“Doctor Who” Expected To Continue Regardless Of Disney’s Funding Speculation
With just a couple more episodes of the second season of the iconic British sci-fi series Doctor Who to be released later this month, there is much interest in the future of the long-established franchise.
The show follows The Doctor, who meets Belinda Chandra and begins an epic quest to get her back to Earth. But a mysterious force is stopping their return and the time-traveling TARDIS team must face great dangers, bigger enemies and wilder terrors than ever before.
Back in 2022, Disney announced it had made a new deal with the BBC to bring the iconic classic British sci-fi series, “Doctor Who”, to Disney+ subscribers around the world, while remaining exclusive to the BBC in the United Kingdom. As part of the new deal, the show was rebooted, with three specials released for the 60th anniversary, with David Tennant returning as the Doctor, leading to Ncuti Gatwa becoming the new Doctor, which resulted in the Christmas special being the first adventure of Ncuti’s run.
In May 2024, the first season of “Doctor Who” was released, with the show numbering rebooting to indicate it was a fresh take on the franchise and the second season began airing on Disney+ and the BBC in April.
Since the show’s debut on Disney+, there has been a big cloud over the future of the show’s future, especially with falling viewership and what appears to be a general lack of interest by Disney in promoting the show internationally.
Disney and the BBC have both publicly stated that they will decide whether to make a third season after the second season airs. The original deal between the two companies is estimated to cost around $100 million, which was for two seasons of the show plus the specials.
It was also a deal made while Bob Chapek was running Disney and was looking for as much content as possible for Disney+, for the least amount of money. Since the return of Bob Iger as Disney’s CEO, we’ve seen a drastic shift in how Disney looks at content creation, focusing on quality over quantity, plus it’s unable to take advantage of the show making additional revenue from merchandise, since it’s only licensed the TV show for Disney+.
There is also a spin-off series called ‘The War Between The Land And The Sea’, which is set to be released on Disney+ and the BBC at a later date. This show will tell the story of what happens when a fearsome and ancient species emerges from the ocean, dramatically revealing itself to humanity, and an international crisis is triggered. With the entire population at risk, UNIT steps into action as the land and sea wage war. Disney and the BBC might not say anything publicly about their deal until this series is released.
Recently, The Mirror reported that while Disney’s involvement with Doctor Who looks unlikely to continue, the future of the show is still bright since the franchise is owned by the BBC and has gone through many phases of popularity and unpopularity over the last sixty years. “Doctor Who” is still one of the most popular shows to air on the BBC, so there is still interest in the UK, though it is much less than it was in previous incarnations.
While the budget on the new “Doctor Who” series is much bigger than previous seasons, apparently, the requirement by Disney to have the show released in 4K is one of the reasons why the show is costing more to make and should Disney pull its funding for future seasons, the BBC could cut the production budget, by simply returning the show to HD.
“Doctor Who is an expensive show to make, with its effects budget taking up a significant part of the overall spend, so if Disney were to withdraw its funding, then there wouldn’t be as significant an impact on production as some fans may think. The TARDIS set is still standing in Cardiff, all ready to go on new adventures.”
It’s also reported that Russell T. Davies has already written the scripts for the third season, with a plan already in place for the fourth. A spokesperson told the newspaper:
“Whether or not Disney stays, the expectation is that the show will continue. Yes, there will be a gap while the scripts are finalised, the episodes are filmed and the editing process takes place. But we’ll be back. The wait won’t be forever, just a big pause.”
There are still many questions about the future of “Doctor Who”, with rumours that Ncuti Gatwa has already filmed his regeneration scene and there are currently no plans for another Christmas Special to be released this year.
The BBC makes hundreds of millions of dollars from licensing and merchandise of “Doctor Who”, so it’s still a profitable franchise, but for Disney, they aren’t able to tap into any of that additional revenue, so it makes sense that it invests its money in franchises it can fully control.
Since the 1970s, “Doctor Who” has incorporated political and social commentary into its stories. However, the new version has come under fire online for being considered too “woke.” With major US studios pulling back their efforts on DEI programs due to the current administration, speculation of Disney’s involvement in future seasons has been rampant before the first anniversary special was even released.
We are unlikely to know the fate of “Doctor Who” and whether it will continue to be a show that Disney invests in, but this partnership is unique. Ultimately, “Doctor Who” is a BBC-owned franchise, so without Disney’s financial investment, the show can continue, like it has for decades. It’s also a show that’s in constant flux, with the main character being played by over a dozen actors and new companions being introduced almost in every new season. New seasons might not be released on Disney+ in the future, but I’ve no doubt that “Doctor Who” will return, in one way or another.
What do you think of the future of “Doctor Who”? Let me know on social media!
Roger Palmer
Related Article
BBC Developing New “Doctor Who” Preschool Animated Series
Ncuti Gatwa Leaves “Doctor Who” In Shocking Season Finale
