Hulu is a good streamer to subscribe to if you like a steady diet of new releases and classic films that never go out of style.

That’s especially true this week, when the streamer just premiered new comedy Never Change!, about adults who have to return to high school to receive their diplomas.

Hulu also just added the classic comedic thriller Catch Me If You Can, which sees Leonardo DiCaprio’s suave con artist assume all sorts of identities so he can outrun Tom Hanks’ FBI agent.

Watch With Us also recommends the classic ‘90s drama The Remains of the Day, starring Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson as two British servants who grow closer to each other over the years.

‘Catch Me If You Can’ (2002)

Some stories are too good to be true – in Frank Abagnale Jr.’s (Leonardo DiCaprio) case, it’s hard to separate fact from fiction. In the 1960s, Frank was a fast-talking teen who successfully conned people into thinking he was a pilot and a doctor. Why? Well, for money, of course; living a jet-setting life doesn’t come cheap. But Frank’s need to be other people masks a deep hurt, something that keeps him running from lawmen like Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks), an FBI agent who is determined to get his man. Throughout the decade, Carl pursues Frank relentlessly, but deep down, he begins to respect a man whose crimes hurt him more than anyone else.

Based on Abagnale Jr.’s 1980 autobiography of the same name, Catch Me If You Can is based on a true story that’s largely been debunked by experts since the film’s release in 2002. That doesn’t matter when the story is this good – and when everyone involved in the movie is clearly having the time of their lives. Director Steven Spielberg is known as a master entertainer of big-budget spectacles like Jaws and Jurassic Park, but he’s never been lighter or freer than he is here. Ditto for DiCaprio and Hanks, who play a deft cat-and-mouse game with all the glee of small children opening their presents at Christmastime. The movie is a gift that keeps giving; from John Williams’ jazzy score or Christopher Walken’s note-perfect supporting performance as Frank’s small-time criminal father, you’ll think it’s Christmas, too.

Catch Me If You Can is streaming on Hulu.

‘Never Change!’ (2026)

One of my worst nightmares is being forced to return to high school to finish coursework that somehow was never completed. That’s almost exactly the premise of the new comedy Never Change!, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival at the beginning of the month and is now streaming on Hulu. In 2008, a tornado shut down North Meadows High School, disrupting the final weeks of high school seniors Sunny (John Reynolds), Katie (Sofia Black-D’Elia) and the rest of their small class. Almost 20 years later, they found out they have to finish those last two weeks of high school or else their diplomas will be rescinded.

One person’s nightmare is another’s comedic premise, and Never Change! mines the odd concept for all its worth. There are gags about school shootings and a staging of a horrible play overseen by Topher Grace wearing a deliberately hideous wig. The film’s humor is similar to Wet Hot American Summer’s, with some envelope-pushing and absurdist jokes thrown around to see if they’ll stick. Some fail miserably (you’ll groan at least once), but enough gags land to make Never Change! a worthwhile if instantly forgettable comedy.

Never Change! is streaming on Hulu.

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‘The Remains of the Day’ (1993)

In 1930s Great Britain, house servants still existed, and no one was better at it than James Stevens (Anthony Hopkins). As the head butler at Darlington Hall, he is dedicated solely to his profession and makes no time for such trivial things as a personal life. That threatens to change with the arrival of Sally Kenton (Emma Thompson), a young maid whose warm demeanor disturbs Stevens for reasons he’s not even sure of. Could it be love? Stevens has never even acknowledged that he has those kinds of feelings, let alone expressed them. But is Kenton’s arrival the catalyst for him to finally change after all these years?

