Leyla Harrison
In 2001, a fan named Leyla Harrison, a highly talented writer of X-Files fan fiction, died from melanoma after a long struggle with the disease. The Scully character had a lengthy cancer storyline on the show (for which Gillian Anderson won the Emmy that year) around the same time as Leyla was first diagnosed. Many of Leyla's stories, but certainly not all, were Scully point-of-view narratives as the character came to terms with the diagnosis and what the cancer was doing to her life. These stories are beautifully told, and I'm sure full of Leyla's own firsthand experiences, which makes them even more poignant.
Just after she died and right before David Duchovny left the show for good, the episode "Alone" was aired, featuring Special Agent Leyla Harrison, who was named in her honor as a tribute. Appropriately, the Agent Harrison character was full of X-Files trivia and obscure references, just like a real-life fan of the show.
May she rest in peace!
Just after she died and right before David Duchovny left the show for good, the episode "Alone" was aired, featuring Special Agent Leyla Harrison, who was named in her honor as a tribute. Appropriately, the Agent Harrison character was full of X-Files trivia and obscure references, just like a real-life fan of the show.
May she rest in peace!