Doctor Who could have a budget of £100 million after the House of Mouse acquired the streaming rights to future seasons of the cult BBC series.
The news comes after last month, it was reported that Disney Plus would be the new home for Doctor Who internationally.
Industry site Broadcast estimates that showrunner Russell T Davies’s show’s existing “£1-3m per episode budget could triple to circa-£10m” when filming begins for the show’s 14th season, with Ncuti Gatwa taking over from Jodie Whittaker as the 15th Doctor.
An insider told the publication: “Beyond the hardcore fans, Doctor Who has never quite become a broad appeal show. But with the right investment [from] Disney Plus, Russell has a bigger blank piece of paper to really do something different.”
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Spin-off shows are also expected to be announced, just as Disney Plus has capitalised on Star Wars and Marvel with spin-off series including Andor, The Mandalorian and Loki.
“My sense is that this is an investment to fully exploit the franchise and bolster the BBC coffers,” the source added.
They also estimated that Disney is likely to have paid the BBC “tens of millions” to share creative control of the show.
The BBC declined to comment on the report when approached by RadioTimes.com.
New episodes of the series starring Gatwa as the Time Lord will premiere in 2023 and air globally on Disney Plus, while still airing exclusively on the BBC in the UK and Ireland, in a move to take the franchise to even greater heights.
Returning Doctor Who show-runner Davies recently said in a statement: “I love this show, and this is the best of both worlds – with the vision and joy of the BBC and Disney Plus together we can launch the TARDIS all around the planet, reaching a new generation of fans while keeping our traditional home firmly on the BBC in the UK.”
Gatwa will be introduced as the 15th Doctor following the 60th anniversary specials next year.
Doctor Who is available to stream on BBC iPlayer with episodes of the classic series also available on BritBox – you can sign up for a 7-day free trial here.
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