“Doctor Who” announces new spin-off and Christmas special at SDCC 2024

Ncuti Gatwa, Russell T. Davies and Millie Gibson gave a little taste of Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special episode during their Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday.

The episode titled “Joy to the World” was written by Doctor Who Veteran and former showrunner Steven Moffat. It will be Moffat's 50th episode of Doctor Whoafter “Boom,” his thrilling introduction to the show's 14th season. Moffat told TV Choice that it could be his last Doctor Who episode, although he has said that before. (And he tacitly admitted as much in the interview: “What makes me a little sad is that even if I do another one, I probably won't know when I've done my last one.”)

Guest appearances in Joy to the World: Bridgerton's Nicola Coughlan plays Joy, alongside Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor, and the show is expected to air on Disney Plus on Christmas Day 2024. The panel included a quick look at Coughlan and the Christmas special:

Showrunner Russell T. Davies was a little more silent about Doctor WhoThe full 15th season is scheduled to be released in 2025, although production on the season has already finished. We know that Gatwa, who has played the Doctor since 2023, will be joined in the TARDIS by a new companion, played by AndorVarada Sethu. That doesn't mean Gibson is out of the running as Ruby Sunday, though; she's still in the show and Davies promises she'll play an important role in the storyline.

“We see the Doctor and Ruby in a new light and with a new friend,” Davies said of Sethu at Comic-Con. “As you say, different friends bring out different aspects of you.”

Beyond that, Davies, Gatwa and Gibson simply said that the upcoming season had plenty of favourite moments in store for them.”[It] felt like a chance to really flex my muscles,” said Gatwa. “So exciting. You get energized by the writing and by each new story, each new monster, each new addition to our world. There are many in [the next season]. It's just the fun of the show. I think that just pushes you to grow into the character.”

However, Davies had something completely different to announce: a five-part spin-off series with Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Loki), Russell Tovey, Alexander Devrient and Jemma Redgrave – all, as Davies points out, new characters in the Whoniverse. The show, titled Doctor Who: The War Between Land and SeaFilming on The Sea Devil begins in August. The film's title is derived from the central conflict: the sea devils, creatures from the 1972 installment of the series that inhabit Earth's oceans, wake up and begin to wage war after seeing the state of the planet's waterways.

Neither this nor the next season of Doctor Who have no release dates yet, but Davies has hinted that The war between land and sea will premiere in May 2025, just one year after Gatwa's first full season as the Doctor debuts on Disney Plus.

Find all of Polygon's coverage of SDCC 2024 news, trailers, and more here.