andPOP » X-Files

Interview with Former 24 Executive Producer, Howard Gordon

Lauren Treihaft — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 14:06:12 +0000

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While most of the eastern half of North America is buried under a foot of snow, Howard Gordon, writer and producer of hugely popular franchises such as “The X-Files” and “24″, has been ditching the snowpocolyspe and spending time at his home in sunny Los Angeles. However, don’t be fooled, Gordon has not been out soaking up the sun. He has been hard at work on his new (and first) novel, Gideon’s War, and his position as executive producer of the upcoming Showtime political drama, “Homeland.”

“It was like a scene from ’24.’ I was racing the clock and running around Casablanca trying to find a fed-ex store to meet my editors deadline,” Gordon tells andPOP, when asked how he had the time to finish his charged political thriller, Gideon’s War. Though he began drafting the novel during the writers strike in 2007, he finished it once “24″ was over while he was traveling with his son in Egypt and Morocco. “I was finishing it in hotel rooms and airplanes.” Hardly a desirable situation, though the writer/producer says that he does his best writing on airplanes.

The book is about Gideon Davis, an American peacemaker, who is called upon by his father figure to get his brother, Tillman Davis, out of trouble. Tillman has become a rogue agent in Southeast Asia who is responsible for many deaths and has highjacked a billion dollar oil rig. Tillman however has agreed to be escorted to Washington D.C., and will turn himself in, but only if his brother is on the job.

Like elements of ”24″, the book explores the relationship between two brothers. This appears to be a common thread in Gordon’s work. “There is something I love about the relationship between brothers. I am one of 3 brothers myself.” Gordon says that it was interesting to set up a character dynamic in which one brother is a complete pacifist and the other a complete terrorist. Gordon says any parallels between Gideon and the beloved Jack Bauer were unintentional. “Jack and Gideon are not cut from the same club. Gideon is a more wounded character who doesn’t have a family like Bauer. He keeps people at arm’s length.” However, each character is heavily involved with foreign policy. Gordon says he doesn’t know where his interest in foreign policy began. He went to Princeton and was interested in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. “I think my interest comes from a patriotic place. There is a tremendous idea behind America. You could call it American exceptionalism or pluralism. Even though not everything is right, every citizen has a civic duty to their country.”

Gordon has worked in Hollywood for many years as a producer and a screenwriter. Often times screenwriters try to make the jump between writing for film and television and penning a novel only to see their efforts turn out poorly. Gordon is definitely an exception to this. His novel is both gripping and well crafted. Gordon says that screenwriting for many years aided him in the process of writing a novel. “You can’t help but have one influence the other. There is an inevitable relationship between the two. Writing a book is certainly more of a novel experience because it is something new for me. There is a more collaborative effort between the reader and author. It is a different way to communicate and tell a story.” Rather than starting the book by knowing the entire story and ending Gordon began writing with the relationship between the brothers in mind.

Gordon is now working on the follow-up novel which he says will still have a strong family element and will be more densely plotted. Right now he is focusing his efforts on his new television series for Showtime, “Homeland,” which stars Claire Danes. Due to its Showtime run, the show will “take more time to tell a story rather than building towards a commercial break. The quality of the show is more like an independent film. It will have deeper involved stories and characters.”

As for the “24″ movie that we’ve all been anxiously awaiting, Gordon says, “it is still in conversation. It is not dead or alive.”

‘X-Files’ Director Dies

Ilan Mester — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 01:03:00 +0000

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Established director and TV producer who directed over 50 episodes of ”The X-Files” and episodes of “Supernatural” died on Sunday in Los Angeles at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center from lung cancer.

Kim Manners started in showbiz as a director and production manager for “Charlie’s Angels” in the 70’s. He later went on to work on series like “21 Jump Street,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” “Baywatch” and later went on to direct the “X-Files” for which he received four Emmy nods due to his work on the show.

“Kim had a blazing intensity that inspired everyone—writers, producers, actors and crew…as long as he’d been a director, he never lost his passion for his work. Every time he got a script, he gave it his all,” said Frank Spotnitz, writer and producer of “The X-Files,” on his blog.

Eric Kripke, writer and producer for “Supernatural,” released a statement saying, “”Everyone at Supernatural is walking around in a daze, shocked and absolutely devastated”.

‘X-Files’ Movie Title Revealed

Eva Lam — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:38:40 +0000

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The title for the upcoming X-Files movie has been announced, and it’ll be a familiar one for the show’s fans: “The X-Files: I Want to Believe.”

“I Want to Believe” is the slogan on the UFO poster which hung in FBI agent Fox Mulder’s office throughout the original TV series.

Creator Chris Carter, who also directed and co-wrote the upcoming movie, said the movie’s title reflects the inner conflict of his main protagonist.

“It’s a story that involves the difficulties in mediating faith and science,” he said. “‘I Want to Believe’ – it really does suggest Mulder’s struggle with his faith.”

The second spin-off film of the X-Files series will see David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson reprising their roles as FBI agents Mulder and Dana Scully, who investigated paranormal phenomena throughout the show’s nine seasons ending in 2002.

“The X-Files: I Want to Believe” will hit theatres July 25.

Xzibit Joins X Files Movie, Other Cast Members Leaked

andPOP Staff — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 13:21:49 +0000

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Rapper and notorious ride-pimper Xzibit will join Amanda Peet and comedian Billy Connolly in the upcoming X-Files movie.

Xzibit was originally unavailable for the supporting role because he was signed on to star in Oliver Stone’s drama Pinkville, alongside Bruce Willis and Woody Harrelson. The film was postponed due to the writers’ strike and Xzibit was free to pimp the X-Files sequel with his presence.

David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson will reprise their roles as Mulder and Scully in the second film based on the popular sci-fi series, E! News reports.

Details of the supporting roles of the film are top secret and the plot remains a mystery.

However, it has been leaked that the new film will steer clear of the confusing “mythology” of the series and instead focus on the supernatural unknown, according to E! News.

X-Files creator Chris Carter will direct the film.

X-Files Sequel To Be Shot In Vancouver

Eva Lam — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 12:51:57 +0000

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Vancouver will once again be the hunting grounds of paranormal activity for Mulder and Scully.

“The X-Files” movie sequel, starring David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson as the intrepid FBI agents, will be shot in Vancouver starting Dec. 10.

It is the second movie based on the TV series of the same name, which ran from 1993 to 2002.

Original creator Chris Carter is set to write and direct.

The TV series was shot in Vancouver during its first five seasons, but moved to Los Angeles in later seasons. The relocation was due to a number of reasons, including Duchovny wanting to spend more time with his wife, actress Téa Leoni.

The first X-Files movie came out in 1998 and was shot in California, New Jersey, London and British Columbia. It was made on a budget of about $65 million and went on to gross $187 worldwide.

A sequel had been delayed due to legal wrangling between Carter and 20th Century Fox.

The new movie’s location is good news for British Columbia’s film industry, with about 100 crew members from the province expected to find work on the film.

Vancouver is no stranger to sci-fi shows. The success of “X-Files” and two other Vancouver-made shows of that era, “The Outer Limits” and “Poltergeist: The Legacy,” kick-started the trend of bringing other TV series about the paranormal to the city.

Recent sci-fi shows to call Vancouver home include “Stargate SG-1,” “Stargate Atlantis,” “Andromeda,” “Millennium” (another Carter creation), “Supernatural,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “Eureka,” “Kyle-XY” and “Flash Gordon.”

The as-yet-untitled X-Files sequel is scheduled to hit theatres in June 2008.