DOCTOR WHO Showrunner Reveals Which Streamers Tried To Acquire Series; Teases "Terrifying" Take On Toymaker

DOCTOR WHO Showrunner Reveals Which Streamers Tried To Acquire Series; Teases "Terrifying" Take On Toymaker

Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies has revealed that Disney+ wasn't the only streamer in the mix to acquire the series, while he also teases Neil Patrick Harris' "terrifying" Toymaker. Check it out...

By JoshWilding - Nov 05, 2023 08:11 AM EST
Filed Under: Doctor Who
Source: SFX (via SFFGazette.com)

There's a great deal of buzz surrounding Russell T Davies' Doctor Who returns, and what promises to be a thrilling new era for the iconic sci-fi franchise will kick off in style with three specials coming to BBC and Disney+ later this month/early December. 

In those, David Tennant will take on the role of the Fourteenth Doctor. However, he'll face a formidable challenge in Neil Patrick Harris' Toymaker, a villain who first debuted way back in 1966. The fact Davies has dreamed up a new iteration of the celestial baddie is undeniably intriguing and we now have a better idea of what to expect.

Talking to SFX (via SFFGazette.com), the showrunner dropped some hints about what fans can expect from Harris' Toymaker.

"You need an extraordinary actor to match David at the height of his powers," Davies teased. "Bear in mind that this is David’s TARDIS, his Doctor, his name in the titles. It’s not easy for guest stars to come into that."

"You need that size, you need that experience, you need that skill to match him, otherwise you’re in danger that the Doctor will tapdance all around you. That’s what Neil brings...a vast performance that is properly terrifying."

Elsewhere in the interview, Davies addressed the franchise's move to Disney+ outside of the UK. While that streamer has given the BBC series a cash injection, it sounds like they were far from the only platform looking to add the Doctor to its online catalogue.

"Obviously, that was written before the streamer was decided. Bear in mind, a lot of this went into production. It could have been Netflix, it could have been Amazon. It could’ve been anyone – you could say any name there that we went to," Davies reveals. "It’s our job to go to every single streamer in the world. All of them were very interested."

A new Doctor Who still has also been released which you can take a closer look at below. 

The three Doctor Who specials, titled "The Star Beast" (November 25), "Wild Blue Yonder" (December 2) and "The Giggle "(December 9) will reunite the Fourteenth Doctor (David Tennant) and Donna Temple-Noble (Catherine Tate) as they come face-to-face with their most "terrifying" villain yet: the Toymaker (played by Neil Patrick Harris in his Doctor Who debut).

Other confirmed cast members include Yasmin Finney as Rose Temple-Noble, Miriam Margolyes as the voice of the Meep and Ruth Madeley as Shirley Anne Bingham, as well as returning characters Jacqueline King as Sylvia Noble, Karl Collins as Shaun Temple, and Jemma Redgrave as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart.

The 60th-anniversary specials are written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Rachel Talalay, Tom Kingsley, and Chanya Button, respectively. 

Ncuti Gatwa takes control of the TARDIS as the Fifteenth Doctor over the festive period and the new season of Doctor Who will stream globally in 2024 on Disney+ and on the BBC in the UK and Ireland. 

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Se4M4NSt4ine
Se4M4NSt4ine - 11/5/2023, 8:50 AM
It’s ironic that we’re kind of going into uncharted territory here, despite it being a returning show runner. Modern Who seems to change in tone every 5 years, I just hope Davies finds a return to form for the show - I think Tennant’s nostalgia will help fans… but… Gatwa’s era will be the real big test.

He’s the perfect actor to bring the Doctor into a more “woke” shall we say era of viewers. I’m excited, but still a bit hesitant to how they pull it off post Tennant.

Also, for some reason Gatwa’s Who gives me Sam Rockwell’s Zaphod from Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy vibes lol
UncleHarm1
UncleHarm1 - 11/5/2023, 10:57 AM
@Se4M4NSt4ine - Woke is the new MAGA, a word so stupid that is said only by stupid people in a stupid attempt to be popular with the other stupid people they've seen use it on the internet.
Scarilian
Scarilian - 11/5/2023, 2:30 PM
@Se4M4NSt4ine -
If you limit your audience to only a specific group you are still limiting your audience, which will negatively impact the viewership. If they want to include social and political commentary it needs to be done in a way that's subtle or in such a basic generalized sense that people will agree with it.

As for why Doctor Who is the state it is currently, the primary issue is the writing quality declining.

If the writing quality does not improve with RTD then I doubt people will stick around for Ncuti. I'd guess they'll give Ncuti the Christmas special and his first 'true' episode to make an impression and if it's well handled they'll extend that to three episodes or stick for the entire season.
ReverseFlasher
ReverseFlasher - 11/5/2023, 11:11 AM
I didnt really focus on the fact these episodes are all released exactly a week apart… gonna be a fun few weeks!
WarMonkey
WarMonkey - 11/6/2023, 5:11 AM
He said they went to streamers and they were very interested. He never said they choose Disney. So that pretty much means he never got an an actual offer from anyone but Disney. Producers that don't get their shows made almost always say stuff like this.
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