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Jodie Whittaker and Chris Chibnall Are Leaving Doctor Who

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Jodie Whittaker and Chris Chibnall Are Leaving Doctor Who

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Jodie Whittaker and Chris Chibnall Are Leaving Doctor Who

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Published on July 29, 2021

Screenshot: BBC
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Doctor Who The Woman Who Fell to Earth Jodie Whittaker chooses her Doctor outfit
Screenshot: BBC

The inevitable rumors about the departure of the Doctor have been flying for a while—the typical side effect of a Doctor nearing their third season. Now, we have confirmation: Variety reports that Jodie Whittaker will end her run as the Doctor after the coming season. Showrunner Chris Chibnall is also leaving the series, meaning there’s a lot of change coming when Whittaker regenerates.

Whittaker became the first female Doctor in 2017, when she took over the role from Peter Capaldi. As is pretty much always the case, her casting was met with a mix of delight and skepticism, and every single thing about her was picked over, from her previous work to her costume. But Whittaker has been an absolute delight as the Doctor, leading a trio of regular companions and facing off against enemies new and familiar while putting her own spin on the Doctor’s complicated personality.

At the end of the last season, two of the Doctor’s companions departed the TARDIS for good, and the upcoming thirteenth season will introduce a new companion: Dan, played by John Bishop, whose casting immediately led to a frenzy of theories that he might somehow be the next Doctor. There’s no real reason to think that’s the case, but it wouldn’t be a Doctor Who casting announcement without a lot of wild theories.

Variety‘s report on Whittaker and Chibnall’s departure is somewhat confusing; it says “She will leave after her third season. She will appear in a six-part event serial as well as three specials before her time on the show is up.” This seems to suggest that the six-part serial is something separate from season thirteen, which was reportedly going to be eight episodes, and later revealed to be planned as a single story. Deadline says Whittaker and Chibnall will bring us the next season and three specials, so it seems like the Variety phrasing is just a little vague. It also sounds like the upcoming season might actually be just six episodes.

The three specials will land next year, and the last one will, of course, be our farewell to Whittaker.

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The news of a Doctor leaving is always a little bittersweet, and this is no exception. Fingers crossed they can find someone half as endearing to fill her shoes. Replacing Chibnall is also going to be a challenge; he’s only the third showrunner New Who has had, following Russell T. Davies and Steven Moffat, and it’s hard to imagine who might step into that role next.

Doctor Who returns later this year.

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Molly Templeton

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Molly Templeton has been a bookseller, an alt-weekly editor, and assistant managing editor of Tor.com, among other things. She now lives and writes in Oregon, and spends as much time as possible in the woods.
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3 years ago

I have mixed feelings about this.  I’ve loved what Whittaker has brought to the role, but the writing never quite gelled for me, so I’d have been into seeing her Doctor paired with a different showrunner.

I know that whoever is cast next will be great, because every actor who’s played the Doctor has been great, but I’m not looking forward to fan reaction over whoever the next actor is.  I’d love for them to cast a woman and/or person of color, but I know that some fans will say “They should just cast whoever’s best,” and sometimes the vibe I get from that is, “Okay, you’ve had your token white non-male person play the role, now let’s get back to ‘normal’.”  I’d love it if they managed to keep the surprise of who it was until the regeneration episode actually airs, though!

(On a semi-related note, I’ve always wanted to see a regeneration done mid-episode.  I know that we want to keep the actor we love until the very last second, but I think it could be a great story to have the Doctor have to deal with their regeneration discombobulation during a stressful situation, instead of a stressful situation happening to start right after the regeneration.  How you manage to give the current actor a nice goodbye moment would be tricky, though.  Maybe instead you just make the episode a two-parter, with part 1 being a season-ending cliffhanger.

–Andy

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3 years ago

From my reading of the actual press release, the 6-episode serial (and 2 specials) make up the 8 announced episodes of Series 13, and they’ve added one more special episode to bring the total to 9. 

Chibnall’s departure is not a moment too soon.
Bit of a shame Whitaker won’t get a few episodes under a different showrunner. I can see why the actors generally don’t like to do that, but it might be interesting. She hasn’t impressed in the actual episodes, largely because Thirteen keeps being written as both ineffective and morally monstrous, but then in panels and other out-of-character moments Whitaker seems a delightful individual.

 

Fingers crossed for Jo Martin as 14, though.

ChristopherLBennett
3 years ago

This is disappointing. I would’ve liked to see Whittaker stick around longer. It would’ve been nice for the first female Doctor to have an exceptionally long run, to help balance the scales a bit. Although to really balance the scales, we’d need the next eleven consecutive Doctors to be female too. I mean, it’s only fair…

Seriously, I think at least Whittaker’s immediate replacement should be another woman, just to quell the inevitable speculation from the misogynists about a female Doctor being a failure or a one-time aberration. Or cast someone non-binary, even.

Chibnall leaving at the same time as his first and only Doctor is surprising. The last time we had a producer who only worked with a single Doctor was Graham Williams, whose tenure ended in 1980. And we’ve never had a Doctor and producer both arrive and depart together, unless you count the McGann TV movie (although that probably doesn’t count anymore since “The Night of the Doctor” brought McGann back briefly).

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3 years ago

The output, even before Covid, was so erratic, it’s hard for me to care.  I imagine the erratic filming schedule was part of the reason Whittacker is leaving.  Her WHO contract is holding her career hostage with very little to show for it.  

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Queen Iacomina
3 years ago

I’m sad to lose Jodie Whitaker, as the energy she brings to the role is always delightful. Less sad to see Chibnall go, as I can’t say that I’ve cared for the writing of late.

Of course, I said the same thing at the end of the Peter Capaldi era and then noticed how good it was only in retrospect.

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3 years ago

@3,CL, Although to really balance the scales, we’d need the next eleven consecutive Doctors to be female too. I mean, it’s only fair…

Personally I’m totally up for that. We’ve had the pretty young blond,now let’s see some wild and wacky and OLDER women in the role! And please let’s see the Doctor enjoying her femininity! Playing with her look, trying out womanly wiles, embarrassing her companions! Let’s see a River Song like Doctor and a Ruth. 

And please, please, please get better scripts!

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Paula
3 years ago

Sad about Jodie but so happy to say goodbye to Chibnall

ChristopherLBennett
3 years ago

@6/roxana: Hm — I never would’ve thought of Whittaker as “the pretty young blonde.” I mean, she was 35 when she took the role, older than Peter Davison, David Tennant, or Matt Smith were when they debuted, though I guess that is toward the younger end of the range. And I have no strong opinion either way about her looks. That’s never been what’s appealed to me about her as a performer.

As for her being blonde, I find it distracting that she seems to have darker roots, even from the start. How did the Doctor regenerate with her hair already dyed?

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3 years ago

If we are going with another female Doctor, I would hope to see either Jo Martin or Tilda Swinton. If we have to have another male Doctor, Rupert Grint would be wonderful in the role.

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3 years ago

@3 & @6

I’m on board with the next eleven doctors being women AND older women. And to start the wish list of names, way back in season one of Killing Eve, when Fiona Shaw made her entrance, I thought, wouldn’t she be an outstanding doctor?! 😎

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