David Duchovny Details 'Failure' of Gillian Anderson Friendship

David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson on ‘The X-Files’

David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson had incredible chemistry on The X-Files as beloved characters Mulder and Scully, but apparently things weren’t always so rosy behind the scenes.

The duo opened up about their years-long friendship during the Tuesday, November 12, episode of Duchovny’s “Fail Better” podcast, admitting that they experienced plenty of ups and downs while filming the hit sci-fi series, which originally ran from 1993 to 2002.

“Obviously, we know each other very deeply and yet we don’t know each other either in some weird way,” Duchovny, 64, began. “Even if it’s just biographical, I don’t know that we ever sat down and said, ‘Hey, what was your childhood like?’”

The actor went on to say that when it comes to discussing his relationship with Anderson, 56, “the trickiest part” is articulating how he feels about his own actions.

“I guess I would talk about my failure of friendship or my failure of companionship or just costarring-ness,” he explained. “There was a long time working on the show where we were just not even dealing with one another off camera. And there was a lot of tension, which didn’t matter apparently for the work because we’re both f—ing crazy, I guess. We can just go out there and do what we needed to do.”

Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny on ‘The X-Files’

According to Anderson, she and Duchovny weren’t communicating when the cameras weren’t rolling.

“It’s crazy that we were able to present on camera the various feelings and emotions and attraction and all that kind of stuff, but then not speak to each other for weeks at a time,” she said, adding that she was often afraid of opening up behind the scenes. “I know that any time that I tried to express myself … the standing up for myself almost felt worse than keeping it inside.”

Fan-Favorite TV Couples Who Didn't End Up Together

Duchovny, for his part, admitted that he “could have handled myself better” during the time period when the show took off, noting that both he and Anderson were “inexperienced” when they landed their roles on the Fox drama. He also noted that he “never apologized” to Anderson when he abruptly quit the show in season 7.

“I don’t know that I even talked to you about it,” he added. “And then you said you weren’t gonna do the show anymore the last time we did it, and I know that hurt my feelings.”

Duchovny was referring to the two-season revival of The X-Files that aired from 2016 to 2018. As the final season began airing in early 2018, Anderson publicly stated that she was done playing Scully for good.

TV’s Shadiest Behind-the-Scenes Shakeups

“It’s time for me to hang up Scully’s hat. It just is,” she said during a TCA press tour at the time. “I arrived at the decision before we did [season 10], but I was really curious. I felt that the previous six [episodes were] going to be it. … There’s lots of things that I want to do in my life and in my career and it’s been an extraordinary opportunity and extraordinary character and I am hugely grateful.”

Anderson has since hinted she might be open to another reboot, but Duchovny said those initial comments made him feel like she wanted to leave the show because of him.

Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny on ‘The X-Files’

“I get it and I support it whatever you want to do, but I was like, ‘Oh, she’s quitting me, she doesn’t like working with me anymore,’” he explained on the podcast. “That little kid inside is going like, ‘Hey!’ And then I was like, ‘But I didn’t say anything to her [about my exit] back in the day.’”

Duchovny also recalled what he described as their most “dysfunctional” moment, which Anderson said she didn’t remember at all.

Why Gillian Anderson Kissed ‘X-Files’ Costar David Duchovny at 1997 Emmys

“It was some Emmys and it was the day after, and I had a private plane and I was giving you a ride, and you were late and I was so angry,” he said. “And then we sat on this private plane flying to Vancouver from L.A. not talking and you wrote me a letter. … It’s a beautiful letter. I don’t remember it exactly, but it was appreciative, it was all the things that I wanted to hear, but it’s just amazing that we couldn’t just have that conversation.”

According to Duchovny, he and Anderson began “butting heads” so early on in the production of The X-Files that creator Chris Carter asked them to engage in what would best be described as couples therapy. (They didn’t.)

Later in the episode, Anderson explained that her decision to leave The X-Files after its revival was about the writing, not Duchovny.

“It felt like Scully’s trajectory was no longer one of strength and agency,” she said. “It felt like it was beholden to an old idea of what a woman is. And that’s all she could talk about, literally all she could talk about was [her son] William and finding William.”