David Tennant ‘could return to Doctor Who’ – but it would be a terrible idea

It’s a day ending in ‘Y’, so you know what that means? Once again, we’re talking about the future of Doctor Who, and David Tennant’s name has been mentioned.

Yes, despite having had two jaunts through time in the Tardis – as both the Tenth and Fourteenth incarnations of the Doctor – there are rumours that one of the studios hoping to bid for Doctor Who wants Tennant back in his sand shoes and long coat. 

According to the timey-wimey tittle-tattle, Electric Entertainment and CEO Dean Devlin – who’s worked on the likes of Stargate, Godzilla, and Independence Day – have approached the BBC about producing a new series of Doctor Who.

And apparently part of their pitch involves bringing back Tennant for a third outing as the Oncoming Storm. 

The Radio Times has since approached Devlin, who’s denied having had any talks with the BBC.

‘It is untrue that we have had negotiations with the BBC, he explained. However, he went on to say that he hoped to talk to the corporation about the sci-fi series future. 

‘When the proper time comes,’ he continued.  ‘When they are prepared to speak with people, we certainly hope to have a discussion with them.’

While it seems unlikely that Tennant will return, we can’t shake the notion that some people might think he has to return for the show to have a future, and I think that’s patently untrue. 

Doctor Who has been at its best when it embraced the need for change and evolution. 

Look at how the need to replace William Hartnell gave birth to the concept of regeneration, an idea that’s allowed the show to avoid the pitfalls of recasting that have plagued other franchises. 

Or how the series has reinvented itself over the years, from an attempted educational series in the ‘60s to an action-packed sci-fi romp in the 70s and 780s before returning to our screens in the 00s as a far more fantastical and romantic show. 

Doctor Who is a show that’s never allowed itself to be defined by its past; instead, it embraces new challenges and opportunities while honouring what came before it. 

It was the Eleventh Doctor who put it best, mere moments before he exploded into Peter Capaldi.  

‘We all change,’ he explained. That’s okay, that’s good, you’ve got to keep moving, so long as you remember all the people that you used to be.’

Yes, I know he was talking about regenerating, but it’s a good analogy for the show, and it needs to change as well. 

I’d argue then that bringing Tennant back, as much as I love him, would just do irreparable damage to the series I love, and seem like tacit agreement that this brilliant series that’s endured for seven decades now can’t survive without a rather suave Scot and his sideburns.

And I’m not alone in feeling that bringing Tennant back (for a full TV series at least) would be a misstep. 

On Reddit, Expert_Layer_7710 commented: ‘He is my favourite new who doctor and one of my all-time favourites, but please no.’

Schleppylundo agreed, rather scathingly adding: ‘Out of all the pitches of concept or showrunners that have been made to the press I think this one is the worst.’

It was The-william who was perhaps the most scathing when he wrote: ‘Honestly, if you’re saying the show can’t survive without Tennant, you’ve failed right out of the gate.

‘I liked Tennant. I like Tennant. Not my favourite new era Doctor, but of course he’s great. But Doctor Who is not, nor should be, “The David Tennant Show”.

‘If this guy can’t come up with something exciting and appealing that isn’t dependent on Tennant being there, then he is not the one.’

Thankfully, Tennant seems to agree with the fans on this.

Speaking to Bafta in 2025, he said: ‘Part of what makes [Doctor Who] such a vibrant show is that it keeps renewing and finding new ways to tell stories… and as far as I’m aware, that’s happening without me for a while.’

So it seems the Doctor Who fandom can say in unison, ‘I don’t want to go… watch David Tennant as the Doctor again”