There are characters that need no introduction. Homer from The Simpson or Rachel from Friends They have such a secure place in pop culture that it is not necessary to have followed them on the small screen to know who they are. The same thing happens with Mulder and Scully, of X File. During the nine seasons that the emblematic series lasted (extended with two films and a revival in miniseries form in 2016 and 2018), American actress Gillian Anderson gave life to Dana Scully, a brilliant scientist recruited by the FBI. Together with her eternal companion, Fox Mulder (Dave Duchovny), she formed one of the most memorable duos on the small screen of the 1990s.
If within the series Scully worked hard to solve enigmatic and paranormal cases, outside she inspired tens of thousands of girls, who identified in this character a powerful reference within the world of science, a sector where the few women represented in fiction are They have limited themselves to wearing white coats in hospital series. This is what Marta Narberhaus Martínez, professor and researcher at the Faculty of Communication Sciences of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, points out when pointing out the “important differences” that exist “between the people who have professions in the STEM field.” [acrónimo en inglés que designa las carreras de ciencias, tecnología, ingeniería y matemáticas, CTIM por su nombre en español]”. And he adds how easy it is “to find examples of series about health fields in which female characters appear in the roles of doctors or nurses: Central Hospital, Grey’s Anatomy…but it is still extraordinary to see female characters in technical fields such as engineers or mechanics.”
Data supports the Scully effect
In 2024 it is difficult to find that kind of characters but in 1993, the year in which the first episode of X-Files, It was almost impossible. For this reason, Scully revolutionized not only television, but also contributed to a paradigm shift by encouraging the interest of many followers of the series in science, who went on to pursue careers in this field.
“Different studies have shown that the media representation of women working in scientific fields increases the interest of girls and women in these professions. For a girl or adolescent to have a vocation as a scientist or engineer, the first thing she has to be able to do is imagine herself in that role. But the reality is that there are still few women with public projection in these areas,” says Narberhaus. Data collected in different studies support the so-called Scully effect. For example, in 2018, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in the Media published a report titled The Scully Effect: I want to believe, a direct nod to Mulder and Scully, since the first movie in the universe X-Files It was called precisely like this: I want to believe. In this study, carried out in collaboration with 21th Century Fox, the relationship between the character of Dana Scully and the interest of girl fans of the series in STEM disciplines was analyzed, with some very revealing conclusions: “63% of women “Those familiar with the character of Agent Scully showed more confidence in pursuing STEM careers.” Since the 1990s, the Scully effect has been alluded to and even the series’ science advisor, Professor Anne Simon, recounted her first-person experience with the phenomenon. A professor at the University of Maryland, when she started teaching in 1999, she asked her students if any of them were influenced by X-Files. “Two-thirds of the class raised their hands,” he said.
A long and winding road
In recent years, fiction has very timidly incorporated new female characters close to the scientific field. Avoiding stereotypical representation remains a challenge. For example, the label nerd of the scientists of big bang theory or the nerdy label of Alex Dunphy, the middle daughter of Phil and Claire Dumphy in Modern Family. In this sense, the greater the variety of characters, the more realistic and far from clichés these roles will end up being. “The influence of series on vocations is also evident with other examples, such as the so-called CSI effect. The well-known television series influenced the increase in forensic vocations and new university programs in this area. Since this series, this profession has become popular and precisely some of the few female representations in STEM are in this area, as is the case of Jenny Cooper’s characters in The Coroner or Maura Isles in Rizzoli & Isles”, lists Narberhaus.
The road is still long and winding, full of false hopes. Although “there are more and more women scientists and more girls are enrolling in science careers, women in STEM disciplines are still made invisible in Spain,” says Professor Narberhaus. According to data collected by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), “the rate of male graduates in science, mathematics, computer science, engineering, industry and construction per 1,000 inhabitants, aged between 20-29 years, in 2020 and in Spain, it is 33.2% and in women it is 13.2%.” That is, the number of men graduating in STEM careers in 2020 almost tripled that of women in our country. And the problem begins in childhood. The study published in March 2024 Women in STEM: from basic education to careers, prepared by ESADE with support from Banco Santander, specifies that “already in the 4th grade of Primary, girls are 15% less likely than boys to consider mathematics as their favorite subject, and between 8% and 9% less likely to consider themselves good , learn quickly, or enjoy.” The problem will not be solved only with good female characters in fiction, but it is undoubtedly urgent to create references for all audiences.
The ‘X-Files’ pay gap
During her participation in fiction, Gillian Anderson also did her bit towards equality. In her case, to end the wage gap. When she showed up to casting of the series was just 25 years old and a newcomer to the industry. Her co-star was eight years older and her face was somewhat better known. Therefore, his cachet was much superior. However, as the seasons progressed and Dana Scully’s role dazzled the public, the salary difference remained.
In 1997, Anderson won the Golden Globe and the Emmy for her performance in X File (Duchovny only won the Golden Globe), but even backed with that recognition, she had to fight for her salary to match that of her co-star. And she achieved it. Therefore, her surprise was enormous when her participation in the revival In 2016, he was offered half the salary of Dave Duchovny. The interpreter herself denounced it in an interview in The Daily Beast, in which he explained how people are not aware of how present the wage gap is today: “Even in recent interviews, they have told me, ‘I can’t believe that happened, how did you feel? It’s crazy ‘. And my response is always: ‘It happened then and it happens now.’ And it has happened again! “I don’t even know what to say about it,” he said in the aforementioned publication.
The interpreter also did not remain silent when highlighting the lack of women among the scriptwriters and directors of the series. “Only two of the 207 episodes were directed by women. I look forward to the day when the numbers are different,” she wrote in a tweet in 2017. A few months ago the return (again) of the series was confirmed, this time presented as a new version with a cast different from the original. Let’s hope that the new Dana Scully manages to influence a whole new generation of women.
