X (The X-Files) - Conceptual History

Conceptual History

The character of X was originally intended to be a woman, and Natalija Nogulich had been cast in the role. However, Nogulich was replaced by Steven Williams after shooting her first scene, as the writing staff felt Nogulich was not able to create the "right chemistry" with her co-stars. Williams had previous experience with writers Glen Morgan and James Wong, although it was series creator Chris Carter who suggested him for the part.

Williams' portrayal of the role was intended to act as a counterpoint to Jerry Hardin's portrayal of X's predecessor, Deep Throat. Whereas Deep Throat had been a selfless character, X was written and performed as a scared, selfish character. Prior to the episode "One Breath", Glen Morgan had felt that the character of X was not "going over too well" with fans of the series, as he seemed to simply be a copy of Deep Throat. Believing Williams to be an actor worth having as a series regular, he included in the episode a scene in which X murders witnesses who have seen him speaking to Fox Mulder. Morgan felt that such a scene reflected X's paranoia and the difference between him and his predecessor, noting that "Deep Throat was a guy willing to lose his life for letting out the secret, whereas X is a guy who's still scared". Williams has stated that he has never attempted to rationalize the character's motives or imagine a backstory for him, preferring to play the role with as little background as possible; he once stated "the less I know about him, the more interesting he becomes."

Williams' background in fight choreography, stemming from his role in Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985), allowed him to prepare for, and to help create, the character's actions scenes, including choreographing the character's brawl with Mitch Pileggi's character Walter Skinner in the episode "End Game". Williams has also stated that his portrayal of the role is based in part on Avery Brooks' character Hawk on the series Spenser: For Hire.