Pamela Anderson 'nearly cast as Scully'

Gillian Anderson has revealed that Pamela Anderson was producers' preferred choice for her role in The X-Files.

The 39-year-old stated that the Baywatch star was on the minds of Fox executives when they were casting FBI agent Dana Scully.

"They were looking for someone, bustier, taller, leggier than me," Anderson is quoted as saying.

Speaking about Pamela, she added: "Well that was somebody who was more familiar to them in terms of what was on TV at the time.

"They couldn't fathom how David (Duchovny) and me could equal success."

She added: "Chris (Carter, series creator) stuck to his guns. Really, though, at the beginning, nobody trusted that I could do anything. I had no body of work behind me at all and certainly, Fox felt very strongly that I wasn't the right person for the job."

New X-Files movie I Want To Believe is released in the UK on August 1.