The Amazing Maleeni

"The Amazing Maleeni"
The X-Files episode
The severed head of The Amazing Maleeni.
Episode no.	Season 7 Episode 8
Directed by	Thomas J. Wright
Written by	Vince Gilligan John Shiban Frank Spotnitz
Production code	7ABX08
Original air date	January 16, 2000 (2000-01-16)
Running time	44 minutes
Guest appearances
Ricky Jay as Herman/Albert Pinchbeck Jonathan Levit as Billy LaBonge Robert LaSardo as Cissy Alvarez Jim Maniaci as Bullethead Rick Marzan as Holding Cell Officer Mark Chaet as Bank Officer Dennis Keiffer as Bullethead Dan Rice as Uniform Cop Sherri Howard as Female Employee J. David as Young Boss Steven Barr as Courier Guard Adam Vernier as Driver[1]
Episode chronology
← Previous "Orison" Next → "Signs and Wonders"
The X-Files season 7
List of episodes

"The Amazing Maleeni" is the eighth episode of the seventh season of the science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network in the United States on January 16, 2000. It was written by Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, and Frank Spotnitz and directed by Thomas J. Wright. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "The Amazing Maleeni" earned a Nielsen household rating of 9.4, being watched by 16.18 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed reviews.

The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. Mulder is a believer in the paranormal, while the skeptical Scully has been assigned to debunk his work. In this episode, The Amazing Maleeni, a small-time magician, performs an amazing feat to impress a heckler—he turns his head 360 degrees. So when he is later found without a head at all, Mulder and Scully arrive on the case and discover an angry ex-con, an unimpressed rival, and Maleeni’s twin brother. All seem to have something to do with a plan to rob a major bank.

Although written by Gilligan, Shiban, and Spotnitz, the story for "The Amazing Maleeni" was conceived largely by executive producer Frank Spotnitz, who had wanted to do an episode dealing with "magic and illusion" since the show's second season. Real-life magician Ricky Jay, who also was Spotnitz's favorite, was brought in to play the part of the titular Maleeni.