If you’re part of the Doctor Who fandom, chances are that you’ve encountered the rumors circling online over the past day which state that production on the show has been thrown into disarray. The rumors, which originated on a fan message board before spreading like wildfire on social media, claim that showrunner Chris Chibnall has been fired in the midst of filming on season 12, with Jodie Whittaker leaving the show in solidarity with him once shooting had wrapped.
To find out the truth, RadioTimes.com got in contact with insider sources and they completely refuted the rumors. The insider, who RT writes is “well-placed” within the production, said that this talk doesn’t reflect the actual state of filming on season 12. “This is all total nonsense,” they said. “This has originated and spread through the online rumour mill.”
Fans should definitely be happy with this news. While there were some vocal critics of the Chibnall era of the show celebrating over the rumors, it was pretty short-sighted to do so, as such upheaval would’ve no doubt resulted in a terrible twelfth season. Now that we know things are running smoothly, hopefully we’ll end up with something pretty special that builds on season 11 and maybe fixes some of its mistakes.
Plus, Whittaker bowing out as the Thirteenth Doctor so soon would be a crime. There are those who didn’t enjoy the Time Lord’s portrayal last year, sure, but the great thing is that the actress should have at least a couple more seasons left – going by her previous comments – to flesh out her depiction of the Doc even more.
Doctor Who season 12, featuring the return of Tenth Doctor monsters the Judoon, is due to air on the BBC in early 2020, though there is the possibility of a winter special beforehand. We’ll let you know once we hear more on that.