Posted in: BBC, Disney+, TV | Tagged: doctor who

Doctor Who: RTD Clarifies Recent Showrunner Comments: "I'm Loving It"

Doctor Who Showrunner Russell T. Davies clarified the comments he made during David Tennant's podcast: "I'm very happy, and I'm loving it."

With the second season premiere of Showrunner Russell T. Davies's Ncuti Gatwa (Fifteenth Doctor), Millie Gibson (Ruby Sunday), and Varada Sethu (Belinda Chandra)-starring Doctor Who set to hit this month, Davies is looking to claridt some comments he made last month during an episode of David Tennant's podcast, David Tennant Does a Podcast With… Davies shared that there have already been "conversations" about who would follow him to lead the show and that he couldn't see himself returning for a third go-around – leaving many to interpret that to mean that RTD was looking to move on (more details on all of it below).

Speaking with CinemaBlend, RTD made it clear that the "conversations" he referenced shouldn't be taken too seriously – or have a countdown clock attached to them. "It's not even a discussion, to be honest. When me and David [Tennant] talked about it [on the podcast], it's kind of a conversation [we've had amongst staff] every day. It's been a conversation when I arrived… who would do this next," RTD shared, before adding that he wasn't looking to be handing over the reins anytime soon. "There's absolutely no detail, no names, no one. I'm very happy, and I'm loving it. So, fingers crossed, we're going to make more."

Doctor Who: Tennant, RTD on New Showrunner "Conversations," Disney

During the podcast, Davies and Tennant cover a wide range of issues, personal and professional, over the course of a little more than an hour – with two Doctor Who-related highlights grabbing our attention. First up, Tennant and Davies discuss if Davies would ever return to the show for a third time after his current run ends – with Davies noting that there have been "conversations" about who would come next. Following that, Davies explains why the Disney deal was one of the reasons why he returned while also clarifying the timeline regarding when the BBC had an interest in seeking a streaming partner.

Davies on "Doctor Who" Showrunner Future: When asked if he's ever thought about shutting it down for good with the show and walking away, Davies responded, "Oh, yes. I mean, I won't go back a third time, for God's sake; that would be insane." After Tennant jokingly pushed back that he said the same thing about his previous return, Davies added, "That's very true, but I'm not getting younger, darling, and I will need to slow down at some point. That'll come," noting that Steven Moffat was brought in after his second run and – as Davies says – it was "'Right, off you go!'" from there. Davies does share that there have been "conversations" about who takes over after him – and while he admits the situation is "hard" and "a tricky one" to navigate, he understands that those talks need to be happening now. "But they better exist… imagine, I'm dead at the desk. The cliche would kill me!" Davies added – before making it clear that he doesn't plan on being done with Doctor Who anytime soon. "I've just been reading the next month's 'Doctor Who Magazine' […] So am I putting down 'Doctor Who' anytime? I'll never put it down completely. I will always be reading a 25-page interview with a former producer," he explained.

Davies on Thinking "Doctor Who" Needed "Protecting" From Disney: "There was already a move from the BBC to shift it to a streamer. I kind of thought it would need protecting, and they very honestly said to me, 'We're gonna need a producer who can deal with a thousand executives,' which is what it's like," Davies shared with Tennant, clarifying that the BBC had interest in a streaming partner before his return. Why was the BBC looking to get the show a big budget boost? For many, it was to keep the show competitive and because – after 60 years – it deserved it. "It's not just that's the world we're in. [The BBC's former head of drama] Piers Wenger genuinely thought it deserves this budget," Davies explained. "You're looking at all 'Stranger Things' and 'Star Wars' shows and Marvel show,s and he said, 'It should look like that. It deserves to look like that.'"

David Tennant Does A Podcast With… is available on all podcast platforms.

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