Robert Patrick has had a number of memorable roles in his career, from the Liquid Terminator through to a brief appearance in the pilot episode of Stargate: Atlantis and his series regular role as Colonel/Brigadier General Tom Ryan on the CBS special ops series The Unit. But, arguably, one of his more significant roles was that of FBI Special John Doggett on The X-Files.

Drafted in, alongside Annabeth Gish, to fill the void left by the departure of David Duchovny as a series regular at the end of the seventh season, he was a key figure in the final two seasons of the show, playing a somewhat stoic and sceptical federal agent. It is a role Robert Patrick remembers fondly: “I’m really proud of the experience that I had on The X-Files”, the actor told TVWise in a recent interview.

“It taught me a lot and was the first time that I was basically the lead on a one hour drama with Gillian Anderson and we brought in Annabeth Gish”, he said. “It’s a real grind and a lot of work, not that I am complaining, but it is hard work. It’s very enjoyable and I wouldn’t want it any other way. It’s fun to go to work and be in front of a camera every day. That’s what I want to do and that’s what I love to do”.

Due to the prominence of Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish’s characters in the eighth and ninth seasons of The X-Files, some fans were surprised that neither appeared in the second feature film I Want To Believe. With that in mind, TVWise recently asked the actor if he would be willing to reprise his role in a third X-Files film, should it get a greenlight at Fox.

“Well, I have to be careful answering this question. I’ve been in quite a few sequels…but I haven’t done a lot. I’m glad that I never really went back to the Terminator world”, he said. “I put my stamp on it and I moved onto something else. I don’t want to say I feel the same way about The X-Files, but I do kind of feel like I have moved on [from the Doggett character] and I don’t really hold a lot of water to the fact that there will be another [X-Files film]”.

But with all that said and done, Robert Patrick is not completely ruling out an appearance in a potential third film. “Now, I don’t want to be insensitive to anyone who thinks there is going to be another movie and if there is, I would be damn lucky if they did ask me to do it. I don’t know where I would be at the time and there are a lot of things you have to consider. I’ve always kind of played it that way. So I guess what I am saying is, I am open to anything and let’s see what happens”.