1994-95 1996-97 1998 1999-00 2001-03 2004-06

Extra
October 1994

Gillian Anderson was interviewed on Extra in October of 1994 for the first time. Here is the transcript of the full interview featuring additional conversations that did not air on Extra.

EXTRA: So how many hours a day do you spend in make-up?

GILLIAN: About 20 minutes in the morning and then touch ups throughout the day. Not long.

EXTRA:> Not long. You don't need make-up right?

GILLIAN: I wouldn't say that.

EXTRA: Now we've heard that actresses have to spend hours and hours in make-up.

GILLIAN: Well I guess that's if you're getting a nose put on or something. I don't know. If you're having latex applicants.

EXTRA:> Maybe after your next alien abduction you'll have a new nose or forehead.

GILLIAN: Come out with a huge chin. Who did that? Was it Barry Munchausin or someone who had a huge chin. Wasn't there something or some kid's movie or something.

EXTRA: So is this the glamour part of the job or is this the part of the job that is a pain in the neck?

GILLIAN: This is the only glamorous part of the job. I don't know. It's just kind of part of the whole day, you just do it. You go in, you're still half asleep. Get stuff slapped on.

EXTRA: Not only half asleep now for you but you're also up half the night.

GILLIAN: Yeah, notice I came to work already in make-up this morning because I didn't take it off from yesterday.

EXTRA: That's part of the actress training though, talking while you get your lips done.

GILLIAN: I don't remember that part. (Woman paints her lips and finishes) Thank you. Done. Did you leave my mole? They take it off. Well they don't take it off, they cover it up for the show. Apparently there's not enough room for it on my face.

EXTRA: Cindy made the mole popular.

GILLIAN: That's true. That's true. It turned from blue to gray outside. What happened? I guess we're in Vancouver.

EXTRA: So is there a similar audience between Star Trek and X-Files?

GILLIAN: I don't know. I'm sure there must be somewhat. I mean because they don't have that. I guess they have the old ones which are the better ones anyway, the original Star Treks to look at but I'm sure there must be some kind of cross over.

EXTRA: Were you a Trekkie?

GILLIAN: No. I saw my first Star Trek a few days after Piper was born because I was home and it was one of the original ones and I thought it was one of the most fabulous things in the world. I just had never watched it before, old or new so that's kind of embarrassing.

EXTRA: O.K. are we ready. I'm going to ask you some extra questions from America Online and then we'll get to the other ones if we have time. Now are you a skeptic or are you a believer in the UFO?

GILLIAN: In real life? Oh in real life. Me as Gillian Anderson I have a tendency to be more of a believer than a skeptic. There certainly things that I am hesitant about but I have always had a fascination with some kind of a belief system with psychokinesis and E.S.P. and astro-projection and life after death and all that wonderful stuff.

EXTRA: Do you believe in the space ships or does it stop at that?

GILLIAN: I believe that with the size or practical size of our universe that there's got to be something else out there. There's got to be some other life system out there that are possibly more advanced than we are.

EXTRA: Several extra questions came up online asking how is it working with David Duchovny and the second part of that extra question is it really possible to fall in love with someone else when you work with him everyday?

GILLIAN: Oh my God. Oh dear. I don't suppose those were women that asked the extra question, were they. Let me see what should I answer first. Is it possible, well obviously it's possible to fall in love with someone else while working with David everyday and how is it working with David. Well you know sometimes we don't see each other very much because we're not working in the same, a lot of times we work together but after working together for so long, every single day, sometime 16 hour days back to back its like a brother or sister in the house. It's like Hi, Bye. See ya, later. And you know I've gotten used to David and what he looks like so I'm not constantly walking by and going Oh My God, is he gorgeous, not that I ever did but, joking. You know it's become a working relationship. We're not best friends. We probably would not prefer to see each other than we would to see each other just because we have to see each other all the time and we just show up and we do the job and say goodnight.

EXTRA: Now is he the comedian? Does he have everybody in stitches on the set?

GILLIAN: He is very funny. He's got a wonderful sense of humor and it's a very intelligent sense of humor and he can be very funny.

