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While The X-Files is undeniably a work of fiction—and a brilliant one at that—several episodes are more deeply rooted in actual events and real-world conspiracies than most viewers might expect.
10. ‘The Jersey Devil’ – Season 1
In the episode “The Jersey Devil,” Mulder and Scully head to New Jersey following the discovery of a corpse missing its arm and shoulder. Forensic analysis reveals that the missing parts were consumed by a human.
Despite being barred from the investigation by local authorities, Mulder connects the case to the legend of the Jersey Devil, a cryptid akin to Bigfoot. He theorizes that the creature might be part of a secluded tribe of humans who have avoided modern civilization, retaining traits similar to Neanderthals.
The tale of the Jersey Devil might hold a grain of truth. This mysterious creature is believed to have wandered the Pine Barrens of southern New Jersey for over two and a half centuries. The story is said to have originated with Jane Leeds, who, upon discovering she was pregnant with her 13th child, declared, “Let the Devil take the next one!”
When the child was born, it bore reptilian features, complete with wings and a forked tongue. It rapidly grew to an astonishing 6 meters (20 feet) and allegedly escaped through the chimney. Shortly after, reports of sightings began to surface.
As recent as October 2015, Dave Black reported to NJ.com that he had encountered the Jersey Devil near a golf course while driving. He described the creature darting through the trees before it “unfolded leathery wings and soared over the golf course!”
9. ‘Shadows’ – Season 1
When two muggers are discovered dead in a Philadelphia alley, Mulder and Scully are brought in to investigate. The bodies exhibit an unusual electrical charge, and their throats appear to have been crushed from within. The investigation leads them to Lauren Kyte, who is identified in ATM security footage as the woman the muggers had targeted just before their deaths.
Mulder soon deduces that Howard Graves, Kyte’s former employer who had recently died by suicide, was safeguarding Kyte “from beyond the grave.” It later comes to light that Graves had not ended his own life but was instead killed by his business associates.
As incredible as it may seem, there are documented cases of individuals protecting others even after death. While they weren’t murdered and didn’t crush throats from within, Captain Bob Loft and Second Officer Don Repo, both airline pilots, reportedly assisted numerous people posthumously.
The two pilots lost their lives in the tragic crash of Eastern Airlines Flight 401 in December 1972. The aircraft plunged into the Florida Everglades, claiming the lives of 101 passengers and crew.
In the years that followed, there were more than 20 reported sightings of the two pilots, some by high-ranking Eastern Airlines officials. Many of these encounters took place on planes that had been repaired using parts salvaged from the wreckage of the ill-fated flight.
John G. Fuller thoroughly investigated these claims and later authored the book The Ghost of Flight 401. In it, he recounted numerous witness testimonies, including several brief interactions with the deceased pilots.
One notable conversation involved Repo assuring a flight captain, “There will never be another crash [on Eastern Airlines]. We won’t allow it to happen!”
8. ‘Duane Barry’ – Season 2
In the episode “Duane Barry,” Fox Mulder steps in as a hostage negotiator, attempting to persuade Duane Barry, a former FBI agent who claims to have been abducted by aliens, to release his captives.
During the episode, Mulder asks Scully to investigate Barry’s background. She uncovers that Barry sustained severe frontal lobe damage from a gunshot wound years prior, which she believes altered his brain chemistry, leading to psychopathic behavior and pathological lying.
While the episode implied Barry’s claims were delusions caused by brain damage, it was later revealed that he was indeed truthful about his alien abductions.
In reality, the story of Phineas Gage and the severe damage to his frontal lobe in 1848 was entirely true—and profoundly significant for humanity. Gage, a railroad worker, survived a freak accident where an iron rod pierced his skull, nearly obliterating his left frontal lobe.
Gage’s personality underwent a dramatic transformation. Once a diligent, dependable, and courteous individual, he became erratic, unrestrained, and prone to dishonesty and inappropriate behavior, including frequent swearing.
This incident provided the first concrete evidence linking the human brain to emotions and behavior. Gage lived for 12 more years after the accident, eventually passing away in 1860 due to an epileptic seizure likely triggered by scar tissue in his brain.
In his later years, Gage’s behavior began to revert to its pre-accident state, demonstrating that recovery of lost skills was possible. His case laid the groundwork for modern treatments of frontal lobe injuries.
