Doctor Who - Hollywood Film?

Das Kitty

Just read this:
http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/news/doctor-who-feature-david-yates-nadam.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FilmSchoolRejects+%28Film+School+Rejects%29

I'm really trying to be open-minded about this possibility, but I'm failing miserably.

David Yates to Create a Brand New ‘Doctor Who’ For Hollywood

Published on November 14th, 2011

Written by: Nathan Adams

There has been a lot of speculation as to what director David Yates would work on now that he’s done capping off the Harry Potter franchise with four hugely successful films. He’s got a lot of offers on the table, a lot of irons in the fire, and up until this point it has mostly seemed like he would be able to choose whatever he wants to do. But that may no longer be the case. News coming out of Variety suggests that Yates isn’t going to be able to do whatever he wants to do…but whenever he wants to do.

That’s right, Yates is teaming up with the BBC to create a big budget, big screen, Big McLarge Huge version of everyone’s favorite Time Lord, Doctor Who. If you don’t know what Doctor Who is, then man you must really hate things that are British. When you talk about long-running TV shows, you’re talking about Doctor Who. Running all the way from 1963-1989 and then spawning a revival in 2005, Doctor Who is a science fiction show that concerns itself largely with rubber aliens, time-traveling police boxes, scarves, and David Tennant’s floppy hair. So far 11 different men have portrayed the Sonic Screwdriver wielding Doctor, and if Yates gets his way, this new film will introduce a 12th.

Fans of the current series shouldn’t fret though, what Yates has planned isn’t going to be connected to the beloved television series in any way. Instead, this will be a new approach to the Doctor designed to stand completely on its own. Seeing as Who is such a long enduring show with such a rabidly loyal fan base, Yates and company are seeing a big screen Who as an opportunity to launch a brand new franchise, something with name recognition that will pull in a lot of cash; but they understand that moving this universe from small screen to big isn’t going to be easy. The television series, especially back in its early days, is an extremely micro-budgeted affair, so it’s going to take a lot of thought to decide how to maintain the essence of the property but at the same time make it bigger and louder. To that end Yates says, “We’re looking at writers now. We’re going to spend two to three years to get it right. It needs quite a radical transformation to take it into the bigger arena.”

Despite the fact that this new version of the Doctor is meant to become a worldwide phenomenon, the new crew doesn’t plan on making him American or anything crazy. When speaking further about his writer search, Yates continued, “We want a British sensibility, but having said that, Steve Kloves wrote the Potter films and captured that British sensibility perfectly, so we are looking at American writers too.”

You know what that means, Internet, it’s time to start sending Yates and his BBC cohort Jane Tranter all of your Doctor Who fan-fiction that you still have stored on your hard drive from back when you were 13. This could be your chance to put your own stamp on the Whoverse and become a legend! Just remember, this is Hollywood, your script needs to be less Inspector Spacetime and more J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek. And if you could get a big name actor to attach himself to your script, it wouldn’t hurt.

Inspector Spacetime is the first thought in my head.


My second is NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Cyndaquil

Just saw this on digital spy. Hmmm, I'm not that keen on it being detached from the main series, as a fan I'd see it as kind of pointless... Then again could you make a movie out of the established series that could be watched by non-tv fans yet still appealing to those who watch the series? I mean you couldn't be relying to much on tv story arcs to build up to it.

Doctor DooM

dr Who movie rumour no 4,933

pixelburp

Well they already tried out-of-continuity Doctor Who movies - twice - and in both cases the results were awful. Peter Cushing played "Doctor Who" in two big-screen, big budget adaptations of William Hartnell stories. Of course, back then there was no mythology to trod all over, but even so, the movies were baaaad.

This is an eminently silly idea from Yates and hopefully it won't get off the ground. First and foremost, I don't see the point. This isn't James Bond; you can't just swap actors and carry on like nothing happened. The Doctor is a clear set of 11 actors, based on a (now) fairly rigid mythology. So in that case, what are you hoping to achieve here? To my mind, it sounds like Yates wants to create a milkable series, based on a ready-made franchise.

Anyway, it could all be academic - there's no indication BBC have taken up this idea, seems just like cloud talk from Yates & his mate Tranter. I'm fairly sure that Jane Tranter & BBC Worldwide are subservient to BBC London, and they'd be the ones in charge of the Doctor Who brandname; and something tells me if a Who movie were to happen, it'd be controlled from HQ, and with the main players of the show in the background.

Wonder what Moffat makes of all this ...

phatrat1982

I know it will piss of a lot of fans and I know it would tank but I think it would be fun to see a Doctor Who movie on the big screen using todays standards because yeah the old ones were awful but honestly most movies from that period were just as bad anyways.

