Commentary: Russell T Davies has left 'Doctor Who' again, but change is the essence of the show

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The news from the Whoverse is that Russell T Davies, who brought “Doctor Who” back from limbo in 2005, is leaving the series for a second time, after having passed the torch to Steven Moffat in 2010 and receiving it back again in 2022 from third showrunner Chris Chibnall.And in possibly not unrelated news, Disney, which had partnered in producing the series with the BBC since Davies’ return, and has been the global platform for the series outside the U.K., is cutting ties with the show.The decision was foreshadowed by its disinclination to release the spin-off miniseries “The War Between the Land and the Sea,” which premiered in Britain at the end of last year and has been seen nowhere else, as well as by the cancellation of a previously announced 2026 Christmas Day special, an irregular regular feature of the show.

(All but the last two seasons of the modern era have moved from Disney+ to AMC+, as of today.) Television The BBC has scrapped its previously announced ‘Doctor Who’ Christmas special.Russell T Davies and production company Bad Wolf have also exited the franchise.There are always question marks hanging over “Doctor Who,” which intermittently swaps out its lead and secondary actors as a function of its narrative premise and practical strategizing, but never quite so many as now.

Up until now, the 21st century series has functioned as a family affair, with Moffat creating some of the best scripts, characters and concepts of the first and second Davies eras, and Chibnall, who wrote for “Who” under both Davies and Moffat, serving as head writer on the first two series of the spin-off “Torchwood.” (He also created the dark mystery “Broadchurch,” in which Tenth Doctor David Tennant and Thirteenth Doctor Jodie Whittaker, who became the series’ first female lead under his watch, both starred.) Succession was orderly.But no new actor has been ca...