DOCTOR WHO Looks Set To More Than Triple Its Budget Following BBC's Recent Deal With Disney+

DOCTOR WHO Looks Set To More Than Triple Its Budget Following BBC's Recent Deal With Disney+

There's some very exciting news for Doctor Who fans as a new report reveals that the long-running sci-fi series is getting a major budget increase courtesy of Disney+. Find more details after the jump!

News
By JoshWilding - Nov 09, 2022 05:11 AM EST
Filed Under: Doctor Who
Source: Broadcast (via SFFGazette.com)

It was recently revealed that, outside of the UK, Doctor Who will soon call Disney+ its home. That's exciting news for fans of the iconic sci-fi franchise, and it appears BBC's new streaming partner will be giving the show a record-breaking budget increase.

According to Broadcast (via SFFGazette.com), while recent seasons have featured episodes with budgets ranging from $1.1 million to $3.4 million, that's about to increase to around $11.5 million. While the specials starring David Tennant have already been shot, it sounds like all the stops are being pulled out for season 14 starring Ncuti Gatwa (which starts shooting this month). 

As a result, Doctor Who will soon become the BBC's most expensive TV series ever, topping His Dark Materials. That cost around $7 million per episode and between $40 million - $50 million for a season, whereas this show looks set to top $100 million. 

Doctor Who now has a budget on par with the likes of The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan Kenobi, suggesting it will receive a significant upgrade. Even so, it's a long way off from shows like House of the Dragon ($20 million per episode), The Lord: of the Rings: The Rings of Power ($50 million - $80 million per episode), and Stranger Things ($30 million per episode). 

"The BBC had to make the decision for the future success of Doctor Who because any show of scale needs a partner," one anonymous source told the site. "Reliability is the most important factor irrespective of how many episodes you make or who the Doctor is."

"If you can bring in a single partner with one distribution agreement, while retaining exclusivity in the UK, that is the best of both worlds for the BBC."

What's unclear is whether Disney now has any creative input with Doctor Who, though there has been a lot of chatter online that the streaming service is going to heavily involved with the series moving forward.

Doctor Who returns next year with three special episodes starring David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor, while Gatwa will then take over as the Fifteenth iteration shortly after. As always, you'll want to stay tuned to SFFGazette.com for updates.

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Conquistador
Conquistador - 11/9/2022, 5:35 AM
Did not known Disney got involved....

Pretty soon it's going to be...
"Planet Earth!, brought to you by Disney"

I am starting to see some people are feeling certain ways about them.
Conquistador
Conquistador - 11/9/2022, 5:43 AM
@UniqNo - I am starting to *UNDERSTAND WHY* people are feeling certain ways about them.
bobevanz
bobevanz - 11/9/2022, 5:40 AM
I hope all the money goes to hiring talented writers
Origame
Origame - 11/9/2022, 6:15 AM
Eh kinda iffy on this. Just throwing money at it isn't gonna fix the problems it's been having since the chibnall Era. And it's not like dr who has ever been a series that required impressive special effects.
OmegaBlack13
OmegaBlack13 - 11/9/2022, 6:31 AM
I feel like making it too high-budget risks losing the charm it's always had. Doctor Who was never meant to be prestige television.
connorblaze
connorblaze - 11/9/2022, 6:58 AM
I like me a bit of cheese. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is my favourite tv series of all time, I’m obsessed. But I will NEVER understand how people enjoy this show. I’m not trying to shit on it, I just don’t GET it. Kind of like the CW superhero shows. It’s so clearly just… bad. Is it like people who watch soap operas and admit it’s bad but they’re addicted? Do yall know it sucks and love it anyway? i could understand that. I’m all for different tastes, I just can’t wrap my head around this show having the success it has. It has actors that I know can act, like Tennant and Matt Smith, but the minute they step on that show they’re terrible. I guess it’s some performance style of intentional cheese I just dont get.

That said, I saw the Van Gogh scene and it’s incredible. One of the most moving scenes I’ve watched. So maybe it’s a diamonds in the rough kinda show…
Orphix
Orphix - 11/9/2022, 7:16 AM
@connorblaze - I'm British and of an age where I occasionally watched the 'classic' episodes back in the day. And, like you, I don't understand the appeal to the point I find it unwatchable.

I pretty much blame the writing. It's as if the geekiest nerd has been asked to write in the coolest way they can which ends up being cringey. But, as a geeky nerd myself, it isn't the point of the show. The original show back in the 60's never went in that direction (although there was a lot of pop culture references).
WarMonkey
WarMonkey - 11/9/2022, 7:28 AM
@connorblaze - I loved Doctor Who, not anymore it's dead to me. It was terrible with the effects and creatures and aliens looked ridiculous. But it had great writing and the stories and characters were fantastic. I was always amazed that a side character could get killed off after being on screen for only a few minutes and it would effect me emotionally. The writing was so good and humanized them all so getting invested was super easy each episode. It was a show based on imagination and creativity. It has none of that now.

The Van Gogh episode is a great example and is one of their best. Those same ingredients that made it so good were present in the other ones too until the end of Moffat's run when it all started to turn into garbage. Basically it's like do you enjoy story over spectacle or do you like spectacle over story.
Radders
Radders - 11/9/2022, 7:57 AM
@connorblaze - I'd define your comment as doing a very bad job of "not trying to shit on it" lol

Taste is subjective but the idea that Smith and Tennant are terrible in Dr Who is objectively wrong.