Related: 34 Best Movies on Hulu Right Now (June 2026)

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Hulu is celebrating the summer by adding just about every kind of movie you can think of in June. From sweet rom-coms to scary horror flicks, the streamer offers a little something for every movie lover in your household. Watch With Us has curated a list of only the best new Hulu films that are […]

Based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s Booker Prize-winning book of the same name, The Remains of the Day is all about repressed emotions, pregnant pauses and stolen glances that suggest rather than tell what’s going on. The film depicts a specific time and place where duty was still favored over emotions, and men like Stevens were almost invisible to the people he loyally served for decades. Hopkins is a two-time Oscar winner for The Silence of the Lambs and The Father, but he deserved another statuette for his brilliant, subtle work as a man who can’t quite open himself to love. It’s a beautiful and haunting performance, just like the film itself.

The Remains of the Day is streaming on Hulu.

For fans, the news that Jelly Roll had filed for divorce from Bunnie XO came as a complete shock. 

After nearly a decade together, the couple had weathered addiction struggles, custody battles, financial hardships, and fame itself. 

However, according to a new report, one final issue mattered deeply to Bunnie before she could accept the end of the marriage. It wasn’t about money, property, or even their future plans. It was about the daughter she helped raise as her own.

As details of the divorce emerged, sources revealed that Bunnie’s connection to Jelly Roll’s daughter, Bailee Ann DeFord, played a major role in how she approached the split.

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According to an insider, Bunnie felt deeply connected to the teenager after years of helping raise her. 

The source said she felt “spiritually tied” to Bailee and wanted to make sure her stepdaughter’s life remained stable before moving forward with such a major life change.

“[Bunnie] is spiritually tied to his daughter,” the source explained to the Daily Mail, adding, “She waited to graduate [Bailee] from high school and get her off to college.”

That protective instinct comes after years of acting as a mother figure to Bailee while also helping care for Jelly Roll’s younger son, Noah. 

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Jelly Roll Fought To Save His Daughter As Her Mother’s Addiction Worsened

Long before fame arrived, Jelly Roll’s life changed when he learned he had become a father while serving time in a Tennessee jail in 2008 after a drug-dealing conviction.

His daughter Bailee was born following a relationship with Felicia Beckwith, but the singer has admitted he wasn’t always present during her early years. 

In his documentary “Jelly Roll: Save Me,” he described himself as a “less than present father” and recalled how difficult it initially was to secure visitation rights.

As Bailee grew older, however, her mother’s struggles with addiction intensified. Jelly Roll explained that Beckwith’s battle with fibromyalgia led to prescription pill dependency before eventually escalating into heroin addiction.

By the time Bailee was seven years old, he said her mother had “started really going downhill.” Determined to create a more stable environment, he turned to Bunnie for help.

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At the time, Bunnie was earning substantial money as an escort in Las Vegas, and she helped finance the effort to gain custody. 

She assisted the Grammy Award winner in securing legal representation and even helped him rent a condo suitable for raising his daughter. Their efforts paid off when he was awarded primary custody of Bailee in 2016.

Jelly Roll And Bunnie Helped Bailee Through A Family Crisis

Although there were signs of tension between Jelly Roll and Beckwith over the years, things briefly improved in 2020 when Bailee’s mother reached out after becoming sober.

Just before Bailee’s 12th birthday, Beckwith contacted her daughter while living in recovery housing after serving jail time. With Jelly Roll’s support, the pair reconnected.

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The singer later shared a photo featuring himself, Bunnie, Bailee, and Beckwith together. At the time, he celebrated Beckwith’s sobriety and praised his wife.

“Bunnie is a special person who has a beautiful soul. I am a blessed man,” he wrote. Unfortunately, the progress did not last. Speaking before lawmakers in Washington, D.C., in 2024, Jelly Roll suggested that Beckwith had relapsed.

“Every single day I have to wonder, me and my wife, if today will be the day I have to tell my daughter that her mother became a part of the national statistic,” he said.

Bailee later detailed some of the most painful chapters of that period during an appearance on Bunnie’s “Dumb Blonde” podcast. She revealed that during a summer visit in 2022, her mother introduced her to alcohol and marijuana and encouraged her participation.

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Bailee also alleged that her mother “manipulated me and convinced me to do” another drug after a Fourth of July celebration. For months afterward, she said she was “never sober,” regularly drinking, vaping, and abusing prescription medications without her father’s knowledge.

