Warning: This article contains spoilers for Doctor Who.
Summary
Despite having to wait for season 15, fans ofDoctor Whocan rejoice becauseSan Diego Comic-Con2024 has offered up nine big reveals to get excited about. Screen Rant attended theDoctor Whopanel in Hall H – featuring Ncuti Gatwa, Millie Gibson, and Russell T. Davies – where the cast and showrunner shared behind-the-scenes details and insider knowledge about the Doctor Who Universe (affectionately called the Whoniverse by fans).
The panel was much needed after the end ofDoctor Whoseason 14. The finale opened up questions like how the Doctor will manage without Ruby, what villains they will face now that Sutekh is defeated, and whether there will be more musical numbers inDoctor Whoseason 15. A rumor has also been floating around the internet about a UNIT spinoff. Luckily, Gatwa, Gibson, and RTD discussed all these topics and more, providing some of the most excitingreveals of SDCC 2024.
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9The War Between The Land & The Sea Spinoff Confirmed
UNIT Will Go Up Against The Sea Devils
While aDoctor Whospinoff has been rumored for around half a year, theDoctor Whopanel at SDCC finally confirmed it and provided new details about the show focused on a war between UNIT and the Sea Devils – a Classic Who villain introduced inDoctor Whoseason 9, serial 3, “The Sea Devils.”RTD described the show – titledThe War Between The Land & The Sea– as what happens “when the Doctor’s not in town.”Jemma Redgrave’s Kate Stewart and Alexander Devrient’s Colonel Ibrahim, two significantmembers of the UNIT team inDoctor Who, will return in leading roles.
Filming of the five-episode series should commence in September 2024, without a projected release date yet. Based on the length of time between filming and release for bothDoctor Whoseasons 14 and 15, fans can expect the show to come out approximately one year after filming ends, offering hope thatThe War Between The Land & The Seacould come out at the very end of 2025.
8Ncuti Gatwa Confirms More Pantheon Gods In Doctor Who Season 15
The Doctor Could Go Up Against Many More Pantheon Gods
One of the most exciting things introduced inDoctor Whoseason 14 was “the Pantheon” – a group of individuals with god-like powers who are more powerful than even the Doctor. Because of their strength, the Doctor fears these gods more than they have any villain since the Daleks. Luckily, the show doesn’t plan on dropping these enemies any time soon.Ncuti Gatwa revealed during the SDCC panel thatDoctor Whoseason 15 would be “continuing the Pantheon.”
The Doctor has already gone up against Sutekh, Maestro, the Mara, and the Toymaker, but at least eight other members of the Pantheon exist for the character to battle. Additionally, the show has the potential to bring The Trickster into the main show – a member of the Pantheon that has only appeared in The Sarah Jane Adventures –if RTD plans on including all the gods. Ultimately, we’ll have to wait and see how the show decides to continue the story of these villains.
7Varada Sethu’s Companion Is Called Belinda Chandra
Sethu’s Character Could Connect To A Character From The Adventures Of Sarah Jane
In April 2024, the BBC confirmed that actress Varda Sethu, ofAndorandJurassic World: Dominionfame, would joinDoctor Whoas the Doctor’s companion in season 15. However, details have remained under lock and key until SDCC 2024.RTD decided, seemingly in the moment, to share the name of Varda Sethu’s companion character, Belinda Chandra.He also described her as “strong and wonderful,” but he wouldn’t share any other details.
While these are only small kernels of information, they provide a hint about who the character could be. If the name Belinda Chandra sounds familiar toDoctor Who, it’s probably because the last name Chandra has been used within the Whoniverse before. InThe Adventures of Sarah Jane, the titular main character had a companion named Rani Chandra. Since the announcement of Varda Sethu’s Belinda Chandra, speculation has begun that the two characters could be connected, though only time will tell whether the name similarity is a coincidence or intentional.
6Doctor Who Season 15 Will Introduce New Villains
The Doctor Will Go Up Against Exciting, New Villains
While Ncuti Gatwa promised more of the Pantheon in theDoctor Whopanel, he also hinted during an interview withVarietyat SDCC that the upcoming season also includesnew monsters and characters that expandDoctor Who’s universe.Based on the details shared by Gatwa, it seems that the Pantheon will serve as the throughline, whereas new monsters will appear in the stand-alone episodes.
If correct, this continues the trend set byDoctor Whoseason 14, which relied on new monsters for the individual episodes while bringing back Sutekh for the bigger serialized arc. Hopefully, this means thatDoctor Whoshowrunner RTD has figured out elements of consistency as going further into the Disney era. By keeping a similar storytelling style, viewers will know what to expect and feel like they’re watching the same show across different seasons ofDoctor Who.
