‘The X-Files’ Easter egg: AMC just dropped one through ‘The Walking Dead’

“The X-Files” may have just been brought up in Sunday’s episode of “The Walking Dead,” titled “Hostile and Calamities.” Surprisingly, it was not the first time when AMC had linked itself to the Chris Carter show.

Episode 11 of the post-zombie apocalypse thriller saw Dwight (Austin Amelio) pulling out a pack of cigarettes from a wall ornament in his bedroom. The label on the pack read “Morley,” a cigarette brand “The X-Files” fans can relate to back in the '90s. Worth mentioning is the fact that the pack also had a cigarette with Sherry’s lipstick on it, allegedly a cute reminder of his wife who now belongs to Negan.

Morley cigarettes are not quite new to “The Walking Dead.” In the show’s previous episodes, both Daryl and Dale were seen smoking them though cigarettes were hard to find in the post-apocalyptic world. The fictional brand originally got its popularity from “The X-Files” series, when the Cigarette Smoking Man puffed these cigarettes.

Now beholding “The X-Files” Easter egg which “The Walking Dead” just slipped, fans are likely to wonder if the two shows exist in the same cinematic universe. There would be no zombie aliens coming to rescue Alexandria and the Hill Top from Negan’s wrath, rest assured. It’s only customary for the AMC series to drop subtle ties to other hit series. AMC has been doing that in previous seasons as well.

Meanwhile, Comic Book just revealed other filmic ties that have been observed in “The Walking Dead season 7. The references come from television series “Lost” and film “Smokey and the Bandit.”

In other news, “The X-Files” actress Gillian Anderson spoke about her struggles and how “The X-Files” affected her. The 48-year-old said in an interview that she suffered stress when she was at the peak of her career, playing FBI special agent Dana Scully.

"There were occasions during that series when I wasn't sure whether I could go on," Anderson said, according to the Belfast Telegraph. "I started having panic attacks on a daily basis while we were shooting.”

The actress also said she had "a lot of stuff to deal with" when she was just a child. She described her childhood image as a punk with dyed hair who experimented with drugs. Her classmates voted her as the “girl most likely to be arrested,” Anderson added.

“The X-Files” may return for an 11th season by late 2018 or early 2019. Fox is yet to finalise deals with actors Duchovny and Anderson and series creator Chris Carter. Six episodes are expected to air for the season.