It was only after returning to Nashville that Jelly Roll and Bunnie realized something was wrong and helped her begin the process of getting sober.

Jelly Roll’s Daughter Found Stability In Bunnie XO

While her relationship with her biological mother became increasingly difficult, Bailee’s bond with Bunnie only grew stronger.

Over the years, social media has offered glimpses into their relationship through dance videos, family moments, and heartfelt tributes. 

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Bailee has frequently referred to Bunnie as her “best friend” and once credited her father and stepmother’s custody victory with changing her life for the better.

In one emotional birthday message, she wrote, “Mom, I love you more than anything in this life and ever will.” She continued, “Thank you for being everything I ever needed. Thank you for everything. Happy birthday mama, Iove you so much.”

Bailee also formed a close relationship with Cheyenne Murphy, Beckwith’s former longtime girlfriend. Murphy remained a supportive figure throughout Bailee’s upbringing and has frequently shared milestones with the teenager, including concert outings and prom celebrations.

After news of the divorce broke, Murphy declined to comment publicly.

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Jelly Roll’s Family Future Was Already Expanding Before The Split

While Bailee’s story has often been public, Jelly Roll’s younger son Noah has largely been kept out of the spotlight.

Born in August 2016, the same month Jelly Roll married Bunnie, Noah is shared with Melisa Cowell. Court documents showed the pair shared custody arrangements, with Cowell maintaining primary responsibility for their son.

Unlike Bailee’s mother, Cowell has remained actively involved in Noah’s life, and Jelly Roll has said he tries “not to get in the way of what [Cowell] is building over there” because he wants to respect those boundaries.

Bunnie has also spoken warmly about Cowell, calling her “one stand up chick” and saying, “It takes a village to raise these babies & luckily we have her as a part of the family.”

Yet even while helping raise Jelly Roll’s children, Bunnie had long hoped to become a biological mother herself. The couple spent years pursuing IVF after learning that her fallopian tubes were blocked.

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As recently as February, Bunnie revealed they had found a surrogate and were moving forward with plans to welcome twins. Now, with Jelly Roll’s divorce filing bringing their marriage to an end, those plans appear uncertain.

To think, when the final season of Yellowstone aired, some felt that its time had rightly come to an end and it was due to be sent off to the farm upstate. And yet, what’s this? Two Taylor Sheridan spin-offs later, and the Dutton family have never been hotter? Color us completely unsurprised. The flagship series may well have ended, but the franchise has not exactly ridden quietly into the sunset. Between Dutton Ranch and Marshals, Paramount’s Western empire is still riding high.

But how, you ask? Well, the Yellowstone franchise hit a new Top 10 milestone this week, with its two spin-off series charting at the same time for the first time. Dutton Ranch climbed to No. 4 on the Originals chart, up from No. 5 the previous week, and also entered the overall streaming rankings at No. 10 with 736 million minutes watched following the release of its third episode on Paramount+.

Meanwhile, Marshals made its own Top 10 debut after wrapping its first season on CBS. The fellow Yellowstone spin-off landed at No. 10 on the Acquired chart with 528 million minutes watched. Combined, the two shows pulled in more than 1.2 billion minutes. Oh, so people aren’t quite sick of the Duttons yet, then?

The cast of Dutton Ranch includes Kelly Reilly (Yellowstone) as Beth Dutton, Cole Hauser (Good Will Hunting) as Rip Wheeler, Finn Little (Those Who Wish Me Dead) as Carter, Annette Bening (American Beauty) as Beulah, Ed Harris (Westworld) as Everett McKinney, and Jai Courtney (Dangerous Animals) as Rob-Will. Marshals stars Luke Grimes (Yellowstone) as Kayce Dutton.

What are ‘Dutton Ranch’ and ‘Marshals’ About?