Das Kitty

phatrat1982 wrote: »

I know it will piss of a lot of fans and I know it would tank but I think it would be fun to see a Doctor Who movie on the big screen using todays standards because yeah the old ones were awful but honestly most movies from that period were just as bad anyways.

That could be said of any era's films though. Equally, some of the best films of all time were made in the mid 60s.

phatrat1982

Yeah but what I was saying was that style of film was common back then and the good films you speak of were not that type of film. Actually just for um clarification what films are you referring to because I can't think of any that spring to mind from that era. You must be older than I am. I guess I should clarify we are talking science fiction here not in general and today is an era where Science fiction really shines so all I meant was using todays standard for sci fi they could make a much better movie than they did back then.

Das Kitty

phatrat1982 wrote: »

Yeah but what I was saying was that style of film was common back then and the good films you speak of were not that type of film. Actually just for um clarification what films are you referring to because I can't think of any that spring to mind from that era. You must be older than I am.

Any of Hitchcock's canon?

But yes, sci-fi didn't come into its own until Star Wars really.

And judging solely by your username I'm only two years older than you.

Raphael

The Day the Earth Stood Still?

phatrat1982

Oh I know it will suck but I'd still go see it just like the American Tochwood it was crap compared to the real Torchwood but I still watched it.

pixelburp

Raphael wrote: »

The Day the Earth Stood Still?

That's 1950s

By the way, the BBC updated their facebook page:
"There's been a lot of talk today about the possibility of a Doctor Who movie - a feature film remains in development with BBC Worldwide Productions in Los Angeles. But, as of yet there is no script, cast or production crew in place."

Which basically means ... absolutely nothing for now. This really is just cloud-talk by one enthusiastic director with nothing actually set in stone. Lots of projects fall into limbo before the cameras even start rolling (for example, the James Cameron Spiderman movie of the 90s, and the Superman movie starring Nicholas Cage of the same decade) so I wouldn't hold my breath this will ever take off.

ixoy

The Doctor's coming back to the big screen?
Awesome!
And it's about time too!

Wibbs

Doctor DooM wrote: »

dr Who movie rumour no 4,933

Yep. As a callow youth I awaited with bated breath the Tom Baker movie that was "In preproduction", especially after Star wars made sci fi fash again. More like production hell and they even had a script, something to do with the Doctor fighting the devil IIRC.

Wobbuffet

The announcment reminded me of this comic from a while back

The only way I would get excited about this would be as follows:

Moffat writes it and this guy plays the Doctor:

pixelburp

Deleted User wrote: »

The only way I would get excited about this would be as follows:

Moffat writes it and this guy plays the Doctor:

Looking at the photo, I could sorta see Nighy playing an alternate version of Hartnell's doc; perhaps if the movies did do a reboot, you could restart the Doctor's life & have alternate takes on each regeneration. So Nighy as the 1st Doctor reboot, someone else as the Troughton mirror...

pixelburp

pixelburp wrote: »

[...]

Wonder what Moffat makes of all this ...

Quoting my own posts, how narcissistic. Anyway, it seems Moffat has given his own thoughts on the likelyhood of this happening via a cryptic Tweet, which he later clarifies is in relation to Yates' madcap plans...

"Announcing my personal moonshot, starting from scratch. No money, no plan, no help from NASA. But I know where the moon is – I've seen it."

The Mad Hatter

Moffat says no.

To clarify: any Doctor Who movie would be made by the BBC team, star the current TV Doctor and certainly NOT be a Hollywood reboot.

Das Kitty

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Moffat says no.

I wonder is there some subtext there about the 2013 plans? Just the emphasis on the "current" TV doctor.

The Mad Hatter

Das Kitty wrote: »

I wonder is there some subtext there about the 2013 plans? Just the emphasis on the "current" TV doctor.

I think he means that if a movie were ever to be made, that'd be how it'd go down.

Das Kitty

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

I think he means that if a movie were ever to be made, that'd be how it'd go down.

Oh yeah, I'm reading it now as whoever is current at the time of it being made.

pixelburp

Das Kitty wrote: »

I wonder is there some subtext there about the 2013 plans? Just the emphasis on the "current" TV doctor.

Well there have been recent winks and nods by smith & co about the anniversary year and what was in store. So while I think a cinema release is unlikely I wouldn't rule out a produced-for-tv feature length story to tie in with the celebrations

Art_Wolf

Would love if the movie covered the 8th to 9th doctor, give Eccleston an hour on camera etc.

pixelburp

Art_Wolf wrote: »

Would love if the movie covered the 8th to 9th doctor, give Eccleston an hour on camera etc.

