'Doctor Who' will "take a sly step towards fantasy" with this year's Christmas special.
Russell T Davies has teased a genre change for the Doctor Who Christmas special
Russell T Davies has admitted some fans of the BBC's iconic sci-fi series won't be happy with the genre shift he's got planned for Ncuti Gatwa's first full episode on Christmas Day after the showrunner took inspiration from the likes of 'The Witcher' and 'Stranger Things'.
Speaking to Radio Times magazine, he said: "I was just a bit jealous that all those other shows were getting a bigger taste of the pie, so this Christmas the enemy is goblins."
He confessed the fantasy influence while continue into the next full series, although science fiction remains at the show's heart in other episodes.
He added: "The show is taking a sly step towards fantasy, which will annoy people to whom it’s a hard science-fiction show.
"Episode two next year is wildly fantasy. Completely making up scenarios on-screen that we’ve never been able to show before.
"But the following episode is proper hard science-fiction."
'The Church on Ruby Road' will see Ncuti take centre stage as the Fifteenth Doctor alongside new companion Ruby Sunday, played by Millie Gibson.
The Christmas special will delve into Ruby's backstory, but there will still be plenty of mystery heading into 2024.
Russell told SFX Magazine: "Not every question is answered in the Christmas special, and that continues all the way through to the most magnificent finale ever shot on planet Earth. No hype! I swear that’s true."
Before then, David Tennant and Catherine Tate will conclude their own three-episode 60th anniversary comeback as the Fourteenth Doctor and Donna Noble, having already starred in 'The Star Beast' and 'Wild Blue Yonder' over the last couple of weeks.
On Saturday (09.12.23), 'The Giggle' will air with Neil Patrick Harris coming into the fold as the sinister Toymaker.
Tagged in David Tennant Doctor Who Russell T Davies Ncuti Gatwa