David Duchovny Thinks Focus on Gillian Anderson's 'X-Files' Exit is "Unfortunate"

As each new episode of The X-Files airs, audiences are coming closer to seeing Gillian Anderson's final portrayal of Agent Dana Scully, having made it clear last fall that she was preparing to leave the character behind. Fans can't help but wonder what that means for the future of the series and if the current season will give an organic send-off to the character. Amidst all this talk about the future, co-star David Duchovny is understandably disappointed with the focus the departure is receiving.

"To me, it's unfortunate that's kind of like 'the headline' because, to me, the headline is: We just made 10 really kick-ass episodes of television, and please enjoy and don't mourn the death of this show quite yet," Duchovny shared with PopCulture.com. "It's like, OK, there are issues to deal with or whatever, but let's talk about the show. Let's not talk about hypotheticals."

He added, "It's a little cart before the horse, for me."

The series first debuted 25 years ago, which would make it understandable if any of the parties involved wanted to leave the series behind. In 2016, the show earned a six-episode revival series, with the "final" episode having aired in 2002. Many fans thought this would be the only new episodes they'd be getting of the series, with Season 11 delivering 10 new episodes.

"It felt like it wasn't over," Anderson shared at last year's New York Comic Con of why she returned for another season. "It didn't feel like we necessarily delivered everything the fans were expecting of us last time, and so it was that."

One possible reason for the focus on Anderson's departure is show creator Chris Carter giving contradictory information on the show's future.

"For me, the show has always been Mulder & Scully. So the idea of doing the show without her isn't something I've ever had to consider," Carter confessed last year during a Reddit AMA. "Was her character given a proper goodbye? I think you will want to sit down and watch the series finale very carefully."

More recently, however, Carter hinted that the series might continue.

"I think that certainlyThe X-Files has more life in it, there are more stories to tell, with Gillian or without," Carter shared with Digital Spy. "I'm sorry to see her go, I've never actually considered doing this show without her, so is this the end? It's the end of something, I don't know if it's the beginning of something new. But certainlywe will have to all put our heads together and figure out where to go from here."

With more new episodes of the series still on the way, hopefully fans will begin to appreciate these potentially final installments in the saga. You can catch The X-Files Wednesday nights at 8:00 PM ET on Fox.

[H/T PopCulture]