Trivia / The X-Files S06 E16 "Alpha"

• Creator Backlash: Andrew Robinson enjoyed working on the episode but was disappointed that it never showed him transforming into animal form. "How can you make a film about a werewolf and not have a morphing shot? Even Lon Chaney had a morphing shot!"
• Creator Couple: Melinda Cullea (Karin) is the wife of the episode's director, Peter Markle.
• Deleted Scene: The episode originally ended with a scene of Officer Cahn waking up in hospital with glowing eyes, revealing that he has been transformed into the dhole. This scene was included as an extra on the DVD release.
• Never Work with Children or Animals: According to the crew, casting the dhole was a "nightmare" as they auditioned dozens of dogs, of different breeds and sizes, to find one that was sufficiently scary while also trainable enough not to be dangerous. They also had difficulty with some of the trainers they contacted, who proved to be more than a little eccentric.^note One seriously suggested to Chris Carter that the cast and crew wear electric clothing because they couldn't guarantee that their dogs wouldn't attack them! Eventually, Chris Carter contacted Clint Rowe, a dog breeder who had sold him and Frank Spotnitz their own pets, who suggested three trained wolf-malamute hybrids who were ultimately used in the episode. The effects team also created a wolf puppet for use in close-up attack scenes.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The first draft of the script featured a family who traveled across the country to escape a killer dog...only to find the dog waiting for them at their new home. Jeffrey Bell was forced to rewrite the script significantly after failing to work Mulder and Scully into the narrative.
  • Bell's second crack at the story involved a troubled child whose anger influenced dogs at an animal shelter to attack people. It was noted that this premise was similar to "Schizogeny". Frank Spotnitz ultimately introduced the idea of a cryptid dog escaping from a cargo ship.