The Second Coming

FHM jumps back into bed with poll-topping sex goddess Gillian Anderson. Six months ago the world went Gillian Anderson mad.

 Meanwhile, Gillian is still experiencing the aftershocks of that eye-opening, clothes-shedding cover story. "Almost everything I said in that FHM article has been taken out of context in every area of the world," she says at her Vancouver home one September evening, after filming in The X-Files has wrapped for the day. "I canÆt believe how many articles have taken the piece and blown it out of all proportion."

 These days, tired of answering the same old geriatric questions, she plain refuses to discuss her childhood ("It was just growing up"), her so-called æpunk daysÆ ("Boring") and the loss of her cherry ("The biggest misconception about me thatÆs grown out of the FHM piece is that I lost my virginity to a Neo-Nazi. The truth is I lost my virginity to a guy who later became a Neo-Nazi. Which is not the same thing"). Yet one of the most entertaining responses to her decision to do the sexiest shoot of her career came from a highly unlikely source.

 "Let me read you what my grandmother wrote to me," she says, "ÆDear Gillian, I was very, very sorry to hear that youÆve run out of clothing. Maybe I should send you some money so that you can buy a dress or two. I am going to plant a couple of fig trees so that in future we will have plenty of fig leaves to cover you if you ever run out of clothing again. Loving you very much, but wondering why you stripped...Æ"

 While The X-Files continues to pull in a huge audience, Gillian has also presented a documentary series about the strange and unexplained, and was recently nominated for an Emmy. To cap it all, FHM readers controversially voted her the Sexiest Woman in the Word of 1996. "IsnÆt it weird?" she says. "I would have thought that Cameron Diaz would have won. ItÆs so embarrassing."

 So then, time for a re-match. Time to find out what the future holds for the sexiest ætec on TV.

What was the first thing you thought when you saw your first FHM cover?
I remember looking through the issue I was in and then two pages after me were all these plastic dolls in all these weird sexual positions and I thought æWhat the fuck is this? What have I got myself into?Æ

 That was Barbie and Action Man demonstrating womenÆs favourite sexual positions. But donÆt worry - they havenÆt got any genitals, so itÆs not pornographic.
Oh, okay. I guess I wasnÆt looking closely enough. Even now, once in a while, someone will come up to me in the States and say, "My room mate has a copy of FHM - could you sign it for him?" And I remember someone else saying, "I was pissing in a toilet and sitting above the toilet was a magazine with you on the cover and I think it was called FH something or other." That was particularly memorable.

 It was a phenomenally popular issue.
Are you sure it wasnÆt just because I took my bloody clothes off? Haha! IÆve seen one picture from that shoot on the Internet that someone has doctored where I am meant to have pulled my bra down to expose my breasts! TheyÆve put in these two implant-filled breasts instead of my not-so-huge non-implant ones. And itÆs meant to be real. My manager rang me and said, "Gillian, you didnÆt really do this, did you?" And thereÆs another one here I look like IÆm on-set and IÆm sitting there with my legs open and my knickers are showing. So naturally the first thing you think is. "Oh my God, how did somebody get this picture," and then I thought, "Hang on, I never sit like that." And I wear nylons anyway, so you wouldnÆt be able to see what I had or didnÆt have on underneath. But I kept thinking, "When did I sit with my legs open?"

 WhatÆs the worst thing thatÆs been written about you recently?
A magazine in New Zealand said I was battling a serious disease. They said I was battling anorexia and that I had a special diet and a trainer comes to my house five times a week. They quoted me saying I used to binge. I was on my way to Tahiti when I saw it in an airport. I canÆt believe that they can make up these quotes and get away with it.

 ArenÆt you tempted to fire off a solicitorÆs note or something?
Believe me, I very nearly sued them.

 What did you film today?
Well, we had a couple of scenes in a house where we were investigating a young woman who had disappeared and whose boyfriend had been found stabbed by a long, sharp object going into his brain. It turns out she has been kidnapped and has undergone a transorbital lobotomy. Which is basically a lobotomy that renders you unable to do anything, And tomorrow I get kidnapped by this guy who attempts to do the same thing on me. And of course, as usual, Mulder saves my life.

 After four seasons of near scrapes, you must be getting a bit bored with him saving your bacon?
Yeah. IÆd rather it was him getting the lobotomy and I saved his life. But maybe thatÆll happen in the fifth series.

 Do you wish you could kick ass on a more regular basis, then?
Yeah, definitely. But IÆve kicked ass a couple of times in those series. One time in particular I kicked major ass. We were chasing this guy who sucks the fat out of women. And no, he wasnÆt given a medal. He was doing it to survive. In the process, he covered the women in this digestive enzyme. He tries to do the same to me, and I kick his ass.

