Doctor Who star David Tennant initially had concerns about returning to play the Doctor after almost a decade and a half.
Tennant appeared on the British daytime talk show This Morning with hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, who assured him that lots of Who fans were waiting to hear what it's like to be back on the show. Tennant said he had been worried he might have felt awkward after so much time had passed. "It was like being handed a very lovely present," the actor said. "It was joyous, it was great fun. It was a very happy, joyous time 15 years ago. And returning to that could've been... well, who knows? It might've felt awkward, it might've felt difficult, I might not have been able to run as fast."
"But we had a lovely time," Tennant concluded. "Russell T. Davies is back running the show, it felt like we had never been away." He wouldn't reveal any other details about his return, ending with a playful, "That's all you're getting!"
David Tennant's Special Place in Doctor Who History
Tennant's run as the Tenth Doctor from 2005 to early 2010 makes him the longest-running Doctor in the show's modern era (the Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker, has the overall record for playing the Doctor the longest). His return to the role was a surprise, as it was announced back in May that Ncuti Gatwa had been cast as the new star. When Jodie Whitaker's Thirteenth Doctor regenerated in the most recent special, "The Power of the Doctor," Tennant unexpectedly appeared instead. It was later confirmed that Tennant would play the Fourteenth Doctor while Gatwa will become the Fifteenth Doctor at a later date.
As Tennant mentioned, Russell T. Davies is also returning to Doctor Who as the showrunner. Davies was in charge of the revival while Christoper Eccleston and Tennant starred, but he handed off duties to Steven Moffat in 2010, at the same time that House of the Dragon's Matt Smith became the Eleventh Doctor. Three hour-long specials written by Davies will air in Nov. 2023 starring Tennant, while a shortened eight-episode season will come out in 2024. After that, Davies has promised that Doctor Who will return to a more regular schedule with more episodes per season.
Once Sex Education star Ncuti Gatwa takes over as the Fifteenth Doctor, actress Millie Gibson will be joining the show as The Doctor's new companion, named Ruby Sunday. A teaser showcasing an upcoming episode contained a shot of Gatwa standing in front of a cloudy sky, although Davies later said that the background was edited because Gatwa's true location would be a huge spoiler.
Doctor Who is set to return for a three-episode arc in November 2023 on BBC and BBC America.
Source: This Morning