Industry entertainment source Deadline has a lengthy report on Series 14’s performance, and it doesn’t paint an especially bright outlook for Doctor Who’s future.
Deadline notes that Doctor Who was “almost completely absent from [Disney’s recent] upfront festivities”. Noting its “lack of front-and-center placement may spin a yarn about the series’ position in the Disney priority log nearly three years on from the deal being struck. ”
Crucially, they state:
Noises that it may not last beyond its initial two seasons are already reverberating around international TV circles, and one source close to the production tells us that they feel its future hangs in the balance already. Disney, the BBC, and co-producers BBC Studios and Bad Wolf all declined Deadline’s interview requests for this article.
Deadline goes on to discuss the Series 14 ratings citing an “industry source” as saying:
“The ratings are a problem. They can talk all they like about young viewers but they’re still down from the specials and down from the Jodie [Whittaker] series. I imagine serious conversations are happening. Disney will want to see results.”
They then talk about the show’s performance in the US:
Ratings analyst Parrot Analytics tell us that Doctor Who was the most in-demand UK-originating show with U.S. audiences during its early release, although it didn’t have enormous competition in this realm (Bridgerton counts as U.S.-originated while Baby Reindeer had been out for a month by the time Doctor Who launched). It reached a high of seventh on Disney+’s list of most in-demand series, Parrot adds, trailing the likes of The Simpsons and the Star Wars offshoots.
Considering its marketing might and budget, a senior U.S. ratings source positions these figures as “underwhelming,” although they acknowledge Doctor Who has long struggled attracting mainstream audiences in the U.S. “Okay but not stellar,” was the simple verdict from a Disney insider about the internal view on its performance.
Disney will reportedly decide on its future with Doctor Who after the still unannounced spin-off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, has wrapped.
One of our sources close to the production believes Disney will “need to make a decision” on its future relationship with the show soon after The War Between the Land and the Sea wraps, and this could have a bearing on how long the in-demand Gatwa — who will lead a West End production of The Importance of Being Earnest at the end of this year — remains Doctor. Although the next season has wrapped, this source predicts the final episode has been left open-ended, with the possibility remaining that Gatwa could regenerate into his successor if he chooses to exit. Gatwa’s agents hadn’t responded to Deadline’s request for comment by press time.
Sources are split on the extent to which Disney pulling out will harm the show’s future. While it would no doubt be embarrassing, Doctor Who’s mega-budget increase is perhaps less noticeable on screen than first thought, one source says, positing that Disney tentpoles like The Mandalorian look far more expensive on screen. But another says it will be a “disaster.” “Given that Disney has spent all of this money, the question becomes what the BBC will do if they pull out,” this source says.
