The X-Files guest stars
1,825 actors have guest-starred in The X-Files across 218 episodes and 11 seasons. The most-credited is William B. Davis, Cigarette-Smoking Man in 44 episodes. 828 of them have also guest-starred in five or more of the other shows in this catalogue.
Who came back most
| Actor | Character | Eps |
|---|---|---|
| William B. Davis | Cigarette-Smoking Man | 44 |
| Tom Braidwood | Melvin Frohike | 40 |
| Bruce Harwood | John Fitzgerald Byers | 38 |
| Dean Haglund | Richard "Ringo" Langly | 37 |
| Nicholas Lea | Agent Alex Krycek, Michael | 25 |
| James Pickens, Jr. | Deputy Director Alvin Kersh | 22 |
| Sheila Larken | Margaret Scully | 16 |
| Chris Owens | Special Agent Jeffrey Spender, Young Cigarette-Smoking Man, Mutato | 15 |
| Don S. Williams | Elder #1 | 14 |
| Steven Williams | Mr. X | 13 |
| Jerry Hardin | Deep Throat | 11 |
| Laurie Holden | Marita Covarrubias | 11 |
| Brendan Beiser | Agent Sean Pendrell | 10 |
| Rebecca Toolan | Teena Mulder | 10 |
| Arlene Pileggi | Skinner's Assistant, Arlene, Woman Party-Goer #1 | 9 |
| Bill Dow | Dr. Charles Burks, Dad, Dr. Rick Newton | 9 |
| Brian Thompson | Bounty Hunter | 9 |
| John Neville | Well-Manicured Man | 8 |
| Peter Donat | Bill Mulder | 7 |
| Travis Riker | Baby William | 7 |
| Adam Baldwin | Knowle Rohrer | 6 |
| Cary Elwes | Assistant Director Brad Follmer | 6 |
| James Riker | Baby William | 6 |
| Jeff Gulka | Gibson Praise | 6 |
| Mimi Rogers | Agent Diana Fowley | 6 |
The X-Files guest stars by season
| Season | Guests | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 249 | Jerry Hardin, William B. Davis, Charles Cioffi, Doug Abrahams, Doug Hutchison, Garry Davey, Gordon Tipple, Harriet Sansom Harris, Henry Beckman, Lesley Ewen, Akiko Morison, Alan Boyce and 237 more |
| Season 2 | 262 | William B. Davis, Steven Williams, Bruce Harwood, Nicholas Lea, Tom Braidwood, Dean Haglund, Peter Donat, Andrew Johnston, Bonnie Hay, Brian Thompson, Christine Willes, Dwight McFee and 250 more |
| Season 3 | 246 | William B. Davis, Tom Braidwood, Brendan Beiser, Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, Don S. Williams, Lenno Britos, Nicholas Lea, Steven Williams, John Neville, Rebecca Toolan, Sheila Larken and 234 more |
| Season 4 | 240 | Brendan Beiser, William B. Davis, Laurie Holden, Morris Panych, Rebecca Toolan, Brent Stait, Bruce Harwood, Campbell Lane, Chilton Crane, Chris Owens, David Palffy, Dean Aylesworth and 228 more |
| Season 5 | 200 | Tom Braidwood, Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, Don S. Williams, Chris Owens, William B. Davis, John Moore, John Neville, Nicholas Lea, Pat Skipper, Sheila Larken, Alex Shostak, Jr. and 188 more |
| Season 6 | 237 | James Pickens, Jr., Bruce Harwood, Chris Owens, Dean Haglund, Tom Braidwood, William B. Davis, Nicholas Lea, Arlene Pileggi, Don S. Williams, Michael McKean, Mimi Rogers, Al Ruscio and 225 more |
| Season 7 | 246 | William B. Davis, Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, Rebecca Toolan, Tom Braidwood, Arlene Pileggi, Bill Dow, Christopher Wynne, John Finn, Martin Grey, Megan Corletto, Mimi Rogers and 234 more |
| Season 8 | 185 | James Pickens, Jr., Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, Tom Braidwood, Kirk B.R. Woller, Adam Baldwin, Arlene Pileggi, Judson Scott, Nicholas Lea, Zachary Ansley, Brent Sexton, Christine Firkins and 173 more |
| Season 9 | 184 | Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, James Pickens, Jr., Tom Braidwood, Travis Riker, Cary Elwes, James Riker, Alan Dale, Adam Baldwin, Chris Owens, Robert Beckwith, Barbara Patrick and 172 more |
| Season 10 | 84 | William B. Davis, Aliza Vellani, Joel McHale, Lauren Ambrose, Robbie Amell, Sandy Da Costa, Aaron Douglas, Aiden Longworth, Alessandro Juliani, Alex Diakun, Alison Wandzura, Amanda Burke and 72 more |
| Season 11 | 120 | Keith Arbuthnot, Barbara Hershey, William B. Davis, Alan C. Peterson, Ben Cotton, Charles André, Fiona Vroom, Haley Joel Osment, James Pickens, Jr., Karin Konoval, Madeleine Arthur, Miles Robbins and 108 more |
Guest stars you know from somewhere else
The hardest-working character actors in this show's guest cast, ranked by how many other shows in this catalogue they have also guest-starred in. Not the most famous names, the most prolific ones.
| Actor | In The X-Files | Other shows |
|---|---|---|
| Tom Virtue | Dave Kline | 48 |
| Robert Curtis Brown | Assistant DA Damon Kaylor | 45 |
| Kenneth Tigar | Dr. Plant | 41 |
| John Kapelos | Agent Fordyce | 40 |
| Spencer Garrett | Harry Bring | 40 |
| James Hong | Hard-Faced Man | 38 |
| John Billingsley | Timothy "Timmy the Geek" Landau | 38 |
| Phil Abrams | Little Fritz | 38 |
| Sam Anderson | U.S. Attorney Leamus | 38 |
| Michael B. Silver | Howard Grodin | 37 |
| Glenn Morshower | Aaron Starkey | 37 |
| Andy Umberger | Agent Chesty Short | 36 |
| Michael Dempsey | Sheriff | 36 |
| Jamie McShane | Injured Soldier | 35 |
| Fredric Lehne | Arthur Dales | 34 |
Played more than one character
| Actor | Characters | Eps |
|---|---|---|
| Alex Diakun | Buddy / Devil, Curator, Dr. Fingers | 5 |
| Doug Abrahams | Agent #2, Detective Neary, Farbaugh | 5 |
| William MacDonald | Agent Dan Kazanjian, Buddy Riggs, Dr. Oppenheim | 5 |
| Arlene Pileggi | Skinner's Assistant, Arlene, Woman Party-Goer #1 | 9 |
| Bill Dow | Dr. Charles Burks, Dad, Dr. Rick Newton | 9 |
| Keith Arbuthnot | Ghouli, Alien, Chatter Man | 5 |
| Malcolm Stewart | Dr. Sacks, Agent Bonnecaze, Commander Carver | 5 |
| Angelo Vacco | Angelo Garza, Door Man, Guido / Bartender | 4 |
| Don MacKay | Charlie, Judge, Oates | 4 |
| Dwight McFee | Commander, David Gates, Detective Havez | 4 |
Shares a cast with
- The X-Files and ER — 333 shared actors
- The X-Files and The Outer Limits — 313 shared actors
- The X-Files and Supernatural — 296 shared actors
- The X-Files and Stargate SG·1 — 235 shared actors
- The X-Files and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — 224 shared actors
- The X-Files and NCIS — 209 shared actors
- The X-Files and The Practice — 192 shared actors
- The X-Files and Criminal Minds — 190 shared actors
Cast data from TVmaze, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.