The next Doctor Who regeneration is on its way, and showrunner Chris Chibnall promises a break from the norm for outgoing Time Lord Jodie Whittaker.
Fans have been expecting a new twist on the Doctor Who regeneration setup for a while, after ‘The Power of the Doctor‘s director Jamie Magnus Stone teased that the pivotal sequence would take place outside of the TARDIS for the first time since 1996.
And showrunner Chris Chibnall – for whom ‘The Power of the Doctor’ is his swansong – has confirmed these teasings by providing a few teasings of his own. Speaking to the Metro, Chibnall stated: “It is different. It’s visually very different. And where it takes place is different. I think I can say that without it being too much of a spoiler. It definitely feels different. It’s not going to take place in the same place as the previous regeneration.”
Since 2005, the Doctor Who regenerations have taken place in the TARDIS console room, unless you count the Eleventh Doctor’s regeneration atop the clock tower in the town of Christmas – although (for complicated reasons) this only resulted in a transition into a slightly younger self. His change into Peter Capaldi happened later.
Anyway, here’s what director Jamie Magnus Stone had to say about the upcoming Doctor Who regeneration. “We shot that last day for Jodie in story order,” he said, speaking to the Radio Times. “So we ended up on her last scene. But before that, there were so many tears.
“And we shot the last-ever scene in the TARDIS, and said goodbye to the TARDIS, and then there were some tears.
“And then we went out to film, basically, her regeneration. And the last shot that we did, I think, will be the last shot in the episode as well. So it was really nice to do things in sequence. And it was mostly Jodie and Mandip’s [Yaz’s] scenes on that last day. So it was just super-emotional.”
Now, there is some speculation that the next Doctor Who regeneration won’t even end with Jodie Whittaker transitioning into Ncuti Gatwa, the Fourteenth Doctor. With Tenth Doctor David Tennant confirmed for the show’s 60th anniversary celebrations, fans have been wondering if Whittaker will, in fact, regenerate into Doctor Number Ten.
Naturally, this wasn’t something Chibnall could confirm or deny, saying only: “I haven’t seen that [theory] but it’s made me laugh!” He added: “There’s fan theories on everything. I seem to remember there was a fan theory that Graham would turn out to be the Doctor, that Bradley Walsh was a secret Doctor in disguise.”
Certainly, the latest round of fan speculation has echoes of previous Doctor Who regeneration rumours, including the classic one from 2007 where fans theorised that David Tennant and John Simm (the Master) were going to perform a body swap.
Fortunately, when it comes to the next Doctor Who regeneration, we don’t have too long to wait. How do you think Jodie Whittaker’s regeneration will play out? And how would you feel if the Time Lord returned with the face of David Tennant? Let us know in the comments below.
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