"Lightning Boy" that series creator Chris Carter had tacked to a board in his office since the first season. Carter's idea had not developed much beyond that two-word idea until the show's writers decided to approach the boy's power "as a metaphor for disenfranchised adolescence". Writer Howard Gordon described the episode's concept as "Beavis and Butt-head electrified". "D.P.O." followed a string of mythology episodes, which Gordon believes caused this episode to suffer, conceptually. Then-story editor Frank Spotnitz claims that the writers initially thought about referencing the developments of these mythology episodes in "D.P.O.", but this plan was nixed due to Carter's desire to keep the mythology and monster-of-the-week episodes separate. Giovanni Ribisi auditioned for the role of Darin twice: during his first try-out, Carter was dissatisfied with his performance, but after casting director Rick Millikan championed his cause and secured him another audition, Carter reconsidered his initial opinion. Spotnitz later described Ribisi's performance as "really, really good". The sheriff, Teller, was named after Teller from illusion and comedy duo Penn & Teller. The pair had wanted to appear on an episode of the show, but when conflicting schedules precluded this from happening, this reference was added instead. The "Astadourian Lightning Observatory" is fictional, and was named after Carter's executive assistant, Mary Astadourian. Darin Oswald was named after X-Files writer Darin Morgan. Special effects supervisor David Gauthier created a unique "lightning machine" for the episode; the device, concealed in the ground, used mirrors and special generators to create the effect of lightning striking. The device was very powerful, producing 2.9 million cd of luminous intensity, and producing enough energy to "singe the grass." To keep Ribisi out of harm's way, he stood on a raised platform, which was hidden by special camera angles. The final effect was "augmented by sparks and smoke." A special anti-fire product was applied to the costumes of the actors hit by lightning. According to art director Graeme Murray, the scene in which Darin manipulates traffic lights required the construction of special street lights and a billboard, which could then be manipulated by the crew. This turned out to be "the biggest construction event" for the art crew. The farmhouse used for Darin's home, situated in Albion, British Columbia, had been used during the production of the movies Jennifer Eight (1992) and Jumanji (1995). The producers had difficulty securing permission to use a dead cow in the