Most people will have to wait until January to watch the much-awaited revival of "The X-Files," the science fiction series that explores strange, unexplained cases and government conspiracies. But 3,000 lucky fans were treated to the pilot episode of the six-episode series when it debuted to a packed auditorium on Saturday at the New York Comic Con, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Thirteen years after the last episode of Season 9, the cult series is returning to Fox on Jan. 24, starring original stars David Duchovny (as FBI agent Fox Mulder) and Gillian Anderson (Dana Scully).
The season premiere, dubbed "My Struggle," opens with a voiceover by Mulder stating how his lifelong obsession with unearthing the truth and finding his abducted sister never stopped in spite of the government's efforts to shut him up.
In the episode, "Mulder and Scully are somewhat estranged," but a phone call from FBI Assistant Director Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) brings the duo back together to investigate the case of a paranoid cable news host, which leads them to a woman who says she has been a victim of alien abduction several times. "The classic narrative pushes Mulder, Scully and Skinner down a familiar road, unsure of who to believe and where the truth really lies," according to Entertainment Weekly.
The screening was followed by a panel with series creator Chris Carter, Duchovny, Pileggi and comedian Kumail Nanjiani as the moderator.
"When you bring a show like this back, you do it for the hardcore fans. They're the ones who put you there, so you're bringing it back with them in mind," Carter said, according to USA Today. "At the same time, you always hope to attract and/or entertain as big an audience as possible. So we don't belabor it for the hardcore fans, but we make sure there's a hook for the newbies."
Duchovny told the crowd he was "grateful to all you guys and to [Carter] for making it possible to come back and play this character again." He said it "just feels right" to be bringing the show back now.
Watch the full-length trailer for "The X-Files" HERE.
