New Season Premieres Across Disney+ and BBC in First Global Simultaneous Launch for the Iconic Franchise
Download Key Art and New Gallery Image: HERE
BURBANK, Calif. (March 15, 2024) – Calling across the Whoniverse! Today, Disney Branded Television and BBC jointly announced the premiere date for the next “Doctor Who” installment, the first-ever season to launch on Disney+ and release simultaneously worldwide. Beginning Friday, May 10, at 7:00 p.m. EDT on Disney+ in the U.S. and internationally (excluding the UK), audiences will return to “The Church on Ruby Road,” which premiered last December, and journey through two all-new episodes. In the UK, the season kicks off Saturday, May 11, at 12:00 a.m. GMT on BBC iPlayer, followed by BBC One later that day.
Accompanying the news, Disney+ released new key art and a gallery image featuring the Fifteenth Doctor, played by Ncuti Gatwa, and his companion Ruby Sunday, portrayed by Millie Gibson. A brand-new trailer from Disney+ will debut next Friday, March 22.
This season of “Doctor Who” follows the Doctor and Ruby Sunday through infinite adventures across time and space in the TARDIS. From the Regency era in England to war-torn futures, the duo champion the forces of good while encountering incredible friends and dangerous foes.
Showrunner, executive producer and writer Russell T Davies said: “At last, it’s my great delight to unleash a whole new season of the Doctor and Ruby’s adventures together. Monsters! Chases! Villains! Mysteries! And a terrifying secret that’s been spanning time and space for decades. Don’t miss a second!”
The previously announced guest cast includes Aneurin Barnard, Anita Dobson, Yasmin Finney, Michelle Greenidge, Jonathan Groff, Bonnie Langford, Genesis Lynea, Jemma Redgrave, Lenny Rush, Indira Varma and Angela Wynter.
“Doctor Who” is produced by Bad Wolf, with BBC Studios for Disney Branded Television and BBC. Under the creative vision of Davies, the additional executive producers include Phil Collinson, Joel Collins, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter. The new season features episodes directed by Ben Chessell, Jamie Donoughue, Julie Anne Robinson and Dylan Holmes Williams.
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ABOUT “DOCTOR WHO”
Quintessentially British, “Doctor Who” is one of the longest running action-adventure television series in the world with legions of fans across the globe since its inception on the BBC in 1963. Airing on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the U.K. and Disney+ in the rest of the world, the critically acclaimed show was the UK’s most watched drama on Christmas Day 2023 as Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor took over the TARDIS in “The Church On Ruby Road.”
“Doctor Who” has a variety of licensees and partnerships spanning comics and collectibles, audiobooks, podcasts and magazines. Since 2012, over 17 million Sonic Screwdrivers and action figures, 19 million DVDs and over one million tickets for Doctor Who live events have sold globally. In 2023, BBC iPlayer launched the Whoniverse, a dedicated area where UK viewers can see more than 800 shows within the orbit of Doctor Who. https://www.doctorwho.tv/
ABOUT DISNEY+
Disney+ is the dedicated streaming home for movies and shows from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic, along with The Simpsons and much more. In select international markets, it also includes the general entertainment content brand, Star, and in the U.S., Disney Bundle subscribers can also access extensive Hulu content, including next day TV and Hulu Original titles, on Disney+. The flagship direct-to-consumer streaming service from Disney, Disney+ offers an ever-growing collection of exclusive originals, including feature-length films, documentaries, live-action and animated series, and short-form content. With unprecedented access to Disney’s long history of incredible film and television entertainment, Disney+ is also the exclusive streaming home for the newest releases from The Walt Disney Studios. Disney+ is available as a standalone streaming service, as part of the Disney Bundle in the U.S. that gives subscribers access to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+, or as part of Combo+ in Latin America with Star+, the standalone general entertainment and sports streaming service in the region. For more, visit disneyplus.com, or find the Disney+ app on most mobile and connected TV devices.
ABOUT DISNEY BRANDED TELEVISION
Disney Branded Television encompasses the creative storytellers and production and content marketing teams responsible for Disney-branded television series, movies and other programming spanning live-action, animated and unscripted formats. The group fuels the Disney+ streaming platform and Disney Channel, Disney XD and Disney Junior linear networks with content geared toward kids, tweens, teens and families, with stories that are imaginative, aspirational and reflective of their world and experiences.
ABOUT BBC
The BBC is the world’s leading public service broadcaster which is impartial and independent, and every day we create distinctive, world-class programmes and content which inform, educate and entertain millions of people in the UK and around the world. The BBC includes a portfolio of television services, national and local radio networks, and global digital services.
ABOUT BBC STUDIOS
BBC Studios is a commercial subsidiary of the BBC Group with sales of £2.1 billion (2021/22: £1,630 million). Able to take an idea seamlessly from thought to screen and beyond, the business is built on two operating areas: the global Content Studio, which produces, invests and distributes content globally and Channels & Streaming, with BBC branded channels, services and joint ventures in the UK and internationally. Around 2,500 hours of award-winning British programmes are made by the business every year, with over 80% of total BBC Studios revenues coming from non-BBC customers including Discovery, Apple and Netflix. Its content is internationally recognised across a broad range of genres and specialisms, with brands like Strictly Come Dancing/Dancing with the Stars, Top Gear, the Planet series, Bluey and Doctor Who. BBC.com is BBC Studios’ global digital news platform, offering up-to-the-minute international news, in-depth analysis and features.
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