The X-Files Guest Star Who Saved Season 1’s Worst Script

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 25 seconds ago

Ever watch a pretty mediocre hour of television that is only salvaged by a killer guest star? Sometimes, even professionals in the television industry will be the first to admit that they were handed a pretty lackluster script and that the only thing holding the story together is the strong performance by that week’s guest actor. For example, the director who worked on the episode “Roland” agreed that Željko Ivanek’s performance helped salvage what would otherwise have been a very unremarkable episode of The X-Files.

Željko Ivanek with the X-Files episode “Roland”

In case you haven’t seen it or just need a refresher, “Roland” is an episode where the titular character is an intellectually disabled man who is being manipulated into murderous actions by his cryogenically frozen twin brother. Even by the standards of this spooky show, this storyline was ‘90s soap opera schlock at its finest. Many who worked on this episode believed that Roland star Željko Ivanek really saved this X-Files episode, starting with director David Nutter who said that “when I knew I had him, I thought it was important to push that as much as possible, to help outweigh the frailties in the script.”

One of David Nutter’s biggest criticisms of this episode’s script is that its villain was “a little bit abstract.” That’s because the Big Bad was a guy in cryogenic stasis whom we don’t even get to see until near the end of the episode…not exactly a tangible threat like the Cigarette Smoking Man lurking in the corner. However, once he realized what extensive acting chops Željko Ivanek had, the X-Files director put more emphasis on the Roland character, resulting in an episode that he thought “was a really strong character piece.”

Chris Carter generally agreed with this assessment, noting that “For me, (Željko Ivanek’s portrayal) made the episode” into one that X-Files fans will never forget. He went on offer specific praise to “David Nutter and to the writing staff for falling in and making the episode really work.” In fact, Carter loved Roland so much that he allowed one of the show’s unspoken musical rules to be completely broken.

According to X-Files composer Mark Snow, David Nutter “said that a weird little theme on piano would be great for this character,” but Snow knew very well that Chris Carter was “really not into melodic music,” so he knew he had to get this song “just right.” The result is “this simple, very child-like, slightly forlorn, sad piece”…the kind that instantly stood out amid the show’s spookier and more atmospheric tracks. Fortunately, Carter loved the song, which perfectly encapsulated the title character’s inner struggle.

In retrospect, it’s easy to see how the creative staff behind “Roland” really did put all their chips on Željko Ivanek’s performance. He got a meaty share of the screen time, a custom song, and an unforgettable final arc. And that made him a standout character in a season that included early fan-favorites like The Lone Gunmen and Walter Skinner.

At the end of the day, David Nutter’s instincts were right: Željko Ivanek’s powerful acting really was the highlight of an otherwise fairly mediocre X-Files episode. Fortunately for the cast and crew, this was a show built around big personalities, and Ivanek’s Roland character managed to be just as compelling in his limited time onscreen as David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson’s erstwhile FBI agents. And that makes this episode worth rewatching a time or two before you put it back on ice (preferably cryogenic freeze).