It’s an exciting time for the Doctor Who franchise, as Jodie Whittaker’s final full season is in full swing. And with each passing day, the public gets closer to the announcement of the new actor who will play the titular Doctor. With this, many are always curious to know what the former cast and crew have to say about all the news. So it’s not surprising at all that former series lead Matt Smith recently fielded a couple of questions about his former series during an interview about his work on Last Night In Soho.
The actor spoke to Looper about his role in Edgar Wright’s latest movie, before talk eventually turned to the hit sci-fi show. The star was specifically asked his thoughts on Jodie Whittaker’s run and where he thought the series should head after her exit. Though he couldn’t say much on the first part of the question, he had things to say regarding the second:
I must confess, I haven't seen a lot of Doctor Who of late, so I'm not really equipped to talk about that really. But in terms of the new direction...I think it's exciting for the show that Russell Davies is back. I think Chris Chibnall and Jodie did a wonderful job, but now it's exciting to look forward to a new era under Russell, who I think is a phenomenal writer and particularly brilliant at delivering that show. I think he totally gets what it is, and I'm sure they'll just choose a really exciting new Doctor. It's always exciting to think that there's a new Doctor coming.
Doctor Who will welcome back former showrunner Russell T. Davies after Jodie Whittaker and current showrunner Chris Chibnall’s exit. So the Soho star is all about seeing Davies on action but declined to say anything about Whittaker’s run because he hasn’t kept up with the show. Overall, nothing too controversial here, though that’s not too surprising considering Smith always comes off as respectful when discussing the beloved series.
It’s encouraging to hear that the actor is a fan of Russell T. Davies. Interestingly enough, part of the returning showrunner’s responsibility upon his return will be organizing the 60th-anniversary celebration. The 50th anniversary special featured returns from many Doctor Who actors, so it’s possible the 60th could ddo the same. Perhaps with Matt Smith already high on Davies as a creator, the actor could return for an appearance as the 11th Doctor?
I wouldn’t rule anything out but, at the same time, the actor's footprint in Hollywood has grown since his Doctor Who days. In addition to his recent role in Last Night in Soho, he’s also in Morbius and will likely be doing press for that when it releases. He’s also a lead on HBO’s Game of Thrones spinoff, House of the Dragon, so his window of availability for any anniversary special could be small. Of course, we still don’t even know what's being planned for its 60th, so perhaps it’s just best, for now, to wait and see what happens.
Doctor Who: Flux airs on BBC America on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Jodie Whittaker’s final full season as The Doctor is wild so far, and it will be interesting to see how this season sets up her final special episodes before her regeneration.