Dutton Ranch follows Rip, Beth and Carter on their new adventure down in Rio Paloma, Texas, where they attempt to start their own ranch, but end up finding trouble where they should have most expected it — the neighboring ranch which is a dynasty overseen by the imperious Beulah Jackson. The Jacksons know where all the bodies are buried, but Rip’s no stranger to digging holes and taking souls, either.

Marshals, meanwhile shifted the franchise toward Kayce Dutton’s next chapter after Yellowstone. Reeling from a tragic loss, Kayce takes up a position with the U.S. Marshals and keeps Montana tidy, for all intents and purposes, in a procedural series on CBS. Gil Birmingham and Mo Brings Plenty reprise their Yellowstone roles.

Dutton Ranch and Marshals are on Paramount+.

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Release Date

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May 15, 2026

Network

Paramount Network, Paramount+

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Showrunner

Chad Feehan

Directors

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Christina Alexandra Voros

Writers

Jacob Forman, Hilary Bettis, Chad Feehan, Hayley Tibbenham, J. Todd Scott, K.C. Scott

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There’s little doubt that Star Trek: The Next Generation saved the franchise, bringing Gene Roddenberry’s creation to “the next generation.” With a bigger production budget and a focus on what’s happening with the crew – their beliefs, relationships, and decisions – as opposed to what’s happening to them, the series was markedly different from Star Trek: The Original Series, yet retained Roddenberry’s optimistic vision of a hopeful, inclusive future.

And sparking the eternal Kirk vs. Picard argument. But one episode in the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation is so far removed from that vision that it’s cited by cast member Michael Dorn as “the worst episode of Star Trek ever filmed.” And he’s not alone.

‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “Code of Honor” Sees Tasha Yar Fight for Her Life

In the episode, the Enterprise heads to Ligon II, a planet that produces a vaccine needed by the denizens of Styris IV, in the throes of an Achilles fever outbreak. The crew knows little about Ligonian culture, other than that men rule society, while women control the land. Ligonian leader Lutan (Jessie Lawrence Ferguson) arrives on the Enterprise to provide a vaccine sample, and is fascinated by head of security Lt. Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby), a woman. Further impressed by her combat skills, Lutan and his party of Ligonians abduct Yar and return to the planet’s surface.

The act enrages Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart), who demands that Lutan return Yar immediately, but receives no response. He tries a more tactful approach, which does elicit a response from Lutan, who grants Picard and his crew permission to beam down to the planet, promising to return Yar following a banquet in his honor.

But at that banquet, things get really complicated, really fast, after Lutan announces that he intends to make Yar his “first one.” No one is more surprised than Yareena (Karole Selmon), his current “first one,” and she challenges Yar to a fight to the death to restake her claim. Yar will have little choice but to participate, as Lutan refuses to release more of the vaccine unless she does. The weapons used are coated with a lethal poison, meaning one scratch is certain death. But the combatants are equally skilled, and the intense match finally comes to an end when Yar lands a strike on Yareena.

At that, Yar orders the Enterprise to beam them both aboard the ship, where Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) can revive Yareena. They return to the surface, where Crusher explains to Lutan that Yareena was officially dead for a time, meaning Yar wins the match, thus breaking Yareena’s “first one” bond with Lutan. Free to choose a new mate, Yareena ditches Lutan, who achieved his power on the back of her wealth, and chooses bodyguard Hagon (James Louis Watkins) as her “second one.” Yar is free to go, and the Enterprise is given its full supply of vaccine.

‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “Code of Honor,” Ironically, Has Little of It

Before you say, “That doesn’t sound all that bad,” let’s add some context. The Ligonians, for one, are all depicted as one-note characters by Black actors, wearing non-specific African tribal culture garb, in a one-note, non-specific African tribal society. Lutan, a Black man – sorry, humanoid – kidnapping a blonde white woman whom he is creepily obsessed over, is problematic, to say the least. Originally, the episode called for a reptilian alien race with a culture akin to Kamakura-period Japanese samurai. But the African theme and casting of Black actors for the roles was the choice of director Russ Mayberry, a white man. That choice of casting all Black actors as members of an aggressive, primitive race did not sit well with Roddenberry, who fired Mayberry during production and never hired him to direct another episode again (per TrekMovie).