Those of us who like it enjoy the stories, character development, humour and emotional impact, certainly don't see Nu-Who as "it sucks but we like it". Even the weaker episodes generally have great character moments and development (similar to Buffy) - until the recent era that is

It's not to your taste that's cool
hazapez
hazapez - 11/9/2022, 9:21 AM
@connorblaze - i used to be turned off back in the day, but my ex got me into and i slowly came to appreciate the tennant / smith eras. i wasnt a hardcore fan but i did enjoy it. i particularly loved the vashta nerada episode, the midnight episode, and the 1st weeping angels one.
TheOtherOn
TheOtherOn - 11/10/2022, 1:06 AM
@connorblaze - I love Buffy TV show as well AND I like current era of Doctor Who too! I will never, however, even try to wonder WHY some people like Doctor Who or how "bad" CW Superhero shows are when I simply can NOT explain why I love Buffy show.

Buffy is far worse when it comes to being cheesy and campy or even with an ounce of logic. Doctor Who and these Superhero shows at least try (hard) to somewhat explain the reasons of superpowers or other abilities by brining in science and technology from time travel but when you start thinking about Buffy..... there's nothing to explain. And then there's the rest of Buffy gang (friends/sidekicks) who actually happen to be normal teenager.
Twenty23Three
Twenty23Three - 11/9/2022, 7:21 AM
Budget for Doctor Who is fine as it is, don’t get me wrong a higher budget is never a bad thing but the issue of the writing has already *hopefully* been fixed so
Blastaar
Blastaar - 11/9/2022, 7:42 AM
"Can we taaaalk, for a minute, girl I want to know your name"
My guy looks like Tevin Campbell
Radders
Radders - 11/9/2022, 7:58 AM
As long as Disney keep their hands off it cause they're burning everything down right now and DR Who has fallen far enough already, maybe beyond repair
Philvis
Philvis - 11/9/2022, 8:42 AM
I lost interest after Matt Smith's run. Just couldn't get into Capaldi or Whitaker. Tried both, but just wasn't good to me. Is Tennant's return for a few episodes a ploy to bolster ratings? I do fear The Evil Empire getting their hands on it and not improving.
Ojeet78
Ojeet78 - 11/9/2022, 8:51 AM
Doctor Who's charm is being able to be creative with a lower budget. If this budget goes into better writing, then it might be a good idea but I'm doubtful.
1stDalek
1stDalek - 11/9/2022, 10:27 PM
@Ojeet78 - the bubble wrap worm monster in Ark in Space was great creative use of the material.
Ojeet78
Ojeet78 - 11/10/2022, 10:46 AM
@1stDalek - absolutely. Even the weird multicolored glass sliding door they had in Trial of The Timelord was something i really liked. The Candyman and some of the aliens from Survival games were good use of props as well.
MrDandy
MrDandy - 11/9/2022, 9:32 AM
Hell yeah! Bump those effects up.

Even though, honestly, cheap effects have always been part of Doctor WHO’s charm lol
dracula
dracula - 11/9/2022, 9:37 AM
Dont know about this actor, he just doesnt have a doctor look to me (not a race thing)

Doesnt feel like the doctor who type at all really

Looks too every man, feels like he would be better fit for a detective role in a crime drama
Ojeet78
Ojeet78 - 11/9/2022, 9:45 AM
@dracula - He's amazing on the netflix show Sex Education. His ability to bring humor, wit and pathos to a role is probably what got him this role.
dracula
dracula - 11/9/2022, 9:46 AM
@Ojeet78 - ill have to check that out then
RealTurner
RealTurner - 11/9/2022, 9:47 AM
Start by spending some of that on scripts.
dancingmonkey08
dancingmonkey08 - 11/9/2022, 5:16 PM
Nice! So can we get a show that truly goes through time and space. Don't get me wrong, adore this show, watched it since Rose aired in 2005, but the one thing I always hated that budget limited it. Sure we had some cool alien planet episodes; the Ood planet, the Satan Pit, the Library planet

But the Thirteen Doctor era pissed me off, how many episodes has to be set in present day Sheffield! I'm hoping this means alien worlds on the level of the apocalypse planet from Loki or any of the planets from the Mandalorian...

And also give us some damn cool original aliens, tone back the Dalek/Cybermen/Master appearances, Ninth & Tenth Doctor era modernised the best aliens from classic series (while also giving us new ones like the Ood, Weeping Angels, Vashta Nerada and Sycorax), the Eleventh Doctor era modernised the remaining cool aliens of the classic series (while also giving us The Silence) and the Twelfth Doctor era give us different takes on the best aliens of the series (Rusty the Dalek, the Mondasian Cybermen and Missy) but the Thirteenth Doctor failed us completely on interesting new aliens and it was the same old bullshit otherwise

Russell needs to reinvigorate this show or it's bye bye time once again
1stDalek
1stDalek - 11/9/2022, 10:24 PM
DW with a good budget is going to be so weird, everyone's gotten used to the "low budget but big dreams" for almost 60 years.
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