BBC Studios is the commercial arm of the BBC, a production and distribution powerhouse that beams Doctor Who to the world. It holds a unique place in the British TV landscape, being able to operate and think with a “ruthlessly commercial” hat on, according to Bennett, and yet ultimately putting funds back into the public service BBC, its “one shareholder,” which has of course fallen on somehwat tricky inancial times in recent years.
No decision more neatly demonstrates the nasty headwinds facing scripted drama than Disney pulling out of the Doctor Who deal with the BBC, BBC Studios and Bad Wolf after just two seasons. For the show to continue long beyond its 2026 Christmas special, which is being penned by showrunner Russell T. Davies, the BBC now needs to replace some of that lost budget, which totals millions of pounds per hour.
Bennett avoids directly answering the question of whether BBC Studios will stump up some of the lost cash to give the show a long-term future – noting that he “won’t speak for the BBC” – but says “we’re all in it together” when it comes to keeping the Time Lord on the small screen for years to come.
“We’re a big important part of Doctor Who and are all motivated to make sure Doctor Who has a long and flourishing life,” he says. “We’ve got the Christmas special coming. After that, it’s time for us all to work on it.”
The BBC and BBC Studios may have lost their American co-production partner on Doctor Who but Bennett brims with confidence over BBC Studios’ standing in the States, and he is still riding high over the success of the CBS version of Ghosts, which emerged from a deal with Lionsgate that elapsed two years ago.
