X-Files Cigarette-Smoking Man Is The Key To A Secret Shared TV Universe

As for why the fictional Morley Cigarettes brand – as well as creations like Quentin Tarantino’s Red Apple Cigarettes – exists at all, the real-life explanation was initially a desire to avoid offering free advertising to real tobacco companies that had not paid to sponsor a show or movie. Later, as pop culture advertising cigarette brands fell out of favor, Morley was used to allow cigarettes to appear onscreen without being seen as promoting a real brand and meant that shows could get around countries that had laws against advertising tobacco products, such as the United Kingdom. The Morley brand itself was intended as a not very subtle reference to Marlboro – sometimes referred to as “Marleys” in real-life – with onscreen Morley packs looking similar.

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1535570269372-ccr3’); });

The implications of The X-Files being part of a shared TV universe based around Morley Cigarettes become even greater when it is considered that The X-Files is also connected to the enormous Tommy Westphall unofficial TV universe. That theory revolves around the revelation in the finale of 1980s medical drama St. Elsewhere that the entire show and its characters had taken place inside the mind of a young boy. Since St. Elsewhere‘s characters directly crossed over with other shows, and characters from those shows crossed over with even more shows, some theories posit that an enormous chunk of TV history is set inside Tommy’s head. The X-Files connects to Tommy Westphall due to Law & Order franchise character John Munch appearing in a guest role, which would mean all the other shows featuring Morley Cigarettes are theoretically part of the Westphall universe too. It is enough to make any TV lover’s head spin.

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1535570269372-ccr4’); });

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1550597677810-0’); });

#XFiles #CigaretteSmoking #Man #Key #Secret #Shared #Universe