Gillian Anderson acts exclusively in film.
An Emmy Award , or simply Emmy , is an American award that recognizes excellence in the television industry , and corresponds to the ( likewise American ) Academy Award ( for film ) , the Tony Award ( for theatre ) , and the Grammy Award ( for music ) . Gillian Leigh Anderson , OBE ( born August 9 , 1968 ) , is an American-British film , television and theatre actress , activist and writer . Her credits include the roles of FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the long-running and widely popular series The X-Files , ill-fated socialite Lily Bart in Terence Davies ' film The House of Mirth ( 2000 ) , and DSI Stella Gibson on the BBC crime drama television series The Fall . The Mighty Celt is a 2005 drama film set in Northern Ireland , written and directed by Pearse Elliott . The X-Files ( also known as The X-Files : Fight the Future ) is a 1998 American science fiction thriller film directed by Rob Bowman .