Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies opened a can of worms when the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Doctors bi-generated and he suggested the twist meant multiple Doctors were now alive. The ordeal had people excited for actor David Tennant to continue playing The Doctor in the future, potentially in a series separate from Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor. Well, now, Davies has finally made clear the reality of that happening, and fans won’t be pleased by what he has to say.
The showrunner spoke to The Times about Doctor Who’s new season that’s about to premiere on the 2024 TV schedule. As other interviews since the 60th anniversary have gone, the questions eventually went to David Tennant’s future as the Fourteenth Doctor, considering he’s alive and well at the end of it. Russell T. Davies appears to be tired of that question, considering the response he delivered (via Radio Times):
I think he died. I’m going to start saying that. He went to Venice, 2063, when the city sank, and he went into a whirlpool, which is really sad…
It’s a brutal end for the Fourteenth Doctor, though one I don’t think exists anywhere but in the Doctor Who showrunner’s mind. The point of the quote, it seems, is to encourage future interviewers not to ask about David Tennant returning, especially when he already subtly clarified the actor’s status as The Doctor just a week prior.
And while David Tennant tried to be brutally honest about the odds of him returning as the timelord, it seems Doctor Who fans haven’t entirely received the message. So now Russell T. Davies is making another attempt to put the topic to rest by making a definitive statement about the Fourteenth Doctor actor:
David is parked and retired and it’s all Ncuti’s show now. Genuinely. Not that David might be coming back — he’s absolutely not coming back.
That’s about as clear as it can be, so don’t expect to use that Disney+ subscription to see David Tennant play The Doctor in new episodes unless, of course, it’s one of the 60th-anniversary specials.
It is worth noting that it was the showrunner who started this whole debate in the first place. Had The Doctor regenerated as they normally do, no one would’ve suspected Tennant would return.
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I would also speculate that maybe Russell T. Davies didn’t think at the time what a problem it could be to leave the status of one of the most popular Doctor Who actors of all time up in the air right on the heels of introducing a new actor and era for the franchise. Giving any indication that the “old Who” is still around and capable of being returned to could lead to dissension within the fandom, with some constantly wishing to return to the way things were.
Fans will do that anyway, as this phenomenon is not unique to Doctor Who. The previous showrunner, Chris Chibnall, caused some division with the introduction of the “Timeless Child” story arc, which retconned the Doctor being a native Gallifreyan. Doctor Who intends to lean into that heavily in the new era, linking the Doctor’s origins as an adoptee to his new companion, Ruby Sunday.
Doctor Who launches on Disney+ with a two-episode premiere on Friday, May 9th. Those in the United States will get access to the new episodes at 7:00 p.m. ET, with the global rollout happening simultaneously. Having seen advanced episodes it’s a blast, and I suppose it’s not a spoiler to state that David Tennant is not involved.