GILLIAN Anderson has confirmed she is leaving The X-Files after season 11.
The 49-year-old actress has played FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the sci-fi drama since 1993 but has decided to hang up her power suits and shoulder pads for good.
Speaking to TV Guide Magazine, Gillian said: “I’ve said from the beginning, this is it for me.
“I was a bit surprised by people’s [shocked] reaction to my announcement… because my understanding was that this was a single season.”
Season 11 of the show begins on January 3, with David Duchovny also returning as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder.
The actress also shared a clip from the show on Twitter with the comment: “So many seasons, so many shoulder pads, so much emotion! #TheXFiles.
Fans were devastated by the news, taking to Twitter to pay tribute to Gillian and her work as Scully.
One wrote alongside a gif of someone seriously upset: “THEY ARE BREAKING UP SCULLY AND MULDER WTFFFFFFFF WHYY?! She’s leaving after season 11”.
Another tweeted: “#XFiles is Not #TheXFiles without Gillian Anderson (#Scully is a icon) [sic].”
A third agreed, posting: “So many philes tears” while a fourth wrote: “Gillian Anderson NO ONE could play this part like you! You rock Dana Scully! Thank you.”
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Gillian first portrayed the character in 1993, with the popular series running until 2002 on Fox and spawning two film versions.
In 2016, a six episode tenth season aired before Fox confirmed a longer, 10-episode run for season 11 airing on January 3.
But since rising to fame in the role, Gillian has added a number of other successful TV shows to her belt which she still needs to make time for, including BBC drama The Fall and Starz series American Gods.
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