The X-Files creator based new series on NSA leaks

Mulder and Scully are set to return next year for the new X-Files series, but this time around, their enemy may not be chasing the supernatural as much.

Speaking at Cannes, following the show's premiere on Tuesday, creator Chris Carter told press that most of the show was based on various investigative reports that surfaced after whistleblower Edward Snowden leaked thousands of documents that proved there was unprecedented levels of government spying occurring on private citizens.

"We're trying to be honest with the changes dealing with digital technology: the capability of spying," Carter said, as reported by The Guardian. "Clearly we're being spied on in the US — or at least spying on you — and there seems to be no shame in it."

According to the creator, the explosive level of paranoia that flourished after the leaks were made public — and the tension between various government agencies as more news was released — all created the perfect foundation for a new X-Files series.

"Every day I look at the newspaper and I see a possible X-Files episode," he said.

Carter explained that the new angle would explore the state of national security in the United States post 9/11, while simultaneously focusing on the developing nature of Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully's (Gillian Anderson) complex relationship.

Delving a little more into what fans can expect out of the new season, Carter admitted one of the new characters, Tad O'Malley, was semi-based on himself.

O'Malley — played by Joel McHale (Community, The Soup) — is a conspiracy theorist who spends his days scouring the internet for news. Carter confessed that the character came out of his own daily habit of surfing various sites after the original X-Files series ended.

The X-Files will premiere on Jan. 25, 2016 on Fox. Watch the full length trailer for the series below.