“Code of Honor” might have found a degree of redemption with a profound statement on gender roles. Only it drops the ball with that, too, with Yareena still yielding a position of power in society to her “second one,” instead of claiming it for her own, thus starting a new, gender-balanced societal path for the Ligonians. But the overwhelming amount of vitriol reserved for the episode is in its glaring racial insensitivity, particularly among the cast themselves.

Per TrekMovie, Jonathan Frakes is reported as calling it a “racist piece of s—,” Brent Spiner said he felt it was “racist” and the “worst of the series,” LeVar Burton assesses that the episode “stinks, without question,” and Tracy Torme, a writer for Season 1, said the episode was “offensive” and drew a parallel between it and 1950s sitcom Amos ‘n’ Andy, long decried for its negative depiction of Black Americans. Likewise, critics have cited “Code of Honor” as, in no particular order, “possibly the worst piece of Star Trek ever made,” “idiotic,” “pure trash,” and OkayAfrica, a website devoted to bringing African culture to a global audience, simply calls it “absurdly racist.” “Code of Honor” is a stark outlier in a franchise that once made bold, groundbreaking moves when it came to tearing down racial barriers.

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Release Date

1987 – 1994-00-00

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Network

Syndication

Showrunner

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Gene Roddenberry

Directors

Cliff Bole, Les Landau, Winrich Kolbe, Rob Bowman, Robert Scheerer, Jonathan Frakes, Robert Wiemer, Gabrielle Beaumont, Alexander Singer, David Carson, Paul Lynch, Corey Allen, Patrick Stewart, Chip Chalmers, Joseph L. Scanlan, James L. Conway, Robert Lederman, Tom Benko, Timothy Bond, Robert Legato, Adam Nimoy, Robert Becker, David Livingston, LeVar Burton

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Writers

René Echevarria, Maurice Hurley, Richard Manning, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Tracy Tormé, Hannah Louise Shearer, Stuart Charno, Ira Steven Behr, Sara B. Cooper, Peter Allan Fields, Herbert Wright, Frank Abatemarco, Burton Armus, Hilary Bader, Morgan Gendel, David Kemper, Michael I. Wagner, Philip LaZebnik, Robert McCullough, Susan Sackett, Nick Sagan, Fred Bronson, Robert Hewitt Wolfe, Sam Rolfe

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By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 1 hour ago

Right now, there’s plenty of buzz for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the new Marvel movie swinging into theaters July 31. But you don’t have to wait that long to watch some superhero shenanigans on the big screen. Supergirl premieres on June 26, and fans are eagerly awaiting the latest film in James Gunn’s growing DCU. Still, skeptics can’t help but wonder if this film will be able to match the epic vibes of Superman (2025) or if DC’s latest girlpower blockbuster will be a dud like Wonder Woman 1984.

Warner Bros. certainly feels confident about the movie. So confident, in fact, that they lifted its social media embargo early, allowing critics and influencers who had watched the film to share their thoughts online. Thus far, the studio’s confidence seems justified: most of the reviewers have been absolutely raving about Supergirl. Unfortunately, that enthusiasm may not be able to save a film that seems doomed to a mediocre box office performance.

Rave Reviews

What are the early impressions of Supergirl looking like? According to Den of Geek, “Supergirl is the superhero movie I’ve missed: a straightforward, poignant story with lots of emotion, especially when we see Kara through little Ruthye’s eyes. Luckily, that’s every action scene. Milly Alcock absolutely owns the role and will change our idea of Supergirl forever.” This sentiment is echoed by Gizmodo, which noted that Supergirl “doesn’t quite have the resonance of Superman…it acts as both a perfect companion and follow-up to that movie with better characters and more complex relationships.” On top of that, “It’s also incredibly emotional, which makes the action hit even harder.” 

