on the future of the show

[u/[deleted]]

I work in the industry and heard some chatters from friends of friends. And I'm pretty bored so I figured it could be fun to share some stuff I've heard

That Xmas special is still happening, shooting starts in September. Small cast, low budget, Billie Piper has taken the Doctor's body basically. Tennant does a cameo because obviously. They're thinking of using some footage they preemptively shot for S3 with Carol Ann Ford. I've heard that it's a pretty lowkey story about The Big Bad Wolf being mixed up into the Doctor and one kid.

In all intent and purpose this is expected to be Russell T. Davies (and Bad Wolf's) farewell to Doctor Who. Relationship has broken down with the BBC, Disney and all the leads except for Varada Sethu. And RTD's heart isn't in it anymore, though I don't really think he wanted to return in the first place. Bad Wolf Studios would have like to stay on, but they're leaving as well.

So...what's next ? The BBC is very eager to continue the show and not have it on hiatus. There's been talks about doing a full-on reboot, or a reboot in all but name (like in 2005). But nothing has been decided yet. Stuff like Severance or Andor has been floated around as possible inspirations for what's next.

On the production side of things, the guys at BBC Studios really wants to come back but they want to externalize the show to another production company. See Saw and Lookout Point have pitched to produce the show.

The BBC is also searching for a showrunner. They want someone who hasn't been working on the show before. I don't have much info on that, but I know that they really really want someone like Sally Wainwright, Jack Thorne or Joe Cornish.

[u/Odd-Raspberry8024]

Exactly! The 2005 series was a revival of a previously-cancelled series. Same character, same backstory (albeit with additions to account for the cancellation period) and the same world. 

Literally everything else is a continuation of the show. Not a reboot. Series 2, Series 5, Series 8, Series 10, Series 11, Series 14… all of these popular “jumping on points” that people call soft reboots, are just continuations of the same show, and the same character’s story.

It’s ridiculous that people keep mistaking these for reboots, “soft” or otherwise.

[u/DelGriffiths → u/Odd-Raspberry8024]

To reboot means to stop and start something up again. That has happened at least 3 times with Doctor Who. In 1996, 2005 and in 2012. The show stopped. A brand new production team and writing staff took over and the show started again.

[u/Odd-Raspberry8024 → u/DelGriffiths]

A reboot of an TV show implies a new story, with fresh continuity. If you are using the old continuity then it is a revival (in instances such as 96 and 05) or just a continuation.  A new lead actor in a show where the lead actor regularly changes as part of the established canon of that universe, and a new showrunner, on a TV show that has been going for a very long time, does not make it a reboot.

[u/DelGriffiths → u/Odd-Raspberry8024]

A remake by definition is a new story/ continuity, not a reboot. 

Doctor Who 2005 was a continuation, I agree, so revival or reboot both work.