Doctor Who’s new Time Lord Ncuti Gatwa faces his toughest test yet – getting Disney executives on board to commission another series.
When the Sex Education star took on the role, the BBC had struck a deal with Disney rumored to be worth $100 million in the hope that Britain’s longest-running sci-fi show would dominate televisions around the world.
To aid that world domination, Russel T Davies, who originally joined the show 16 years ago to reboot it after poor ratings, was sent on a press tour of the US to encourage more state viewers.
Davies hoped the deal would mean Doctor Who would be “up there with your Star Wars, your Marvel stuff”.
But now the streaming giant, which has signed up for two series, must decide whether to continue.
Ncuti Gatwa as The Doctor and Millie Gibson as Ruby Sunday. The couple are hoping Disney+ will be back on board to renew their contract for a third series.
Russel T Davies (pictured), who originally joined the show 16 years ago for a reboot after poor ratings, was sent on a press tour of the US to encourage more state viewers.
As part of Gatwa’s Doctor Who, the time-traveling duo travel back to 1963, in stylish matching outfits, and appeared to be a hit with viewers.
But Disney will have to take both critics and ratings into account, and not everyone suggested that Doctor Who was following trends when it included a passionate kiss between The Doctor and another male character.
As part of the agreement with Disney, each new episode is shown on iPlayer at midnight on Friday, at the same time that American viewers can access it.
All of this is before its broadcast on traditional terrestrial television.
This has resulted in a massive drop in live viewers: when Gatwa made its debut on the show in May, the first episode alone attracted 2.6 million viewers on BBC1 and episode two compared to 3.7 million people. who tuned in to Jodie Whittaker’s last appearance as their first. Doctor, who was seen by 3.7 million in real time.
While fewer people are watching new episodes live, although some fans stay up late to do so, more are looking to catch up.
So far, Doctor Who has been watched by 5.9 million since the first episode was released on May 11, more than Whittaker’s farewell episode in October 2022.
However, while Davies admitted ratings are worse than expected, he said he has had success targeting newer, younger viewers.
Not only will Disney have to take into account the poor ratings, but they will also have to take into account the critics.
Some have criticized the series for following trends: the first episode introduced a transgender character, Rose, played by Yasmin Finney, and the Gatwa Doctor recently made out with a male character.
When the BBC and Disney+ deal was rumored to be worth $100 million, Russell T Davies assured fans that Doctor Who was still the same show (pictured right, in 2022, with Ncuti Gatwa, a the left).
Doctor Who bosses hope ratings are positive enough for landmark partnership to continue (2017 archive image)
Despite this, the big company will evaluate the cult British TV show using criteria such as its ranking among new subscribers and whether viewers watch to the end of each episode.
Disney already owns sci-fi hits like the Star Wars franchise, and in theory Doctor Who fits the bill perfectly.
In practice, early reviews in the US were positive, but an analysis of Google Trends data shows no increase in interest from people searching for it online.
The Hollywood Reporter said that Gatwa’s Doctor had “a lively and accessible, if not necessarily memorable, start”, while Variety praised Gatwa’s “refreshing dynamism that makes the season an exceptionally fascinating watch.”
Chris Curtis, editor of the industry newspaper Broadcast, said The times that in the United Kingdom the popularity of the program is clear.
He said: ‘Their seven-day figures average between 3.5 million and 4 million viewers each week, which looks pretty decent. You couldn’t say it was a resounding success, but it’s not a failure either, maybe just a little disappointing.’
In light of its strong performance, the BBC is now waiting for Disney to decide whether to continue with a third series.
Davies seems confident that he will push ahead, because he told The Times last month that he was already preparing scripts, but nothing has been confirmed yet.
The new series of Doctor Who will finally come to an end tonight at 6.40pm on BBC1.