EXTRA: Now your Piper was born September 25th?

GILLIAN: That's correct, yeah.

EXTRA: Now do you bring her to the set with you?

GILLIAN: Yes most of the time I do. She's, well she's in my trailer. It seems a few times she's actually come on set we've had to do the take over again because somewhere in the background is waaa, crying or laughing or something.

EXTRA: So you bring her everyday?

GILLIAN: Pretty much. I'm working into half days to see how that works out but I'm fortunate to be able to have a nanny with me on set all the time and so I'm very lucky to be able to do that and sometimes I think it works better that she can stay home and doesn't have to be in the confines of a trailer and often she doesn't like that she wants to be near mommy which makes perfect sense.

EXTRA: Now how do you reconcile being a new mom and a full time actress?

GILLIAN: I don't know, I don't think I have. I think it's just hitting me. I don't know. I'm just doing it and hoping I don't fall flat on my face.

EXTRA: Now have you gotten a lot of gifts or a lot of out-pour of response?

GILLIAN: Oh yeah it's been amazing. It's been amazing. Cards. When people started to find out that I was pregnant I started getting cards wishing me well and wishing me good luck and there was this one card I got from a twelve year old girl who said what the hell are you having a baby? It was very funny but 99.9% of the cards I got were in support of it and gifts came from everywhere. I got little koala bears and kangaroos from Australia and hand made gifts that people had made across the States it was just fabulous and she has this shelf in her room that's just full of stuff that came from people without faces, just people in support. It was just wonderful.

EXTRA: A lot of gifts with that X-File theme?

GILLIAN: No, not really. Baby theme mostly.

EXTRA: Let's see, we understand that The X-Files Made a contribution to your favorite charity.

GILLIAN: Yes they did, I actually opened up the letter yesterday that told me how much was raised. It makes me speechless, it really does.

EXTRA: What's the charity?

GILLIAN: Well they had raised $669 and some odd cents to Neurofibromatosis family.

EXTRA: Now were you pleased or displeased that you had to return to work so extra quickly after given birth?

GILLIAN: I was very surprised I guess at first because nobody had anticipated that I was going to have a C-section and be in the hospital for more days and it was a big surprise and I was not happy about it at first but you know because of the nature of this business and how extra quickly we have to put things together and scripts come and you can't just say when a script has been put out there you can't say no I'm not going to do that script or I guess I could but I would feel it somewhere. So they made some changes and made it as easy as possible for me to come back. Mostly.

EXTRA: How long did you have off? What was your maternity leave?

GILLIAN: Well I was in the hospital for 6 days and then came back to work 4 days later.

EXTRA:> Not even 2 weeks? Yikes. Now how did the producers first perceive your pregnancy announcement?

GILLIAN: Oh let's not talk about that. Well I mean I completely understood their reaction, you know some of their reactions not everybody but initially it was a huge joke for everybody because it meant episodes that I might have to miss which ended up only being one fortunate for them, you know completely miss and they didn't know if they would be able to hide it or not and apparently they did consider hiring somebody else.

EXTRA: How do you feel about breaking out of that cult status? The X-Files was originally sort of a mainstream hit.

GILLIAN: Well you know our executive producer said something in an article that I read which makes a lot of sense to me too which is that he loved the fact that it was cult status and it kind of fits this kind of show but also wanted it to become a mainstream but wanted it to keep the cult status at the same time being a mainstream production and I like that idea.

EXTRA: I think last they left you on the operating table, right?

GILLIAN: Last they saw me, no I was in the trunk of a car the last time they saw me 9 months pregnant but what will I be doing? On a bed at first with a lot of wires coming in and out of everywhere and then I almost die and maybe I die, do I die? No I don't die but I might die, I could die. I die. You gotta wait and see.

EXTRA: One last Extra question. Now while you were pregnant and you were giving birth did it ever cross your mind that an alien might come out?

GILLIAN: Are you kidding me? Who told you to ask that Extra question? No. No. I don't think so. Of course not. I thought I might turn into an alien after the experience but no.

EXTRA: Well we got you to giggle anyways.