"There's no update" on Doctor Who's future, says BBC commissioners, but the sci-fi show will continue "with or without Disney"

Docto Who season 2 finale — (Image credit: BBC / Disney Plus)

Doctor Who's second season ended back in May with a surprise regeneration for Ncuti Gatwa's Time Lord. Following the cliffhanger reveal of Gatwa's replacement – seemingly Billie Piper, who previously starred in the sci-fi show as Rose Tyler – however, things have gone unnervingly quiet on the Who front, as the BBC waits to learn if its co-production deal with Disney Plus will be renewed.

Now, a pair of senior BBC staff have candidly addressed the future of the series. Speaking at the annual Edinburgh TV Festival, the BBC's chief content officer Kate Phillips reassured fans, saying, "Any Whovians out there, rest assured – Doctor Who is going nowhere. Disney has been a great partnership and it continues with The War Between the Land and the Sea next year," referring to an upcoming spinoff focused on UNIT, the organization that often helps the Doctor defend Earth from alien foes. "But, going forward, with or without Disney, Doctor Who will still be on the BBC," she concluded.

Fans have continued to speculate that a decision has already been made one way or another about the future of the show, but Davies has previously said – on multiple occasions – that this is not the case. Writing in Doctor Who Magazine in June this year, the showrunner admitted, "We don’t know what's happening yet... Hopefully, we'll have news soon."

Doctor Who season 2, also known as the 15th season, is now streaming on BBC in the UK and Disney Plus in the US. For more, check out our list of some of the best sci-fi movies of all time, and all the upcoming best TV shows in 2025 and beyond.

Will Salmon is the Streaming Editor for GamesRadar+. He has been writing about film, TV, comics, and music for more than 15 years, which is quite a long time if you stop and think about it. At Future he launched the scary movie magazine Horrorville, relaunched Comic Heroes, and has written for every issue of SFX magazine for well over a decade. His music writing has appeared in The Quietus, MOJO, Electronic Sound, Clash, and loads of other places too.

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