Disney Joins Forces With BBC To Take Global Rights To ‘Doctor Who’ Outside Of UK & Ireland
‘Doctor Who‘ is getting a new international home outside of the UK and Ireland as BBC and Disney Branded Television join forces, with Disney+ airing the show from 2023 internationally, whilst the BBC will retain the series at home.
Under a shared creative vision, they will deliver this quintessentially British show to future generations on an unprecedented scale with Disney+ as the exclusive home for new seasons of ‘Doctor Who’ outside the UK and Ireland. The announcement – which was made this morning by the next Doctor (or rather, next, next Doctor!), Ncuti Gatwa, during an appearance on US daytime show ‘Live with Kelly and Ryan’.
Both partners have aligned under returning showrunner Russell T Davies’ bold vision, who takes control of the TARDIS in 2023. He was responsible for Doctor Who’s revival in 2005 and is credited with propelling the show into one of TV’s biggest hits.
“I love this show, and this is the best of both worlds – with the vision and joy of the BBC and Disney+ together we can launch the TARDIS all around the planet, reaching a new generation of fans while keeping our traditional home firmly on the BBC in the UK,” said Davies.
For those of you worried about a big American corporation getting involved in a beloved British show, don’t panic. Although Disney Branded Television will be taking the global rights to the show, it doesn’t appear they are involved on the production side. The series will still be produced in Wales by BBC Studios Production, alongside production company Bad Wolf. It was announced back in September 2021 that Bad Wolf, the company founded by former ‘Who’ execs Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter (hence the name), would be reteaming with Russell T Davies and the BBC as co-producer on the series. So the series will still be in very British hands, and a massive global deal like this should mean more money, and allow them to make it bigger and better than ever.
“For Doctor Who to have the backing of two of the most innovative and respected media organizations in the world is a testament to the unique drive and vision at the heart of this show,” add Jane Tranter & Julie Gardner, Executive Producers and Co-founders, Bad Wolf. “Bad Wolf are beyond delighted to be once again working with the genius that is Russell T Davies and, with the exciting new partnership between the BBC and Disney, we can together reach to even greater heights, producing from Wolf Studios Wales ambitious stories through time and space for audiences across the globe.”
*WARNING, SPOILERS*
If you watched the most recent special, ‘Doctor Who: The Power Of The Doctor’, you’ll know it saw Jodie Whittaker take her final bow as the Thirteenth Doctor and regenerate… However, that came with an interesting twist! Rather than morphing into Ncuti Gatwa, a very confused David Tennant emerged from the regeneration! Tennant, of course, previously played the Tenth Doctor, but now will also be known as the Fourteenth Doctor, with Gatwa taking the title of Fifteenth Doctor. What and how that happened is anyone’s guess right now, and we have an agonising wait until November 2023 before we find out!
“We are thrilled to announce this exciting global partnership with Disney who are the perfect partners to bring this very British show to the rest of the world,” said Charlotte Moore, BBC’s Chief Content Officer. “Russell T Davies’ vision for Doctor Who has always been out of this world and we are committed to ensuring that audiences across the globe get the opportunity to enjoy the Doctor’s epic adventures with the scale and ambition that they deserve. Joining forces with Disney will elevate the show to even greater heights and reach new audiences so it’s an extremely exciting time for fans in the UK and across the world.”
‘Doctor Who‘ returns to screens in November 2023 to coincide with the 60th anniversary and will premiere exclusively on the BBC for the UK and Ireland. Disney+ will air the series internationally. If you want to keep track of this or any other show, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date.