5Russell Tovey And Gubu Mbathu-Raw Will Return To The Whoniverse
Tovey and Mbathu-Raw Won’t Reprise Their Former Characters
Doctor Whohas a wide array of incredible actors who only appeared for a few episodes, but they’re still incredibly memorable. Two of these actors are getting the opportunity to return to the Whoniverse. On top of confirming the new spinoffThe War Between The Land & The Sea, RTD confirmed that twounderused Tennant-era actors will appear in theDoctor Whospinoff– Russell Tovey, who previously played Alfonso Frame, and Gubu Mbatha-Raw, who previously played Tish Jones.
At SDCC 2024,the Screen Rant team confirmedTovey and Mbatha-Raw will play different charactersthan before, and both new, currently unnamed characters are expected to have a bigger role. It’s unclear if the show will explain them having the same appearance as the previous characters or leave it unaddressed like they did with most of theprevious actors who played more than one character inDoctor Who. Because both previous characters are minor, it doesn’t necessarily need to be addressed within the narrative.
4The Doctor Who 2024 Christmas Special Will Feature The Silurians
The Silurians Have Been In The Whoniverse Since 1970
December 2024 will bring the second Christmas special since the return of theDoctor Whotradition, and the hype has continued to grow with the announcement thatBridgertonstar Nicola Coughlan would star as the Doctor’s companion. However, not much else was known about the Steven Moffat-directed episode up until the show debuted thefirst look at theDoctor Who2024 Christmas specialat the panel in San Diego Comic-Con, which Screen Rant attended.
The clip shows the return of a fantastic, recurringDoctor Whovillain, the Silurians. This is a race of reptilian humanoids who were introduced in ClassicDoctor Whoseason 7, serial 2, “Doctor Who and the Silurians,” opposite Jon Pertwee’s Third Doctor. The species has repeatedly returned in both Classic and NewWho. Interestingly, the Silurians are cousins of the aquatic creatures Sea Devils, who will feature inThe War Between The Land & The Sea.It’s unclear whether there will be any connection between the Silurians and the reintroduction of the Sea Devils.
3Ncuti Gatwa And Millie Gibson Struggled At Not Spoiling Doctor Who Season 14
Gatwa Was Especially Careful Not To Spoil Anything In The Doctor Who Panel
Most of the reveals from theDoctor Whopanel at San Diego Comic-Con 2024 related to the content of the show, but there was one hilarious and interesting behind-the-scenes reveal that was facilitated by the moderator, Josh Horowitz. He asked both Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson how they do with keeping spoilers a secret. It turns out that both of them struggled to keep things quiet throughoutDoctor Whoseason 14 (which they referred to as season 1 throughout the panel because it’s the first season available on Disney+).
Gatwa said he now just keeps his mouth shut because he told everyone spoilers because he couldn’t keep it to himself. Meanwhile, Gibson stated that she gets into conversations and says, “Oh, but I can’t say anything,” but then follows it up with, “But oh actually…” at which point she shares spoilers. However,both indicated that they’ve gotten better at keeping the secrets.This is such a fun reveal because it shows that the actors inDoctor Whoare just as excited about the story as the fans.
2Doctor Who Season 15 Will Include An Episode Packed With Songs
RTD Will Continue The Musical Trend Of New Who
Since the return of RTD as the showrunner, music has become a prominent method of storytelling. Few other shows could get away with writing a song about goblins eating babies and make it a hit that’s just as enjoyable when re-listening. While it’s more prominent in the past season, musical elements weave in and out of New Who on a pretty consistent basis. Nobody can forget the Master’s performance of “I Can’t Decide.” Luckily,the next season ofDoctor Whowill continue to incorporate music.When asked about music in the show, RTD said this:
“I can promise you more music…There’s a very, very – it’s not [a musical episode] but there’s an episode that’s packed full of songs.”
Because he cut himself off there, saying he couldn’t tell us anything more, there’s no context surrounding the episode. Since Gatwa also confirmed more of the Pantheon, hopefullyDoctor Whowill bring back Maestro, as they are too entertaining to only appear in one episode of the show. Alternatively, the Master is known for musical outbursts, so it would be a fun way to reintroduce the character after the gold tooth tease.
1Doctor Who Season 15 Will Feature More Of Mrs. Flood
Mrs. Flood’s True Identity Still Remains A Mystery
Doctor Whoseason 14 introduces a number of major mysteries, but few are as prevalent as the true identity of Mrs. Flood, Ruby’s kindly older neighbor who knows a peculiar amount about the non-human universe. The woman turns sinister when she refuses to give Cherry Sunday a cup of tea and goes on a religiously charged monologue that sounds vaguely threatening.
Then, at the end of the finale, she offers up a disturbing warning about the end of the Doctor’s journey while dressed in a fuzzy white coat and holding a white parasol and a luggage bag with stickers from around the world. Luckily,RTD confirmed that the enigma of a woman will be back again inDoctor Whoseason 15. That doesn’t necessarily mean the mystery will be solved in the upcoming season ofDoctor Who, but it could at least be explored in more detail, providing more context about how much she knows about the Pantheon.