 So now youÆre an all-action ass-kicking sex symbol?
Haha! A sex symbol - thatÆs so funny. IÆm sitting here on my bed in jeans and a T-shirt, my daughter is playing downstairs and IÆve been working a very long day, and it sounds like such a strange thing for someone to say right now.

 Is it true that, on a recent promotions your to Australia, you got mobbed by a crowd of thousands and that some of them even has to be taken to hospital?
Well, it was very strange because I was originally told we were going to do an in-store appearance and my experience with in-stores in the past had been from one small bookshop in Munich, When we turned up at the place and I realised it was a mall, I said, "What?!" because I donÆt do mall appearances. Bu they said I couldnÆt pull out because they were expecting a couple of thousand people. In the end, there were 12,000 people there. And, yes, it did get out of hand. Because of where Australia is, they donÆt get that many celebrities visiting, so when they do come, the people get so excited about it. I showed up as the representative of The X-Files and thatÆs what the people were responding to. Maybe they thought I was the only one from the show who would make it there.

 IsnÆt it more likely that they turned up just to catch a glimpse of you?
IÆd go insane if I thought that. If I honestly allowed myself to believe that 12,000 people would show up to see me, then IÆd be someone IÆm not. ThereÆs a huge temptation in this business for people to allow stuff like that to go to their heads, so itÆs really important to keep it in perspective. It would be too much to handle if I started believing it. I try to be humble in the midst of everything and appreciate everything thatÆs come my way.

 Have you had time to do anything else since you shot The X-Files and Future Fantastic?
No, itÆs really political over here switching between the networks, which is a real shame because IÆd love to do an episode of Seinfeld. But we have done an episode of The Simpsons. We did it nearly two years ago but itÆs taken them longer than their usual six months to put the episode together - in fact, I think itÆs taken about a year and six months.

 What happens in your Simpsons episode?
As I recall, Homer sees a UFO and we come to town and try to help him figure out hat itÆs all about. I love The Simpsons. ItÆs just the ultimate accolade being on that show. It showÆs weÆve really arrived. That and being in Mad magazine. Oh yeah, and I also felt IÆd arrived when, after IÆd done FHM, I got offered a Playboy cover! They called my manager when she was in the car with me. We had it on speakerphone. Unfortunately, Heff didnÆt ring, but apparently he is a big fan of the show. Actually, IÆve been invited to a party at HeffÆs house.

 How much did Playboy offer you?
A lot. But I turned them down.

 For now?
No. I turned them down. But it was very flattering, I must say.

 Do you have a defining moment in the last year?
I donÆt know if thereÆs been a really defining moment, but when I came back to the show after IÆd had a baby, I felt IÆd been through the process of having a child I had matured in some way. There was a definite point in time where I felt I had a better hold on the character of Scully and felt I could do as an adult what IÆd always wanted to do with my work. And when we had our annual hiatus from shooting and I met all these directors who I really respected, I felt strong and that I really had something to offer. When I was younger and lived in Chicago and New York, I was struggling financially and emotionally, and although I had a relatively strong belief in myself, there were times when I questioned my abilities and my sanity about going into this field. And then in the first two seasons of The X-Files there were these questions about whether I could ever actually play another character except Scully. So to be able to go into these meetings and show a completely different side of me was good.

 Would you ever do anything to shock people, like getting a tatoo?
How did you know that I got a tatoo?

 I didnÆt. But I do now.
You are so bad! Well, I got it in a very innocent place. On my inner right ankle. It was painful. It felt like I was at the dentist and they were drilling into my bone. I got it done in Tahiti, the birthplace of tattooing. ItÆs like a tribal design - maybe two inches long and an inch wide. ItÆs hard to describe what it looks like. This fabulous Polynesian guy called George whoÆs tattooed over half his body did it. HeÆs made his own equipment, which is like a sewing needle attached to an old electric razor with a ball-point casing with a shish kebab stick through it. And he plugs it into a battery pack. HeÆs very fast - it only took about ten minutes.

 Hang on a minute - ball-point pen? Old razor? Shish kebab? IÆm presuming that George doesnÆt have a license from his local council to do tattoos...
Haha! Well, when I was having it done, I was thinking, æWhy the fuck am I doing this?Æ But when it was done, I wanted to have another one immediately - itÆs so addictive. If I get another one IÆll have it below the small of my back or below my belly button. Part of me didnÆt want to have it done because tattoos are so common now - which is why I got rid of my nosering - but thereÆs this real bonding thing with people who have tattoos.

