Today is Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday, and that in and of itself is remarkable. My first real exposure to the man who is inarguably the greatest nature documentary presenter of all time came in the DVD collection of 2006’s Planet Earth, which you can now watch with an HBO Max subscription. I say the DVD collection, because even though I watched the 11-part series on the Discovery Channel here in America when it first aired, on this side of the Atlantic, the narrator was not Attenborough, but Sigourney Weaver.
The decision to have Weaver, who we're going to see later this month in The Mandalorian and Grogu on the 2026 movie schedule, do the narration was a bad call. Not because she was bad, as she was, in fact, great. However, I think even she would agree that not featuring Attenborough was the wrong choice, and there is evidence that I’m not alone.
I Mean No Shade Towards Sigourney Weaver, But We’re Talking About The GOAT
I want to stress that I really don’t think Discovery’s decision to “re-cast,” as it were, the narrator for the now-legendary nature series with Weaver has anything to do with Weaver’s work. I am a huge fan of the Aliens star, and I think she did a wonderful job on the series. At least, as best as I can remember. However, we’re literally talking about the GOAT here. Attenborough, even at 100, is still mesmerizing fans with his knowledge, his line delivery, and his gravitas.
There is no one better, and there hasn’t been anyone his equal since his career began in the 1950s at the BBC. He’s old school in the best possible way. In the US, he wasn’t quite the cultural icon he has been in the UK until much later in his career, but now, he’s also who we have come to see as the premier nature documentary presenter. When a new nature doc comes out, like our friends across the pond, we expect to hear his voice telling us about the mating rituals of turquoise-browed motmots, red-lipped batfish, and blue-footed boobies.
It Seems Many Agreed With Me At The Time
After the series initially aired on the BBC with Attenborough and in the US with Weaver, each version was released on DVD. The people spoke with their wallet, and the Attenborough version outsold the Weaver version by some margin. In fact, today, if you want to buy the series on DVD or Blu-Ray, only the British version is available. If you want to watch the series on HBO Max, it’s also the Attenborough version. Honestly, though I prefer that one, it would be cool if the Weaver version were available, too.
There have been some sequels and follow-ups to the original series, like the Blue Planet series, and two more Planet Earths, and all have been presented by Attenborough alone. This is hardly a surprise, of course, given the success of the original’s DVD sales. There is just no way around Sir David Attenborough being better than everyone else on planet earth when it comes to nature docs, so cheers to him for turning 100, and let’s hope for 100 more!
