Russell T Davies, the showrunner of Doctor Who, has said he is not a part of ongoing conversations between the BBC and Disney regarding the series’ future — but promised its upcoming spin-off series would be “brilliant.”
Speaking on the Pilot TV podcast, Davies was asked numerous times what the status of the BBC’s flagship sci-fi show was following the conclusion of its most recent season, the departure of its lead actor Ncuti Gatwa, and no sign of an imminent renewal from co-funding partner Disney.
In response, Davies repeatedly said he did not know what was happening, as conversations relating to its future were out of his hands. Davies was also unable to say when the already-filmed Doctor Who spin-off The War Between the Land and the Sea would air, either, although said it had turned out “even better” than expected.
“You’ve kind of got me at the worst possible time because I’m not allowed to say what’s happening with Doctor Who, I don’t know what’s happening with Doctor Who, that’s fact,” Davies said when asked for an update on the show, which has been left on an unplanned hiatus following the departure of Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor via a reshot ending and its last-minute reveal of Billie Piper in an unexplained role..
“We’ve got a spin-off series called The War Between the Land and the Sea coming up starring Russell Tovey,” Davies continued. “I don’t know when that’s on.”
Months on from Doctor Who’s most recent finale, fans remain in the dark about the show’s future — and it is remarkable to hear the series’ own boss claiming he is also none the wiser. Davies has been the key figure in Doctor Who’s 2005 revival and its 2023 Disney relaunch, the architect of David Tennant’s short-lived return and the casting of Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor, head writer for the series, and its most visible public face.
But in the wake of Gatwa’s two-season run on the show, which drew mixed reviews and the show’s lowest ratings since 2005, fans have raised questions over whether the showrunner will continue, or whether — should Disney drop the series and the BBC look for a fresh funding partner — Davies’ existing plans for future episodes will be retained.
Now, Davies has said that discussions are happening between the BBC and co-funding partner Disney that he is not a part in, and seemingly not being kept informed of.
“Literally there’s nothing to… I haven’t come on this podcast to announce any news, there’s nothing to report, nothing’s happening, you’ll know when we know. I don’t know because conversations are between the BBC and Disney,” he added. “I don’t work for either of those, I work for Bad Wolf so I’m not a part of those rooms. So I literally don’t know. Even people I work with every day ask me what’s really going on, I don’t know. I don’t know! So. Who knows.”
Turning his attention to what has already been shot, Doctor Who’s UNIT and Sea Devil-related mini-series The War Between the Land and the Sea, Davies struck a more positive note and said the spin-off was looking promising.
“But we have the spin-off coming The War Between the Land and the Sea with Russell Tovey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw,” he continued. “I’m immensely proud of it. I think it’s absolutely brilliant. It’s like, we had a good edit – sometimes you finish a show and they’re great, [you think] ‘good, we did a really good job.’ Sometimes they go through post-production where everything comes in. You work on the effects, on the music and the grading of it. Sometimes magic happens — and it’s happening with this. It’s even better than we thought it was! I’m delighted with it.”
When will fans get to watch The War Between the Land and the Sea, though? “I wish I knew that! No one will decide that, it’s up in the air,” Davies said. “I wish I knew.”
Amid criticism of the series’ writing and story arcs, Doctor Who actor and writer Mark Gatiss recently suggested the show was in need of a rest. And as questions remain around the future of the BBC’s deal with Disney, it was perhaps notable that plans for an animated Doctor Who spin-off have been announced for kid’s channel CBeebies without Disney being on board.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
