The huge stars you forgot were in The X-Files
The Fox series made Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny superstars, and they were joined by a few famous faces
The truth is out there, or at least the truth is that a lot of famous faces passed through the doors of Fox's iconic sci-fi series The X-Files during its original 1993 to 2002 run as well as its revivals in 2016 and 2018, respectively.
Led by Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny, the TV series propelled the actors to superstardom and their run as Special Agents Fox Mulder (Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Anderson) who investigated an array of paranormal cases that gripped the nation. The pair worked with a number of great actors at the time, some of whom went on to became big names in their own right after their time on the show.
Here is everything that you need to know about the biggest names to have appeared in the series.
The stars you forgot were in The X-Files
Jack Black
Already well on his way to becoming the star he is today, Jack Black made a guest appearance in the 1995 episode D.P.O as Bart "Zero" Liquori. His character is a friend of the episode's focus Darren Peter Oswald (Giovanni Ribisi), who wakes up one day to discover he has powers.
Read more: The truth about The X-Files' greatness was there right from the pilot episode
The pair come across Scully and Mulder during their investigation into some strange activity, with them meeting Black's character at the video game store where he works.
Jodie Foster
A less obvious cameo in The X-Files is of Academy Award winner Jodie Foster, who voices the character Betty in season 4's Never Again in 1997. Betty is a jealous tattoo who begins to make snide comments towards Ed Jerse, the man who got the ink after losing his divorce settlement.
Ryan Reynolds
In one of his earliest roles, Ryan Reynolds played high schooler Jay De Boom in Syzygy. The role wasn't a large one, given his character was killed after offering to drive two classmates home from a midnight vigil but it certainly was memorable when the character's coffin burst into flames.
Bryan Cranston
Before he led Breaking Bad, Bryan Cranston met Vince Gilligan on The X-Files. In the sci-fi series Cranston played antagonist Patrick Crump in season 6's Drive, a villainous role that Gilligan felt was perfect for the actor after years of his nice-guy persona on Malcolm in the Middle.
His success in the role led to his casting as Walter White in Breaking Bad, Gilligan made his name on the sci-fi series and Cranston is just one of several actors who appeared on X-Files first. Others include Dean Norris, who played Hank, and Raymond Cruz, who played Tuco.
Aaron Paul
Speaking of Breaking Bad, Cranston's co-star Aaron Paul also cut his teeth on The X-Files. Paul appeared on the show in 2001 as David 'Sky Commander Winky' Winkle in Lord of the Flies, an episode written by Thomas Schnauz who went on to work on Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.
Paul's character is the leader of a group of teens that Scully and Mulder meets after his friend died doing a stunt, only for it to be discovered he died as a result of a swarm of killer flies hidden in his brain.
Lily Tomlin
The iconic Lily Tomlin needs little introduction, and she was certainly famous before she appeared on The X-Files but that doesn't mean that viewers remember she was in it. The actor starred in the episode, How the Ghosts Stole Christmas, where Mulder and Scully visit a haunted mansion and meet the ghosts residing in it — Lyda (Tomlin) and Maurice (Ed Asner).
Octavia Spencer
Oscar winner Octavia Spencer stars in The X-Files episode Millennium as Nurse Octavia, a staffer at a mental institution that Scully and Mulder visit. Fans might best remember the episode for being the one where the FBI agents kiss for the first time, so they'd be forgiven for forgetting Spencer's part in it.
Lucy Liu
Before Charlie's Angels and Kill Bill made her a silver screen icon, Lucy Liu appeared on The X-Files as Kim Hsin, a leukemia patient whose father chooses to use dark forces to try and save her. The episode, Hell Money, sees Scully and Mulder investigate a murder in San Fransisco's Chinatown.
Burt Reynolds
One of the great Hollywood actors, Burt Reynolds appears in the season 9 episode Improbable. The actor was a big fan of The X-Files at the time and had expressed an interest in appearing on the show, he was then cast in the role of God for the episode.
Danny Trejo
The X-Files ninth season featured the episode Redrum, which starred Danny Trejo as Cesar Ocampo. The actor portrays a killer who Scully and partner John Doggett (Robert Patrick) encounter over the course of their investigation.
Dave Grohl
He may be best known as the frontman of Foo Fighters and drummer for Nirvana, but Dave Grohl also has a few acting credits to his name, including The X-Files. In an uncredited cameo, Grohl appears in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment in season 3 episode Pusher as a background character.
Minnie Driver
Another brief cameo from an A-lister in The X-Files is with Minnie Driver, the actor had already made Good Will Hunting by this point but she was perfectly happy to play an unnamed character who was part of the audience at a Lazarus Bowl screening in season 7's Hollywood AD.
Michael Bublé
Yes, really, singer Michael Bublé has appeared in The X-Files. The musician used to play extras in a variety of shows to make ends meet, and he played a member of a submarine crew in two episodes from season 3: Piper Maru and Apocrypha.
The experience was not a fun one for the musician because he was fired from the job, in an interview with TV Live Bublé revealed he lost his job after eating a hot dog from the crafts table that was intended for the series' regular cast and crew.
The X-Files is available to stream on Paramount+.
