After years of speculation and excitement, Ryan Coogler‘s reboot of the iconic sci-fi thriller The X-Files is officially moving into production. The Hulu series is set to begin shooting its pilot episode in May 2026, with filming expected to conclude by June 2026. And the location chosen for production is one that longtime fans will immediately recognize and appreciate.
According to the parade, Vancouver, British Columbia will serve as the filming base — the same city where the original X-Files shot its first five seasons starting back in 1993. The rain-soaked streets and dense Pacific Northwest forests of B.C. gave the original show its dark, atmospheric identity. When production moved to Los Angeles in season six, many fans felt the show lost a part of its soul. Coogler’s choice to return to Vancouver is being seen as a clear creative statement — a return to the show’s true roots. During production, the series will go by the working title Alphabet Soup.
The reboot stars Danielle Deadwyler (Till, The Piano Lesson) and Himesh Patel (Yesterday, Station Eleven) as the two lead FBI agents. These are completely original characters — not new versions of Mulder or Scully. The official premise follows two highly decorated but very different agents who are paired together and assigned to a long-shuttered FBI division that investigates unexplained phenomena. The show will keep the format fans loved — standalone monster-of-the-week cases combined with a larger conspiracy mythology arc running through the series.
Coogler himself is writing, directing, and producing the pilot. Jennifer Yale joins as showrunner, and original series creator Chris Carter is attached as a non-writing executive producer. Behind the camera, acclaimed cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw — who recently shot Sinners with Coogler — will handle the visual look of the pilot. Coogler has also spoken about the personal importance of this project, sharing that The X-Files was his mother’s favorite show and that conversations with writer Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad) helped shape his creative approach.
As for the original cast, Gillian Anderson, who played Dana Scully for eleven seasons, has already read the script and called it “really good,” encouraging fans to “give it a chance because it’s gonna be f***ing cool.” She confirmed multiple conversations with Coogler, hinting at a possible appearance. David Duchovny, who played Fox Mulder, told The Hollywood Reporter that while he has spoken with Coogler, he has not read the script and does not yet know whether his character even exists in this new version of the story.
The pilot still needs a full series order from Hulu before a premiere date is announced. But with cameras heading to Vancouver next month, the X-Files universe is very much alive again.
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