There’s something so engaging about the science-fiction genre. The melding of themes and ideas that we collectively accept as plausible, mixed with concepts that are decidedly less likely, makes for a viewing experience that’s equal parts grounded and fantastical. Few feature films walk that line as well as John Carpenter’s The Thing. As for its televised counterparts, The X-Files also stands out as particularly effective in its merging of the ordinary and the extraordinary. With that in mind, it may not surprise you to learn that both The Thing and a celebrated episode of The X-Files share a common point of inspiration (not to mention a production designer).
That’s right, “Ice,” which is the eighth episode of the first season of The X-Files, and John Carpenter’s The Thing are each inspired by a celebrated novella published in 1938. Some fans have posited that “Ice” ripped off The Thing, but that’s probably an oversimplification. It’s perhaps more fitting to say that both The Thing and “Ice” are adapted from the same source.
The X-Files Episode “Ice” and The Thing Are Both Based on the Novella Who Goes There?
John W. Campbell’s novella Who Goes There? is a pivotal effort that was first adapted for the 1951 feature film The Thing From Another World. John Carpenter famously rebooted the property as The Thing in 1982. And, like we mentioned, the tome also serves as a major point of inspiration for “Ice.”
At their core, both “Ice” and The Thing can be summed up as follows: a group of characters find themselves stranded at a remote, snowy research facility with a shapeshifting alien presence sowing seeds of suspicion throughout.
One of many key similarities is presented via the scope of each story. Both Carpenter’s film and The X-Files episode are largely self-contained. The single setting creates a claustrophobic sensation that works to augment the baseline of tension throughout.
“Ice” unfolds after a grisly murder-suicide at an Alaskan research base. Given the unusual circumstances, Agents Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) and Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), who specialize in the paranormal and otherworldly, are called in to investigate. After the government agents arrive on the scene, they are greeted by an aggressive canine who almost immediately bites Bear (Jeff Kober), the pilot who aided in their arrival. As you likely recall, The Thing also kicks off with “the thing” taking the form of a dog. But the similarities certainly do not stop there.
Shortly after the bite, Bear begins acting strangely, ultimately perishing when a wormlike creature with possible extraterrestrial origins is removed from underneath his flesh. Without a pilot readily available to take them back home, Mulder and Scully find themselves stranded, much like the characters in The Thing before them.
From there, the episode takes a series of harrowing twists and turns as the seeds of paranoia are sown. Like we see in The Thing, the characters in “Ice” quickly realize that everyone among them is a potential threat. Mulder even falls under suspicion, ultimately finding himself forcefully quarantined pending further investigation. Fans of The Thing might remember that Dr. Blair (Wilford Brimley) experiences a nearly identical fate when the team locks him in the toolshed after he lands on their collective radar.
Many fans have noted that the “Ice” episode of The X-Files and The Thing also share a similar visual aesthetic. As it turns out, there’s a perfectly good reason for that: the respective efforts have a production designer in common. Indeed, Graeme Murray worked on both projects.
As for where the properties deviate, that pertains largely to the intentions of the malevolent being at the core of each story. In The Thing, the antagonistic presence has designs on absorbing and passing itself off as different lifeforms. In “Ice,” the parasite induces bouts of uncontrolled rage in those affected.
The “Ice” episode of The X-Files and the feature film The Thing share a common point of inspiration in the novella Who Goes There? When stopping to consider the ample similarities between the two, that makes a lot of sense. As we mentioned, both unfold at a snowy, remote research facility and feature a core antagonist infiltrating the premises with decidedly deadly consequences.
If you’re feeling nostalgic for The X-Files, you can stream all 11 seasons of the show on Hulu. If that’s not enough to satiate your appetite, you’ll be pleased to know that Ryan Coogler is currently developing a series reboot. Though that project is still in the early stages of development, we will keep you apprised as more updates become available.
