Television: Meet the Substi-Stars

Some long-running series are bringing in new leads. Will their viewers reject the transplants?

As FBI agent John Doggett on the X-Files, Robert Patrick has to hunt alien shape shifters who steal people's faces. On some level, he probably knows how they feel. No sooner did series creator Chris Carter announce Patrick as the new lead, after star David Duchovny scaled back his role, than some outraged fans tagged Patrick as a usurping alien himself. The steely-eyed character actor (Terminator 2) knows he lucked out in getting the role, but he has a healthy respect for the X populi. "They're great, enthusiastic fans," he says diplomatically. "I'd like to tell them that this is a...

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