The emphasis on emotion makes it sound like the movie is a fitting follow-up to Superman, which proudly wore its heart on its sleeve. Despite similar themes and action scenes, though, it sounds like Supergirl is going to have an identity of its very own. According to Mike Ryan, the movie “is not at all what I was expecting. I, too, assumed ‘superhero space movie with needle drops’ would have a similar tone to [Guardians of the Galaxy] or even Superman. Instead, it looks and plays more like a Mad Max movie, with dirty worlds, gross villains, and a self-destructive hero.”

Killer Performances, Mediocre Box Office

One thing that almost everyone agrees on is that Milly Alcock does an amazing job as Supergirl. The same can be said of Jason Momoa, who is receiving nearly unanimous praise for his portrayal of the charismatic antihero Lobo. While this is a star-making turn for Alcock, not everyone thinks the film is worthy of her talents. This includes Discussion Film, who said that, “the film around her takes far too long to step into gear and never quite matches her energy.” These minor critiques aside, though, it seems like Supergirl is going to be a film with mass market appeal.

Does that mean its box office is going to go up, up and away? Sadly, no. Right now, the movie is projected to earn between $45 to $55 million in its opening weekend. That’s not an extremely low amount, but it’s still much, much lower than Superman’s $125 million, which went on to earn  $618 million worldwide. If Supergirl’s overall box office is correspondingly low, it could be bad news for the DCU. Deadline reports that the movie will need to make $315 million just to break even. Considering how disappointing the box office for Masters of the Universe and The Mandalorian and Grogu (both lighthearted sci-fi blockbusters, like Supergirl), the Woman of Steel’s feature film debut could be doomed.

Should Supergirl disappoint at the box office, Warner Bros. will have the cold comfort of knowing that it was very well-received by critics. These early impressions make the film sound like it will be an action-packed, emotional thrill ride that lets Milly Alcock and Jason Momoa really stretch their acting chops. With any luck, good word of mouth may (Obsession-style) drive the box office higher than anyone could estimate. Otherwise, though, this movie’s failure will be seen as a failure of the DCU as a whole, cementing Marvel as the dominant superhero cinematic universe, once and for all. We’ll find out together when Supergirl premieres on June 26.

Surviving the apocalypse is a hugely popular science fiction trope at this point. The key is doing it differently that everybody else. You can have wastelands, the undead, nuclear fallout, you name it — but these are overdone, right? You know what isn’t overdone? A talking cat in a tiara. That’s exactly what to expect from the cult science fiction series that’s heading straight for a new streaming service, from the twisted mind of Seth MacFarlane.

Dungeon Crawler Carl, the cult-favorite science fantasy book series from author Matt Dinniman, has been given a straight-to-series order. The series has been in development at Peacock and will be written for television by Chris Yost, whose work spans film, TV, and comic books. Dinniman will serve as a co-executive producer, while Yost executive produces alongside MacFarlane, Erica Huggins, and Rachel Hargreaves-Heald.

Dinniman confirmed the news on social media, writing, “Me, Chris Yost and Seth MacFarlane and his team at Fuzzy Door are all really excited to get to work.” He also teased that more details are on the way, including an upcoming Dungeon Crawler Carl panel at San Diego Comic-Con.

What is ‘Dungeon Crawler Carl’ About?

Based on Dinniman’s popular LitRPG book series, Dungeon Crawler Carl begins after an alien invasion wipes out most of humanity. The survivors are then forced into a sadistic intergalactic game show, where they have to fight monsters, aliens, artificial intelligence, and even each other to stay alive.

At the centre of the story is Carl, a Coast Guard veteran who finds himself trying to survive the end of the world with his ex-girlfriend’s award-winning show cat, Princess Donut the Queen Anne Chonk. Unfortunately for Carl, Princess Donut is not just a cat anymore. She can talk, she wears a tiara, and she has opinions. Lots of them.