7. ‘Paper Clip’ – Season 3
In “Paper Clip,” the third installment of a three-part narrative, Mulder and Scully are drawn into a far-reaching US government conspiracy involving extraterrestrials, UFOs, and unethical experiments on its own citizens.
Their investigation leads them to uncover the activities of a former Nazi scientist brought to America under Operation Paperclip after World War II. The US government sought to utilize his expertise for their own purposes.
The historical context of Operation Paperclip is entirely factual. In the aftermath of World War II, numerous German scientists and intellectuals were recruited by both the US and Soviet governments, with the American initiative known as Operation Paperclip.
This recruitment served three primary objectives. First, it aimed to prevent rival nations from gaining access to these brilliant minds. Second, it sought to ensure Germany could never rebuild a powerful military or dictatorship. Lastly, it aimed to preserve stability in post-war Europe.
While many of these scientists were not ardent Nazis, their wartime actions remain controversial. For instance, Von Braun was fully aware that his V-2 rocket program relied on slave labor.
Additionally, the American Space Medicine Association continues to present an award named after Hubertus Strughold, a prominent figure in the space program, despite allegations that he endorsed some of the inhumane experiments conducted at Dachau.
Both Von Braun and Strughold claimed they were aware of the atrocities but denied responsibility, stating they were powerless to intervene.
6. ‘D.P.O.’ – Season 3
In the episode “D.P.O.,” Mulder and Scully are summoned to Connerville, Oklahoma, following the mysterious deaths of five young men, all linked to lightning strikes. Their investigation leads them to Darin Peter Oswald, a reclusive individual with the ability to manipulate electricity and direct it at will.
Oswald wields this power for personal gain and entertainment, including committing murder. His ultimate goal is to win the affection of the “only person who ever showed him kindness”—a schoolteacher married to his employer.
While there’s no evidence that Slavisa Pajkic has ever harmed anyone, he reportedly possesses the ability to channel electricity through his body in a manner that would be fatal to an average person.
Known as Biba among friends, Pajkic can handle and control electrical charges of up to 20,000 volts. He earned a spot in the Guinness World Records 2015 for heating a cup of water to 36 degrees Celsius (97 °F) in just one minute and 37 seconds using only his bare hands.
He asserts that he can function as an insulator, conductor, accumulator, or heater, depending on the situation. However, skeptics argue that most of his claims lack independent verification and accuse him of promoting questionable healing powers.
5. ‘Oubliette’ – Season 3
In one of the darker episodes, “Oubliette,” the FBI agents investigate the abduction of Amy, a young girl taken from a slumber party. Mulder soon uncovers a psychic link between Amy and a woman who was kidnapped by the same perpetrator years earlier.
Acting on this intuition, Mulder and Scully locate Amy unharmed. However, the real-life incident that inspired this episode concluded in a far more tragic manner.
The episode aired approximately 18 months after the abduction and murder of Polly Klaas, who was taken at knifepoint from a slumber party on October 1, 1993, in Petaluma, California. Her mother was in the house during the entire ordeal.
The kidnapping captured national attention, with thousands joining the search for the 12-year-old girl. The primary suspect, 40-year-old Richard Allen Davis, confessed to the murder on December 5, 1993.
Upon discovering Polly’s body, investigators determined that she had been strangled. Davis was sentenced to death in August 1996 and, as of March 2016, remains on death row.
4. ‘Nisei’ and ‘731’ – Season 3
This two-part storyline delves into human experiments conducted by a shadowy Japanese organization known as Unit 731. As Mulder and Scully probe an alleged alien autopsy, they uncover ties to the Japanese government and the infamous unit notorious for its gruesome human experiments.
In reality, the actual Unit 731 was equally, if not more, horrifying. During World War II, countless Allied prisoners of war and Japanese civilians were subjected to inhumane experiments as test subjects.
These experiments included vivisections performed on conscious individuals, injecting plague bacteria into healthy people, and the removal of organs and limbs without anesthesia.
After the war, the doctors associated with Unit 731 were granted asylum in America. Their war crimes were overlooked in exchange for the data gathered from their horrific research.
