Episode overview

Gillian Anderson Lied About Her Age At "X-Files" Audition | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend

Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend · 19 August 2026 · 8m · 1 Egleze moment

What happened in this episode?

In this short Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend segment, Gillian Anderson reflects on her early years on The X-Files and the pressures around the show’s success. Anderson confirms she was 24 when cast and says she told producers she was 27 because the character Dana Scully was meant to have already completed advanced degrees and professional training. She tells O’Brien she “hated” the fame, describing being followed and photographed in Los Angeles, including while with her children, and says she “pointed” her car at paparazzi on multiple occasions. Anderson contrasts that with working in Vancouver, which she says insulated the cast from constant pursuit.

She also describes the show’s punishing production routine: early call times, long days, late-week schedule drift, and high page counts, joking about the cast having to sound like “the smartest people on planet Earth”. Anderson shares a specific creative detail from series creator Chris Carter: she says he instructed her to avoid “widows” in dialogue blocks, shaping lines to form a clean rectangle on the page for visual consistency.

The conversation closes on the cultural legacy of “the Scully effect”, with O’Brien noting the role’s influence on women pursuing STEM and law enforcement careers. Anderson says people still approach her to credit the character for their career choices and for the show’s personal significance across generations.

What are the key points?

Anderson says she lied about her age at The X-Files audition, claiming she was 27 rather than 24.
She says she “hated” the early fame and felt disturbed by being followed and photographed in Los Angeles, including with her children.
Anderson claims she “pointed” her car at paparazzi “over the years”.
She says Vancouver filming provided distance from celebrity-chasing behaviour and felt “freeing”.
Anderson describes a gruelling TV production schedule with long days and shifting call times across the week.
She recounts Chris Carter telling her “no widows” in dialogue blocks, aiming for visually rectangular paragraphs.
Both discuss the “Scully effect”; Anderson says people still credit Scully for inspiring careers in science and policing.

Which topics are covered?

Media & Journalism Entertainment

How is this page sourced?

Programme: Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend
Published: 19 August 2026
Duration: 8m
Original episode: Open the original source ↗

Egleze verifies the speaker, source and timestamp for each linked moment. Unless a moment is explicitly marked independently verified, statements remain attributed claims by the named speaker rather than established facts.

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Media & Journalism

Gillian Anderson says she “pointed” her car at paparazzi during X-Files fame

at 0:44 · Attributed speaker claim

Yeah, hated it. I mean, I think we were very lucky that we were shooting up in Vancouver for the first five years cuz, um, you know, when we were in LA, you know, we had the experience that a lot of celebrities did at that time, which is followed everywhere and chased down the street and photographed with the kids in playgrounds and all that kind of stuff, which, um, I found disturbing and that really angered me. I pointed my car at many paparazzi over the years.

Actor Gillian Anderson tells Conan O’Brien she “hated” the early fame that came with The X-Files, describing being followed “everywhere” and photographed with her children in public spaces when she was in Los Angeles. Anderson says she found the attention “disturbing” and claims she “pointed” her car at paparazzi “over the years”, contrasting that experience with Vancouver, where she says the behaviour “didn’t exist” and felt “freeing”.

Read this moment → Check original at 0:44 ↗