There’s been much ado about Doctor Who of late. The BBC’s deal with Disney+ for the seasons where Ncuti Gatwa killed it as the Doctor is no more, and Russell T. Davies stepped away from his second turn as showrunner earlier this year.
Since September, however, the BBC has had an open call for studios to make a bid to take over the beloved series. That open bid has now closed, and Deadline has the scoop on what companies put in offers.
According to Deadline, Jed Mercurio, whose previous credits include Line of Duty, the 2018 limited series Bodyguard, and the 1990s BBC show Invasion: Earth, is in the running under his studio, Hat Trick Mercurio. Other candidates are World Productions, another company that produces Line of Duty, and STV Studios, which is behind shows like Blue Lights and Criminal Record. The last company also made a push to move Who up to Scotland from where it’s historically been in Wales. More than one studio within the BBC, Deadline reports, has also submitted tenders.
Where the series ends up is still anyone’s guess; the list above is not exhaustive, and another unreported studio might make an appearance and swoop the TARDIS off its feet. It’s encouraging, at least, to see things moving, meaning that the expected 2028 return of the series hopefully won’t be pushed out even farther.
