Ncuti Gatwa served as the Fifteenth Doctor for a shorter period than his predecessors, prompting a wave of speculation that the long-running sci‑fi institution might be drawing to a close.
Ncuti Gatwa officially debuted as the Fifteenth Doctor in the special “The Church on Ruby Road” in December 2023. The first full season featuring him began in May 2024. A year later the actor departed the show after the finale “War of Reality”, which fueled rumors about the series’ cancellation.
Recently, former Doctor Who writer Robert Shearman criticized the series’ “retrogressive” tone and asserted that the programme is “deader than ever.” Those remarks only intensified fan debate.
Executive producer Jane Tranter responded to Shearman’s comments, saying such statements were “very rude” and “entirely untrue.”
“The partnership between BBC Studios and Disney+ is still in place. Twenty-six episodes are planned in total, twenty-one of which have already been released. Five more episodes of the spin‑off ‘War Between Land and Sea’ are still to come. After that, we will all make a decision together about Doctor Who’s future.”
She also noted that the franchise has existed for more than 60 years and that it has been twenty years since the series returned in 2005. In her view, it is natural for Doctor Who to evolve and explore new directions.
“The one thing you can be certain of is that the Doctor will return. All we can do is wait patiently for that moment.”
Source: iXBT.games