3. ‘Biogenesis,’ ‘The Sixth Extinction,’ and ‘The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati’ – Seasons 6 and 7
In a three-part narrative spanning the end of Season 6 and the start of Season 7 of The X-Files, an ancient artifact bearing mysterious symbols becomes central to a murder case investigated by Mulder and Scully.
The artifact possesses an unusual power that disrupts Mulder’s brain activity, plunging him into a coma-like state. Simultaneously, Scully journeys to the West African coast, where she uncovers that the artifact is linked to a spacecraft that has washed ashore.
The spacecraft is adorned with the same enigmatic markings, which Scully begins to decode. Her efforts reveal advanced genetic knowledge and references to major Earth religions, including biblical passages, suggesting extraterrestrial influence on human history.
“The Sixth Extinction” heavily draws on the ancient astronaut theory, widely regarded as pseudoscience. This theory gained prominence through Erich von Daniken’s 1968 bestseller, Chariots Of The Gods, where he proposed that major religions originated from alien visitors in ancient times.
Von Daniken pointed out that numerous ancient religions and cultures shared similar stories despite no known contact between them. He cited sites like the Nazca Lines in Peru, the pyramids of Giza, Stonehenge, and Pumapunku as evidence supporting his theory.
2. ‘Drive’ – Season 6
In the episode “Drive,” a government conspiracy involving experiments on civilians unfolds. Mulder is taken hostage by Patrick Crump, a man who appears deranged and has escaped police custody, forcing him to drive westward.
Crump had been apprehended after a high-speed chase for allegedly abducting his wife. While being handcuffed, his wife, placed in a police car, began violently hitting her head against the window in agony before her head exploded, resulting in her death.
Crump tells Mulder about severe pressure and pain in his ear—symptoms his wife also experienced. The only relief comes from driving west, which Crump and his wife were doing before being intercepted by the police.
It is later revealed that the Crumps were subjects of US Navy experiments. Scully uncovers a Navy antenna emitting extremely low frequency (ELF) waves, which she believes caused the intense pressure and pain in their inner ears.
While the US government has not faced specific allegations of this nature, two initiatives—Project HAARP and Project ELF—have played a role in this episode. Both projects are often viewed as conspiracies in their own right.
Although officials claim these programs aim to enhance radio wave communication, many conspiracy theorists argue their true objective is to manipulate the minds of American citizens.
1. ‘Tunguska’ and ‘Terma’ – Season 4
In the two-part storyline of “Tunguska” and “Terma,” Mulder secretly journeys to Russia to investigate the source of “black oil,” an extraterrestrial substance that recurs throughout The X-Files. He believes he has both the black oil and a meteor fragment linked to the 1908 Tunguska incident.
Mulder brings Special Agent Krycek, who speaks Russian fluently, on the mission. However, they are captured by Russian forces and imprisoned in a gulag, where they are subjected to experiments involving the black oil before Mulder manages to escape.
The Tunguska event of 1908 is a real historical occurrence, often regarded as the nearest Earth has come to a catastrophic event in recent history. On June 30, 1908, a meteor is thought to have entered the atmosphere and detonated approximately 10 kilometers (6 miles) above the remote Siberian forests.
The explosion's intensity was detectable up to 65 kilometers (40 miles) away. The dense clouds reflected sunlight beyond the horizon, illuminating the sky so vividly that individuals in Asia could read at night without additional light. Shockwaves from the event were even recorded as far as England.
This event is recognized as the most significant meteoroid impact in documented history. According to Don Yeomans, who managed NASA’s Near-Earth Object Office, “It remains the sole instance in modern times where a large meteoroid entry has been accompanied by eyewitness reports.”
No official records indicate human fatalities from the explosion. However, had it occurred over a densely populated city, the death toll could have reached thousands.
While no alien bacteria were reported in Tunguska, the Allan Hills 84001 meteorite, found in Antarctica in 1984, presented a different story. In 1996, researchers claimed the meteorite contained traces of Martian bacteria, suggesting the possibility of past life on Mars.
Interestingly, the first season of The X-Files explored a similar idea in the episode “Ice.” Here, Mulder and Scully delve into an Alaskan research station, uncovering a meteorite crater buried in ice that harbors what appears to be extraterrestrial bacteria.
