And some people can't bear the thought of others trying to enjoy the mystery. Gods forbid.
Spoilers Russell T. Davies Returns to Doctor Who as New Showrunner
- Thread starter Allyn Gibson
- Start date
In honesty, I haven't watched the final three episodes of the season yet... despite enjoying the first 5. Mainly due to time as usual.
I might not bother? I'm not excited in anyway by
and so, as with much of modern Trek it might be just time to step away, enjoy the shows I do enjoy and see if my interest gets fired up again sometime in the future.
Not to be a Negative Nancy and I'm stoked if folks are enjoying all this, but it's not what I want from the show and I'm almost terminally uninterested in where things are going.
I might not bother? I'm not excited in anyway by
The Rani/Omega/Susan/Piper
Not to be a Negative Nancy and I'm stoked if folks are enjoying all this, but it's not what I want from the show and I'm almost terminally uninterested in where things are going.
Which would go along with the previous idea batted around regarding the Heart of the TARDIS. Either way works for me.
I like that theory. Something tells me that if we ever see the Doctor again, looking like her they will try and throw in a extra hook beyond the idea of the Doctor just looking like a familiar face. I mean they already did that twice when you think about with both Capaldi and the return of Tennant.
If the next episode isn't until Christmas 2026 then Billie Piper will already have been the lead character* in the show longer than Ncuti was.
*Not calling her the Doctor until someone from the BBC or Bad Wolf does.
*Not calling her the Doctor until someone from the BBC or Bad Wolf does.
That, OR ... maybe the more likely scenario is it's a last-minute casting stunt and they haven't figured out who she is yet.
Strange thing to argue / worry about when the franchise might well be facing a similar situation to Trek post-Enterprise.
A now deleted tweet was discovered claiming there would be filming in September for a Christmas special this year, a one-off story with Billie in the role of an interim Doctor who passes the role on to the proper '16th' at the end. Reportedly Moffat is going to pen the special again
Hmm, September does seem a bit quick for a Christmas 2025 special, though I'm sure something similar might have been done in the past. That said, given how tight lipped everyone seems to be about the show's future, a special this Christmas seems a bit soon. Especially since the credits for The Reality War didn't include "Doctor Who will return at Christmas/New Year's/in [Insert Title]" which finales typically have.
I sure hope we get some clarity about what's going on at Comic Con next month.
I sure hope we get some clarity about what's going on at Comic Con next month.
Absolutely no chance of turning around a Christmas special filmed for this year. To give you an example of how long this takes - The Church on Ruby Road was filmed in Jan/Feb for broadcast in December.
I dunno, seems like it might be a stretch to get a Christmas special made, although I guess RTD and co have known for sometime that Ncuti was going so the script may already be done, and I guess a lot of preproduction work might have been done?
I guess what I'm saying is that I'll believe it when I hear more about it!
I guess what I'm saying is that I'll believe it when I hear more about it!
I think the difference is until they hear one way or the other from Disney they can't make any progress on what shape the series takes next.
I don’t know how reliable this is but a friend tells me that the actor they almost cast before Ncuti was Toby Stephens. Aneurin Bernard was apparently also a good way up the shortlist. Yes, pinch of salt, citation needed, etc
Supposedly, the reason they're giving for "Introducing Billie Piper" with no "as The Doctor" is it would have given away the surprise (I guess thru the company that makes the credits and them leaking it).
What he said.
But, if that's the case, then what the fuck was the point of the reshoots? Surely Ncuti would've found some time to film a Christmas special as his proper exit if that were the case.
Frankly, I would have loved either as the Doctor. That's not to say that I didn't love Gatwa, but I can definitely envision Stephens or Bernard, just as I could envision Ben Daniels, Capaldi's runner-up, as the Doctor.
Not necessarily, depending on the work he chooses to take. If his reason for leaving was the vagueness of the shooting schedule that was making it difficult to take other work, a vague "We might shoot a Christmas special in the fall" doesn't improve things.
Capaldi, as I understand it, had a similar issue with the gap year after "Husbands" -- the filming situation was so vague leading up to that and after that that he turned down some other work he might otherwise have taken.
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Even if that made sense, the interviews released after the episode aired with Davies and Piper had them both go out of their way to not call her the Doctor with Piper specifically raising the question of who it is she's playing.
Stephens would have been very good. Quite dashing but can do dark and brooding very well. Would have been something a little different as well (not that Ncuti wasn't very different obviously). I guess the closest fit might have been a more dashing Capaldi
As I say, I can’t stand over that claim, really just throwing it in to see what people think of it, or if anyone had heard similar claims. But I also can’t help but think that Stephens is probably at the age and career stage where he might well have been content to sign up for something like 3 - 5 years.
