Disney+ and the BBC just ended their international streaming partnership on Doctor Who after only two seasons. The streamer confirmed this week it won't be involved going forward, though the BBC says the Time Lord isn't going anywhere. A Christmas special is planned for 2026 with returning showrunner Russell T Davies at the helm, but the collaboration that once promised to transform the show into a bigger global hit has quietly fizzled.What Deadline describes as "a plan to Marvel-ize the franchise" did not work out.Disney was spending between £6 million and £8 million (about $10.5 million) per episode on Doctor Who, putting the total value of the deal at as much as £168 million ($220 million), according to Deadline. That's an enormous investment for a show that never cracked Nielsen's list of top 10 original streaming programs during its run, as The Hollywood Reporter notes. Genre shows cost more (that's understood), but streamers have stopped bankrolling expensive shows on spec. According to Deadline's sources, Disney's lukewarm enthusiasm was apparent from the outset."The BBC remains fully committed to Doctor Who, which continues to be one of our most loved dramas, and we are delighted that Russell T Davies has agreed to write us another spectacular Christmas special for 2026," BBC drama director Lindsay Salt said (via The Guardian). "We can assure fans, the Doctor is not going anywhere, and we will be announcing plans for the next series in due course, which will ensure the TARDIS remains at the heart of...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Yesterday