“X-Factor: The Incredible”
Five facts about the mysterious cult series
Jonathan Frakes can be seen in a new episode, “X-Factor: The Unbelievable”.
© RTLZWEI / SUPERAMA Film
On October 31, RTLzwei will focus on “X-Factor: The Unbelievable”. Fans need to know these exciting facts about the cult format.
Cult presenter Jonathan Frakes (69) and his incredible stories are back: On October 31, RTLzwei will broadcast a new episode “X-Factor: The Unbelievable” with four new stories (8:15 pm and via TVNow). The entire day at the station is dedicated to the mysterious and unbelievable: fans have been enjoying old episodes since 9 a.m. The format, which was produced from 1997 to 2002, has delighted an audience of millions for more than two decades.
1. “Truth” or Fiction?
Each “X-Factor” episode is divided into five stories that are declared true or false at the end. There is no evidence of its truthfulness. Information on the space and time of the events as well as the sources of the story usually remain inaccurate. The fact that episodes such as “Rote Augen” (Original: “Red Eyed Creature”), in which a mysterious, red-eyed apparition is seen in a kitchen and scares people, were dubbed “true” led to an assessment of the program in 2012: According to the The Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media is the mixing of truth and fiction and the declaration of certain episodes as “true” which is harmful to minors and violates the protection of minors. This assessment was only made 14 years after the first episode was broadcast in Germany.
2. “The woman in the mirror”
Some episodes of the mystery series have cult status to this day. So also the episode “Frau im Spiegel”, with which the series began in season one. It’s about Mona who, after a nervous breakdown, keeps seeing a half-decayed woman in the mirror of her house. No one can see the mysterious woman except her. When a burglar assaults Mona, he sees the woman in the mirror, is frightened and falls down the stairs. The apparition turns out to be the burglar’s murder victim.
3. Jonathan Frakes
“Are you wondering if the story is true?” – Jonathan Frakes is the face of the show. He took over the job in 1998 from actor James Brolin (81), who hosted the show in season one. Frakes had also previously become known as an actor, taking on roles in “Torches in the Storm”, “Spaceship Enterprise: The Next Century” and Star Trek series. Since 2006 he has mainly worked as a TV director. In 2019 Frakes celebrated a small “X-Factor” comeback – in the German Netflix series “How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)” as part of a parody.
4. Particularly loyal fans in Germany
In Germany, the series met with particularly great interest in the 1990s. The third and fourth final seasons were broadcast synchronized in this country before the US premiere. The fourth season even got its own opening credits for the German version with different theme music. For the 20th anniversary of the show on November 4, 2018, RTLzwei produced “X-Factor: The Incredible Returns” with the German actor Detlef Bothe (56) as the presenter.
5th offshoot of the series
The format was also taken up elsewhere and honored with offshoots. “X-Factor: The Fifth Dimension” was all about people who experience supernatural things or who have had experiences with the supernatural. X-Factor: The True Dimension of Fear takes a closer look at the scenes of bloody crime and paranormal activity. The German program “X-Factor: Wahre Lügen” was based on the original series. It told of mysterious and curious occurrences of everyday life and the viewers could also decide here whether the stories are true or just fictional.