Disney and BBC jointly confirmed a new Doctor Who spin-off at SDCC 2024. Rumors of a regular spin-off series ran rampant after Russell T Davies returned as showrunner in 2023. However, rather than a regular series, this spin-off will be a five-part mini-series.
Titled “The War Between The Land And The Sea,” the mini-series will be the first Doctor Who spin-off born of the new series and the BBC/Disney partnership. The BBC previously produced a new spin-off series in 2023, Tales of the TARDIS, as an iPlayer exclusive. The last spin-off before that was Class, a 2015 drama set in the same school where several of the Doctor’s companions taught.
The new mini-series will star Russell Tovey from American Horror Story: NYC, and Gugu Mbatha-Raw from Loki. They will be joined by returning Doctor Who cast members Jemma Redgrave (as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart) and Alexander Devrient (as Colonel Ibrahim). The series will be co-written by Russel T Davies and Pete McTighe. It will be directed by Dylan Holmes-Williams, who directed the Doctor Who episodes “73 Yards” and “Dot and Bubble.”
Doctor Who spin-off to pit UNIT against underseas enemy
“The War Between The Land And The Sea” will center around an international crisis. When a fearsome and ancient species dramatically reveal themselves to the world, conflict becomes unavoidable. With no Doctor on hand to save the day, UNIT takes the lead in a world-wide war between humanity and the Sea Devils.
First appearing in classic Doctor Who in 1972, the Sea Devils are not an alien menace. The aquatic beings are as native to Earth as humans, though born of a different evolutionary path. They are cousins to the similarly evolved Silurians, who are reptilian rather than piscine. They last appeared in the 2022 Doctor Who special “Legend of the Sea Devils.”
I’m so lucky to work with such a magnificent cast,” noted Russell T Davies. “And this is a huge, muscular, thrilling drama which will shake The Whoniverse to its foundations. When the Doctor’s not in town, the whole of humanity is in trouble.“ Davies confirmed that shooting on the mini-series will begin in August 2024, but no air date has been announced.
Doctor Who: Season 1 can be viewed on Disney+ or BBC iplayer.
