far from a diehard fan. However, I do enjoy the show, and I adore stalking through insane Reddit threads, so I feel confident tackling the surface level of this complicated theory. Let’s dive in.

WHAT’S THE THEORY?

The skeptical Scully (Gillian Anderson) is actually immortal. Since this theory really took root in Season Three of the series (1995-1996), this one pre-dates the Internet a bit. However, between the reboot and Reddit, it’s gained more attention recently.

THE SUPPORT

This theory arguably comes with the biggest piece of support you can imagine — the show’s creator confirmed it. During a Reddit AMA, a user asked Chris Carter if Scully was immortal, to which he responded, “Yes, it said so right in the show.” Assuming that Carter was telling the truth and not joking (we’ll get to that in a minute), let’s say for the sake of this argument that Scully is really immortal. So, when did that happen?

Scully’s immortality was first addressed in the Season Three episode, “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose.” Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully ask a psychic how each of them will die, and Clyde Bruckman tells them that Scully won’t die at all (Mulder’s going from autoerotic asphyxiation, BTW). However, fans have speculated that Scully didn’t really become immortal until the Season Six episode “Tithonus.” That episode is when Scully meets a 149-year-old photographer named Fellig, who instructs Scully to “look away” from death like he did. Once she does, Fellig dies, and his immortality is passed on to her, or so the fan theory goes. This article does a great job outlining all the immortality possibilities out there

However, the most notable episode that supports this theory is the Season Six episode “Monday.” In that episode, Mulder and Scully get stuck in a Groundhog Day-esque time loop after Scully keeps trying and failing to prevent a bank robbery. According to Reddit user the_piranha, the time loop occurred because Scully wasn’t supposed to die. It had to reset until she survived.

[Where to stream The X-Files, “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose”]

[Where to stream The X-Files, “Tithonus”]

[Where to stream The X-Files, “Monday”]

THE OPPOSITION

There’s a possibility the immorality reveal is just a well-referenced Season Three joke between Mulder and Scully. A couple of things support this possibility. Yes, though it was said in the show, it was said to a notoriously skeptical character who continues repeat the theory as a joke about Clyde’s prediction. It’s completely possible that Carter was just messing with a beloved fan theory.

Then there’s the Darlin Morgan of it all. Morgan was the writer of Season Three’s “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose” and the revival’s “Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster.” In that revival episode, Scully’s immortality is referenced again. When asked if he thought Scully was actually immortal, Morgan said:

Strike against immortality.

[Where to stream The X-Files, “Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster”]

LOOKING FORWARD

Whether you think the entire theory is a joke or if you’re a devoted fan, this isn’t the last time the series is going to ask us to consider Scully’s possible immortality. When asked about the theory by the Huffington Post, Carter had this to say:

That’s next week, you guys. The truth is out there.

[Where to watch The X-Files]

[Watch The X-Files miniseries on Hulu]

Photos: Netflix, Hulu