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is a reporter focusing on film, TV, and pop culture. Before The Verge, he wrote about comic books, labor, race, and more at io9 and Gizmodo for almost five years.
Though there’s still a new Doctor Who spinoff making its way to Disney Plus, Disney’s production partnership with the BBC has come to an end.
The BBC announced today that after two seasons of Doctor Who starring Ncuti Gatwa in the titular role, Disney will no longer be a co-producer on the sci-fi series. In a statement about the news, the BBC’s director of drama Lindsay Salt thanked Disney Plus for being “terrific global partners” and for the upcoming The War Between the Land and the Sea series. Salt also noted that while Disney is stepping back from Doctor Who, the BBC intends to keep the show going with at least one more Christmas special from showrunner Russell T Davies.
“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,” Salt said. “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 the BBC.”
As Deadline notes, each episode of the Disney-produced Doctor Who seasons cost somewhere around $13 million, making them a rather expensive endeavor for the studio. That price tag was likely a big factor in Disney’s decision to end the deal, and it now seems like the BBC’s plan going forward will be to play to fans’ nostalgia
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