Doctor Who Approaching An Impressive Milestone That K.i.l.l.e.d The Show 35 Years Ago Shows How Important Season 15 Will Be

Doctor Who is quickly approaching an impressive milestone that may not necessarily be cause for celebration, with the long-running British sci-fi show’s upcoming season serving as a crucial landmark in its decades-long history. With the first run of Disney-era Doctor Who episodes now firmly in the rearview mirror, all eyes are on Doctor Who season 15 and whether showrunner Russell T. Davies can continue to uphold the franchise’s sizable legacy during his second stint in charge. If not, Doctor Who‘s ever-approaching anniversary could mean bad news for devoted Whovians.

William Hartnell played Doctor Who‘s first iteration of the famous Time Lord when the show began back in 1963. After that, what has come to be known retroactively as Doctor Who‘s classic era, ran for over two decades before it was canceled in 1989 – with Sylvester McCoy’s Seventh Doctor the serving leading man at the time. Although Paul McGann played the Eighth Doctor in the failed 1996 Doctor Who movie, the show itself remained inert until Davies revived it in the mid-2000s. Now, history runs the risk of repeating itself.

Doctor Who’s Modern Era Is Just 6 Years Away From Matching The Classic Era’s Run

Davies brought Doctor Who back in 2005

Doctor Who originally ran until 1989, resulting in 26 years of successive storytelling. It’s an impressive run for any show, but it ultimately met the same fate as many other long-running projects. In short, Doctor Who had started to grow stale, with its viewing figures and how it was received dropping dramatically. So, the BBC pulled the plug just before the start of the 1990s. In 2005, Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor was the fortunate iteration of the show’s main character to bring Doctor Who back to screens and continue the saga. Since then, a worrying amount of time has passed.

Doctor Who‘s modern era has now lasted for 20 years, which means it’s just six years short of matching the classic era’s record when it comes to how long it was able to run before being canceled. Because the show has become so ever present in popular culture around the world, it’s easy to forget that Doctor Who was ever off the air, but it was – and for a very long time. Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee that the show’s current spell of activity will surpass the classic era, which places Doctor Who‘s immediate future even more firmly in the spotlight.

Ncuti Gatwa Could Be The Final Doctor Of The Current Era

Fifteen may still be the serving Doctor if/when the show gets canceled again

Ncuti Gatwa is the latest in a long line of all the actors to play the Doctor, and if the show does start to lose its momentum like it did in the 20th century, he could be the last one for a long while to fill the role. Although there has yet to be an official announcement about whether he will continue to play the Fifteenth Doctor for a third season, there have been several signs to suggest that Gatwa intends to stay as the show’s leading man for a longer time than the other modern Doctors.

The post-2005 record is three seasons, shared by every main modern Doctor actor other than Eccleston – who only did one season. So, Gatwa would need to stay for at least four seasons to break the record, which would presumably end such a reign in 2027. If he continues to be successful as Doctor Who‘s star, he could then extend his tenure by another two seasons. This would make Doctor Who‘s modern era as long as the classic run. If people are once more bored with the show again by that point, then Gatwa’s exit would also mark Doctor Who‘s cancelation.

The overall record for the longest time as the Doctor is held by Tom Baker, who played the fourth iteration of the Time Lord for seven straight seasons between 1974 and 1981. So, even if Gatwa did stay for six years and saw the modern era catch up to the classic era, Baker would still hold the honor of the longest-serving Doctor. In this respect, Gatwa’s situation would be far more similar to that of Sylvester McCoy, as both actors would have been forced to stop playing the Doctor rather than being allowed to choose when they step away.

Season 15 Will Be Crucial For Doctor Who’s Future

Gatwa’s second run of episodes needs to continue to improve

Although Doctor Who‘s 2023 comeback under Russell T. Davies was generally regarded as a big improvement over Chris Chibnall’s divisive spell as the showrunner, Doctor Who season 14 was still not without its critics. Its story was uneven, and disappointing twists largely ended up meaning nothing, which frustrated large portions of the fan base. So, Doctor Who season 15’s story must show more improvements if it’s to avoid being pulled into the debate of whether it should be allowed to continue.

Doctor Who ended in 1989 because people were fatigued, and that’s still a real possibility for modern audiences – if not even more so. Just because it has such a rich legacy doesn’t mean Doctor Who is immune to cancelation. If no one is watching it, it will meet the same fate as it did during its classic era. This is worrying, as Doctor Who season 15 entered production before the previous run had even aired. So, although Davies isn’t the kind of writer to adjust to negative criticism, there’s even less chance he managed to take public opinion into account.

Doctor Who Could, In Theory, Run Forever

There’s nothing stopping the Time Lord from endless regnerations

Although fans do favor certain actors and characters, Doctor Who is a show that is built on change. It has no set cast members, and it would be worse if it did. Sure, beloved figures (including previous Doctors) can and do return to the show years after they depart, but Doctor Who has such a vast universe and timeline that it doesn’t depend on guest appearances. Instead, they’re more like exciting and incredibly optional cameos. This is a strength that not many shows have, which means the revolving door of new and old faces can continue to spin indefinitely.