Je Souhaite

"Je Souhaite" is the twenty-first episode of the seventh season of *The X-Files*, a science fiction television series. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 14, 2000. Vince Gilligan wrote and directed the episode, which was his first time directing. The story is a "Monster-of-the-Week" installment, meaning it does not tie into the show's main mythology. The title translates from French as "I Wish."

The series follows FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who investigate paranormal cases known as X-Files. Mulder believes in the supernatural, while the skeptical Scully is meant to challenge his theories.

In this episode, Mulder and Scully meet a man and his physically disabled brother, who lead them to a genie. The genie appears indifferent and grants wishes, but her motives are not straightforward.

Gilligan had previously written and helped produce *X-Files* episodes, but this was his directorial debut. He originally planned a "stark and scary" script but later turned it into a humorous tale about a genie. The episode used digital technology to create elaborate genie effects, including manipulating stock footage of former U.S. President Richard Nixon and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. One scene was filmed entirely on a soundstage, with no street closures required.

The plot begins in St. Louis, where Anson Stokes, a lazy employee at a self-storage facility, is told by his boss to clean out an old storage locker. He finds a woman wrapped in a rug. When his boss checks on him, the boss's mouth disappears. FBI agents Mulder and Scully interview the boss, Jay Gilmore, after surgery leaves him disfigured and with a speech impediment. They question Stokes's brother Leslie at their mobile home, which has a large boat in its tiny front yard. Inside, the agents spot an unknown woman in the kitchen. They search the storage container and find antiques and a photo of the previous owner with the woman.

The woman is a genie. Stokes is angry because he wasted his first two wishes: he wished for his boss to stop talking (causing the mouth to disappear) and for a boat, which ended up on land, forcing him to pay taxes on it. The genie hints that Anson should use his third wish to let his disabled brother walk, but instead, he wishes for invisibility at will, forgetting to include his clothes.