 DoesnÆt it cause a problem at work?
We have skin tape which we just put over it. If it looks like my ankles are going to be in shot, then IÆll just stick some on.

 Have you ever considered any other form of skin decorating - scarification, maybe?
No. But on my last birthday someone gave me the option to have a body piercing anywhere of my choice. I havenÆt done that yet, but I am thinking about it. I have this little flap of skin at the top of my bellybutton which I guess some people do and some people donÆt, but it just seems a perfect place to pierce. But IÆve never seen anyone with an æouteyÆ bellybutton pierced.

 What about the much-mooted X-Files movie - are you definitely doing it?
I just donÆt know anything about it. I donÆt think itÆs been written yet.

 Well,, Chris Carter recently said it would be shot between this series and the one after.
Oh, really? Well it would have to be shot without me, haha!

 What kind of other movie roles would you like to do?
IÆd love to do a comedy but I have a feeling the first movie I do will be quite serious and completely different from The X-Files. I just want to do something really challenging.

 And if you could have played any part in any film, what would it have been?
IÆd have loved to have played Kate WinsletÆs character in Sense and Sensibility, or any of Helena Bonham CarterÆs characters, or Patricia ArquetteÆs character in True Romance. And Michelle PfeifferÆs character in Dangerous Minds. And almost anything Meryl Streep has done.

 Has success changed you at all?
Hmm. IÆm not as tolerant as I used to be. I like my space. I donÆt like crowds on set. IÆm less tolerant of signing autographs in the break I have between takes, and IÆm less tolerant of people trying to snap pictures of me in the street. But basically IÆve stayed the same. IÆm just here to do the work.

 Has David Duchovny ever mentioned any of your great press?
No.

 Are you two still mates?
Still? weÆre as weÆve always been; fine.

 What about fan mail - have you noticed that youÆve been getting much more stuff through the post?
Oh God, yeah! There used to be a manageable amount, and now itÆs not so manageable at all, and we havenÆt quite figured out how to remedy that. I canÆt see myself hiring someone to fake signatures. IÆd rather grab a few when I get the chance and write a note myself.

 Who do you hate?
IÆve never been asked that before. I donÆt want to get into the actor realm because thatÆs mean. I hate Neo-Nazis, bigots. Any kind of white supremacist group I despise. Child molesters.

 Are you impressed by celebrities?
IÆm impressed by people who make a difference, People who are really good at what they do. People like Tim Robbins, Jodie Foster, Quentin Tarantino.

 Who would you have been starstruck in front of?
Meryl Streep and Jessica Lange. Or Gary Oldman, or Robert De Niro.

 Your whole life revolves around working on The X-Files - do you ever go home after 16 hours on set and have X-Files dreams?
Actually, no, itÆs something thatÆs never happened. The only time I have nightmares is when I wake up knowing that I havenÆt prepared enough for the next dayÆs shooting, but most of the time I donÆt. I sometimes have a hard time getting to sleep at night and IÆve realised that having the TV on makes me fall asleep easier because my brain is subconsciously concentrating on something else. But otherwise I donÆt watch television. If I get home early enough, IÆll watch it. I can watch myself now, but at first I couldnÆt and I canÆt go back and watch episodes. Once something has aired, I donÆt want to see it - itÆs passed and itÆs bad.

 If you werenÆt on The X-Files, would it be the kind of show that youÆd watch?
I donÆt know. IÆve never been a regular TV-watcher and I donÆt suppose IÆd have caught The X-Files. I donÆt think itÆs something that IÆd watch regularly.

 Would you rather people viewed the show as entertaining hokum or serious food for thought?
I donÆt care either way, really. I think itÆs helped us enormously that people have thought about it afterwards and found something in it - itÆs definitely helped in terms of fans we have and the showÆs popularity, but I honestly donÆt give a shit how people perceive it. Whether they enjoy it intellectually or as a piece of entertainment is their business.

 There are rumours that you and David Duchovny are tired of the show and donÆt want it to go on for much longer.
IÆd be happy for it to go on for as long as it needs to, you know. IÆm sure that the sixth and seventh year will be gruelling - if it ever goes on that long. I just hope that itÆs allowed to end when it needs to end, and itÆs not pushed beyond its expectations.

 David Duchovny has said he would like to see The X-Files end with Mulder getting laid...
By Scully, hopefully...
... and then dying.
IÆd like it to end with us in bed together and having lost nine minutes of time, like in the pilot episode when thereÆs time lost because of a UFO, and then wake up and not quite know whatÆs taken place in those nine minutes that weÆve lost.

 Surely you canÆt finally consummate your famously non-shagging relationship?
Yes we can. If itÆs the end, we can.