David Tennant may not have even left the role of “Doctor Who” yet, at least as far as the watching public is concerned, but the new production team on the remake series of the cult science fiction show has forgotten him already. New executive producer and head writer Steven Moffat, who is taking over control of the show from the departing Russell T Davies, says that Matt Smith, who replaces Tennant as the Doctor in the new series from next year, is “the best” yet.
Many fans had criticised the choice of Smith as the Doctor, feeling that, at twenty six, he was far too young to be believable in the role of the alien Time Lord, but Moffat insists “He’s all the things you’d expect, including ancient… someone you can’t take your eyes off.” The interior of the Doctor’s spacecraft, the TARDIS, is also going to be noticeably different as of next year.
“There is a plot reason for it,” Moffat notes. “I always liked the TARDIS from the Peter Cushing (1960s Dalek) movies, and wanted to make it more like that.” He admits to feeling the pressure at taking over from Davies in charge of the show. “Yes, you do feel pressure,” he conceded at the 2009 Screenwriter’s Festival in Cheltenham. “What if I broke “Doctor Who”? That would be a tragedy.”
The next series of “Doctor Who” will be thirteen episodes (Moffat is said to be writing six of them) and will begin on BBC1 early next year.
