‘X-Files’ the trilogy? David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson say ‘yes’

Could “X-Files� fans be treated to a movie trilogy? If stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson have their way, the answer is “yes.�

Appearing together Saturday at the Paley Center for Media in New York City to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the series’ premiere, the actors said that they would both be amenable to making a third “X-Files� film.

“All the principals are on board,� including “X-Files� creator Chris Carter, Duchovny said. “Gillian and I want to do it, so it’s really up to 20th Century Fox at this point.�

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Whether the studio would be into the idea is up for debate after the poor box-office showing of the second film, “The X-Files: I Want to Believe,� which premiered in 2008 and took in a disappointing $4 million on its opening day.

Critical reception for the film was also weak, with many reviewers complaining that the franchise had lost its own plot.

Sequels are tough to pull off, though, and film history is littered with uneven series’ offerings. With fresh interest being generated in the “X-Files� thanks to the 20th anniversary, perhaps fans will make their desire for a trilogy heard, which is what Anderson suggested.

“If it takes fan encouragement to get Fox interested in that, then I guess that’s what it would be,� said the 45-year-old actress, who played Dana Scully alongside Duchovny’s Fox Mulder.

One of the show’s biggest points of appeal was the murky state of the relationship between Scully and Mulder. The sexual tension finally was resolved in the second movie when it was implied that the characters got married, but that left many wondering where the story could go from there.

But if Fox is in a sentimental mood for the series, which lasted nine seasons, perhaps fans now have a tip-off. The truth, after all, is still out there.

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