Russell T. Davies Isn't Worried About Doctor Who's Low Ratings

Despite lofty expectations, the all-new, budget-enhanced Doctor Who has been—to beryllium kind—a spot of a ratings bust. Speaking astatine a caller BAFTA Q&A, showrunner Russell T. Davies admitted arsenic much, with the caveat the Fifteenth Doctor epoch has proven to beryllium enormously palmy with younger audiences.

“In coming back, I wanted to marque it simpler and I wanted to marque it younger,” helium said, arsenic reported by the Radio Times. “Those 2 things are often not discussed—you work reactions to it and radical are missing that. It’s simpler and younger—and it is working. The under-16s and the 16-34 assemblage arsenic good is massive. It’s not doing that good successful the ratings, but it is doing phenomenally good with the younger assemblage that we wanted.”

The series’ ratings whitethorn also, astatine slightest successful part, beryllium explained by its inconsistent and convoluted merchandise docket successful caller years. In the U.S., caller Doctor Who episodes watercourse starting astatine 7 p.m. ET connected the progressively costly Disney+; successful the UK, it gets a simultaneous midnight merchandise connected iPlayer, followed by seemingly random airings aboriginal Saturday evenings connected BBC One. So for some, it mightiness simply beryllium a hard amusement to get ahold of.

In a abstracted interrogation with the Radio Times (via Screen Rant), Davies was adjacent much optimistic. “They mightiness not beryllium the ratings we’d love. We ever privation higher. But they are gathering implicit the 28-day period. Episode one, ‘Space Babies,’ is already up to 5.6 cardinal and counting. So it is getting there. And actually, I was brought backmost to bring successful a younger audience. That’s been massively successful,” helium said.

Again, helium brought up specifics astir conscionable who’s tuning successful to the show. “The assemblage nary 1 ever gets are the under-30s. They conscionable don’t ticker tv anymore. But those figures are astronomic for Doctor Who, it’s their apical programme successful that bracket. I ne'er thought it was possible, to beryllium honest. But according to the radical who juggle the numbers, each targets person been reached and exceeded. The BBC are moving astir similar huffy things.”

As previously reported, Davies is already penning scripts for a yet-to-be-ordered 3rd season, arsenic is his wont. How bash you consciousness astir Disney’s Doctor Who? Are you enjoying the adventures of Ruby and Fifteen, oregon bash you besides consciousness you’ve barely go acquainted with Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor arsenic his archetypal play begins to upwind down?

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