I'd say we can guarantee that'll never happen - just as the Doctor's own origins have never truly been explored (hush you in the corner reading Lungbarrow), the Time War is a convenient point of mystery I imagine the team will keep secret. I'm sure it'll be hinted at now & again, but I doubt we'll ever see / hear an account of what happened...

pixelburp

pixelburp wrote: »

Well there have been recent winks and nods by smith & co about the anniversary year and what was in store. So while I think a cinema release is unlikely I wouldn't rule out a produced-for-tv feature length story to tie in with the celebrations

The SFX crowd that did the Harry Potter films may have been sounded out to do the Doctor Who film apparently. I have a decent source on this too.

Sleepy

Well, given Yates directed the last four movies of the Harry Potter series it would stand to reason that it was him that sounded out a company he'd already worked with for the prospective project?

pixelburp

Deleted User wrote: »

The SFX crowd that did the Harry Potter films may have been sounded out to do the Doctor Who film apparently. I have a decent source on this too.

Interesting; I mean it's not a stretch to think the BBC will do something big for the 50th anniversary, the only question is what it will be. Hence my money being on the big TV-movie.

Sleepy wrote: »

Well, given Yates directed the last four movies of the Harry Potter series it would stand to reason that it was him that sounded out a company he'd already worked with for the prospective project?

Even Yates himself admitted it was nothing at this point except a pipe-dream by himself & a random producer. Even if it was going ahead, which SFX house to use would be far down their priorities list; financial backing & a script would be bigger concerns Plus, Moffat & Co. have repeatedly confirmed this is all just cloud talk

Sleepy

Well, given Yates directed the last four movies of the Harry Potter series it would stand to reason that it was him that sounded out a company he'd already worked with for the prospective project?

pixelburp

Sleepy wrote: »

Well, given Yates directed the last four movies of the Harry Potter series it would stand to reason that it was him that sounded out a company he'd already worked with for the prospective project?

Well to be fair, that hardly proves anything; like I said, Yates admitted it was just cloud-talk & Moffat confirmed it. *shrug*

Sleepy

Sorry, double post!

K-9

It seems Moffat has cleared up any confusion and stamped his authority on any future film:

Speaking in the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine (442), Doctor Who Showrunner, Steven Moffat had the following to say regarding the recent Doctor Who movie rumours:
"The very brilliant David Yates was talking off the cuff and a little prematurely: there simply are no developed plans for a Doctor Who movie at the moment. But it's an incredibly exciting idea to get that magic blue box flying across our cinema screens, so stand by for further developments.
However, if and when the movie happens, it will need to star television's Doctor Who - and there's only every one of those at a time. And it would need to come out of the same production operation that makes the series. Doctor Who is a vitally important BBC brand with a huge international audience and not even Hollywood can start this one from scratch.
So sorry if there's been any confusion, but on the plus side it has reminded us all what an exciting prospect this could be. Whatever happens, the BBC and BBC Worldwide will work together to ensure that we don't just get a movie, we get the movie everyone wants. But keep asking me about it - maybe I'll surprise you with an answer!"
+ Subscribe to Doctor Who Magazine viaUnique Magazines.

http://news.drwho-online.co.uk/Moffat-Clarifies-Doctor-Who-Movie-Rumours.aspx

ebbsy

Hollywood has started Batman and Superman from scratch ? So I d'ont know what he is talking about.

The real main problem is that USA took Torchwood and screwed up a great programme, and they could do the same with Who.

pixelburp

The mythologies and media are completely different though - Batman / Superman are comics that have been running non-stop every week for about 60/70 years. I can't imagine how those characters would have survived without reboots.

Besides, Doctor Who doesn't need to be rebooted - this is why we have regeneration in the first place, to completely sidestep the desire to arbitrarily reset the narrative on a whim. In fact, that this thread exists is because of RTD's neat reintroduction of the show to a TV audience unfamiliar with the show's history - a movie with the current crew wouldn't be that hard to accomplish.

And having watched the godawful Star Trek reboot over Xmas, there's no way in hell I want some starry-eyed Hollywood producer pawing all over another well-loved TV franchise.

Doctor DooM

ebbsy wrote: »

Hollywood has started Batman and Superman from scratch ? So I d'ont know what he is talking about.

The real main problem is that USA took Torchwood and screwed up a great programme, and they could do the same with Who.

It's easy to look at the dark knight and forget American TV and movies have nearly killed batman, twice over.

pixelburp

I hate bumped threads from years ago, but figured it made more sense to bump this than start a new thread: seems that among the documents posted on Wikileaks relating to the Sony Studios hack, includes information relating to the studio's attempt to make a Dr. Who film. Sounds like Moffat & co. are the biggest blockers to this, and I gotta be honest would be on the side of the production team on this.

http://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/leaked-sony-emails-reveals-doctor-who-movie-plans-73062.htm