The official synopsis reads: “Welcome to Dungeon Crawler World: Earth, where the apocalypse will be televised … and Coast Guard vet Carl finds himself stuck with his ex-girlfriend’s award-winning show cat, Princess Donut the Queen Anne Chonk, as they try to survive the end of the world, fighting monsters, aliens, an insane A.I. and even other survivors … all for the sake of good TV. Survival is optional. Entertainment is not.”

Stay tuned to Collider for more updates on the future of Dungeon Crawler Carl.

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2017 – 2022-00-00

Network

FOX

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By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 1 second ago

The X-Files is many things to many fans. For some, the show is a fun way to explore the possibilities of the unknown, probing for truths that have been hidden from us. For others, the show is a chance to bask in some utterly fantastic sci-fi and horror storytelling. Of course, for some people, the show is just a chance to stare at David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, arguably the absolute hottest people to grace ‘90s television. While I enjoy all those things, my favorite aspect of The X-Files is the paranoia at its core. This is a show that constantly reminds us that it’s downright dangerous to trust the government and the military.

Weirdly enough, a forgotten episode of The X-Files connects this show to one of the strangest and most famous anti-war movies of all time. In the Season 2 episode “Firewalker,” Mulder encounters a brilliant researcher who has been driven crazy by his horrific surroundings. Writer Howard Gordon later confirmed that Mulder’s relationship with this man was inspired by the relationship between Marlow and Kurtz in the Joseph Conrad novel Heart of Darkness. Meanwhile, that book inspired one of the greatest movies ever made: the Francis Ford Coppola classic Apocalypse Now.

An Errand Boy, Sent By Grocery Clerks

“Firewalker” is a Season 2 X-Files episode about a volcanic research project gone wrong. A robot (the titular Firewalker) discovers evidence of a possible murder, and Mulder and Scully are sent to investigate. As it turns out, researchers on the project had discovered a creepy new form of silicon-based life that can infect and kill humans. Mulder spends some time with project leader Daniel Trepkos, a man who has been driven a little kooky by the horrors he has seen. At the end of the episodes, he chooses to stay behind and face almost certain death rather than return to civilization.

According to The Truth is Out There: The Official Guide to the X-Files, “Firewalker” writer Howard Gordon compared Mulder’s interactions with Trepkos to the Joseph Conrad novel Heart of Darkness. In that book, a man named Marlow is hired by a Belgian trading company to find Kurtz, who has been exporting Ivory from the Congo. Kurtz is reportedly a brilliant man with ideas about how to improve the lives of the natives. But when Marlow finds him, Kurtz has gone completely native and enslaved the locals to his cult-like will. Kurtz is also sick and, while being reluctantly brought back to civilization, dies en route.

The Horror, The Horror

You may or may not have read or even heard of Heart of Darkness. But chances are that you are very familiar with the film it inspired: Apocalypse Now. This Coppola movie changes some of the particulars. Instead of being a hired gun, the Marlow character is Captain Willard, a soldier in the Army. Kurtz is transformed into a Colonel who has gone rogue, sending an army of sycophants who worship him against foes like the Viet Cong. Willard’s mission is to terminate Kurtz’s command “with extreme prejudice.”

Now, X-Files writer Howard Gordon was clear that “Firewalker” was inspired more by Heart of Darkness than Apocalypse Now. Accordingly, Mulder has a more sympathetic relationship with Trepkos, someone who (like Kurtz) was a brilliant man driven mad by the insanity of his surroundings. He intended Trepkos to be a kind of cautionary tale for Mulder, one that explained how “the natural endpoint of this quest for the truth is madness.” Mulder is, of course, characterized by his relentless search for the truth. This episode shows that this crusade, regardless of whether or not it’s successful, might very well drive the FBI agent crazy.

Still, the writer has effectively created a surprise link between The X-Files and Apocalypse Now. While both the show and the movie have offered some strident criticisms of the military and the government, most people have never clocked a real connection between these two very different projects. That connection is very fitting, though. After all, when I think about the X-Files revival, all I can do is utter the same iconic phrase Kurtz speaks in both the novel and the film: “the horror! The horror!”