TV news: The future of dead ‘Doctor Who’ ignites a war of words
Questions of the future of long-running British sci-fi show Doctor Who have been spiralling since the conclusion of the most recent season.
Amid uncertainty over the continued partnership between the BBC and Disney+, 15th Doctor Ncuti Gatwa surprisingly departed after a run of just 19 episodes.
Film News Blitz’s Dan Lawrence writes how the future has caused some barbs to fly in the media.
‘Doctor Who’ is ‘as dead as we’ve ever known it’
On the negative side of things is former Doctor Who writer Robert Sherman, who penned one of the greatest episodes from the show’s revival in 2005: Dalek.
The Season 15 finale this year shocked many as Gatwa regenerated into Billie Piper, well-known for playing beloved Who companion Rose Tyler.
Gatwa’s premature departure was born out of a need to move his career forward, amid the uncertainty of Disney continuing its partnership with the BBC, producing Doctor Who.
While the BBC is adamant that Doctor Who will continue with or without Disney, the show is facing a hiatus, with no confirmation if Piper will continue as the Doctor long-term.
Speaking to the Doctor Who Magazine about the show’s future, Sherman said, “I go through phases; I have a real push/pull thing with the show.
“At the moment I’m in a ‘pull’ phase,” he added.
“It’s weird because the show is probably as dead as we’ve ever known it.”
Sherman even saw the extended no-Who period between 1989 and 1996 as a clearer chasm than the one the show is going through presently.
“After 1989, we had, for years, a current Doctor,” he said.
“Now, everything that is ever going to be produced in Doctor Who terms is going to feel retrogressive.
“At least with the New Adventures and then the BBC Books, you thought, ‘It’s the current Doctor – McCoy or McGann.’
“No one’s going to start writing Doctor Who books with a Billie Piper Doctor, because no one knows what that means.
“In a funny way, the closing moments of ‘The Reality War’ seem to put a full stop on things. We didn’t have that before.”
Shearman comments ‘really rude’, says ‘Doctor Who’ producer
Speaking to BBC Radio Wales, Bad Wolf Studios founder and Doctor Who executive producer Jane Tranter was given the chance to respond to Shearman’s comments.
Shearman wasn’t impressed in the slightest and defiantly defended Doctor Who and its future.
“'As dead as we’ve ever known.' That’s really rude, actually. And really untrue,” Tranter said (via Deadline).
"The plans for Doctor Who are really simply this — the BBC and BBC Studios had a partnership with Disney+ for 26 episodes.
"We are currently 21 episodes down into that 26-episode run. We have got another five episodes of (spin-off) The War Between The Land And The Sea to come.
"At some point after that, decisions will be made together with all of us about what the future of Doctor Who entails."
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Tranter pointed towards Doctor Who’s longevity, but her continued remarks hint that the partnership with Disney may not continue.
"It’s a 60-year-old franchise,” Tranter said.
“It’s been going for 20 years nonstop since we brought it back in 2005. You would expect it to change, wouldn’t you?
“Nothing continues the same always, or it shouldn’t continue the same always.
"So it will change in some form or another. But the one thing we can all be really clear of is that the Doctor will be back and everyone, including me, including all of us, just has to wait patiently to see when, and who."
What does all of this mean for ‘Doctor Who’?
It’s clear that fans of Doctor Who will need to be patient.
The continuation of the Disney+ partnership no doubt will hinge on whether The War Between The Land And The Sea is a success for the streaming service.
Still, Gatwa’s exit and the lack of news from the BBC or the House of Mouse, plus Tranter’s comments, could mean a new partner for Doctor Who moving forward.
That could be a good thing, with some fans critical of the limited eight-episode run per season, and peculiar streaming-first release strategy ahead of the Saturday primetime televised slot.
Moreover, while Disney’s financial prowess helped bolster the production budget of the show, some would argue that the storytelling hasn’t been as good as the show’s high watermark.
What is certain is that further episodes of Doctor Who won’t be coming around any time soon.
UK viewers can watch Doctor Who on BBC iPlayer.
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