We want to believe. We’re more Mulders than Scullys, really; spotting flashing objects in the night sky and deciding they’re scout craft for alien explorers, not just 747s on some flight path.

That’s part of why we’re so thrilled that The X-Files, which ran for nine seasons from 1993-2002, is returning as a miniseries, with stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson and writer Chris Carter along for the ride.

As we wait, here’s where Duchovny and Anderson’s lives have gone from The X-Files and beyond – and how they’ve dovetailed with some inexplicable goings-on in the skies. We’re not saying aliens are real, but let’s recall the line from the show: Trust no one.

 

1990: The road to X

The road to ‘The X-Files’ went through 'Twin Peaks.'

The Stars: Duchovny, holding English-lit degrees from Princeton and Yale, lands a recurring role as cross-dressing DEA agent Denise Bryson on the cult favorite TV series Twin Peaks; like The X-Files, it is an unsettling show with supernatural components. (The show and character would heavily influence X-Files.) Anderson graduates from the Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago.

The Spooky: Belgium's military allegedly investigates reports of flying black triangles, which managed to avoid the attempts of F-16s to intercept them. It becomes perhaps the most famous sighting of this shape of UFO.

 

1991-1993: The journey begins

‘The X-Files’ ran for nine seasons.

The Stars: Chris Carter conceives the show, whose initial pitch was rejected by Fox and pilot was commissioned soon after. Duchovny and Anderson land the lead roles in The X-Files as FBI agents Mulder, a firm believer in aliens and government conspiracy, and Scully, his skeptical foil.

The Spooky: The Space Shuttle Discovery takes mysterious video of objects apparently flying in a controlled fashion. NASA says the video shows only ice particles.

 

1998: Movie magic and real-life mystery

The Stars: The movie The X-Files, starring Duchovny and Anderson, is released on June 19. About alien colonization and government cover-ups, the movie ended the fifth season and began the sixth. It enjoyed modest critical and box office success.

The Spooky: On June 20, nine separate UFO reports are made in North America, from Minnesota to Montreal to Canada to Texas.

 

2002: X marks the end... or does it?

The end of the show didn’t mean the end of The X-Files.

The Stars: The X-Files final episode airs on May 19, ending what was, at the time, the longest running sci-fi series on TV.

The Spooky: Also on May 19, UFO sightings are reported in British Columbia, Canada and Queensland, Australia.

 

2004-2006: Moving on… and a Moon mystery

Duchovny on the set of 'House of D.'

The Stars: Duchovny and Anderson reprise their characters in a video game, The X-Files: Resist or Serve. Duchovny would also voice a character in a game called Area 51.

Duchovny makes his feature-film directorial debut with the comedy drama House of D. He also wrote and starred in the film alongside Robin Williams, Anton Yelchin and his then-wife, Tea Leoni.

Anderson moves to London and appears in the movies Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story and The Last King of Scotland, as well as a BBC miniseries, Bleak House. 

The Spooky: Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin is interviewed by the Science Channel, and his interview is later interpreted to mean that he saw a UFO on the way to the Moon. Aldrin later says he thinks the sighting was just a reflection, but many want to believe anyway.

2007-2008: A return to theaters

 

Duchovny, Anderson and Carter on the set of 'The X-Files' sequel

The Stars: Duchovny begins starring in the edgy Showtime series Californication as an alcoholic writer whose bad behavior has alienated his family (OK, yeah, we went there).

Anderson becomes the first woman to host Masterpiece Theatre. She also stars in How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (har har). 

Chris Carter returned to direct Duchovny and Anderson in the long-delayed X-Files sequel, The X-Files: I Want to Believe, which was meant as a stand-alone movie featuring the characters. Released July 24, 2008, it was probably too late to the party to hit big with audiences.

The Spooky: A craft measuring 1-by-1.5 miles is spotted over then-president George W. Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas.

 

2013-2015: Booking it and taking a ‘Fall’

In 2013, Anderson began starring in 'The Fall,' set in Northern Ireland.

The Stars: Anderson and coauthor Jeff Rovin publish the first book in their sci-fi thriller series The EarthEnd Saga. She also begins starring in the BBC crime series The Fall as a detective hunting a serial killer (Jamie Dornan of Fifty Shades of Grey).

Duchovny publishes his first novel, Holy Cow: A Modern-Day Dairy Tale in February. In May, he releases his first album, the rootsy adult-rock Hell or Highwater.

The Spooky: The CIA publicly acknowledges the existence of Area 51. Strange lights disturb the skies over Los Angeles.

 

2016 and beyond: The truth is still out there

The Stars: After several years discussing a third movie, Duchovny and Anderson will reunite after 14 years in a six-episode miniseries continuing The X-Files, airing January 24 on Fox.

Duchovny also will return for a second season of Aquarius, the NBC crime drama inspired by the Charles Manson murders. His second novel, Bucky F*cking Dent: A Novel, will be released in April.

Anderson's busy year ahead also includes reprising her role as Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire on the New York stage, starring in the BBC One adaptation of War and Peace, returning in a third season of The Fall, and publishing both a self-help book and the third novel in the EarthEnd series.

The Spooky: It remains to be seen… but keep your eyes on the skies.