Well, Steven Moffat rebutted on Twitter:Yates made clear that his movie adaptation would not follow on from the current TV series, but would take a completely fresh approach to the material.
"Russell T. Davies and then Steven Moffat have done their own transformations, which were fantastic, but we have to put that aside and start from scratch," he said.
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Moff had already tweeted a vague response to the Nov 14th Variety article dismissing it at the time. This most recent set of tweets was concerning new interviews with Yates that surfaced last week, including one where he very literally was on a red carpet, talking off the cuff.
well to be fair to Hollywood... they gotta wrestle with 30+ years of Doctor Who continuity to make sense of to folks who don't watch the show. I mean really... try to explain the concept to someone who isn't familiar with the show... and see how as you go further and further... the more their head tilts to the side.
Now try and abridge that information into the confines of normal movie running times... and it's bound to be a nightmare.
I'd love for the movie to tie into the established continuity, but when the Doctor's already done some pretty epic shit by now... it's a hard act to follow.
I am of the opinion that it might actually be BETTER if Moffat DIDN'T work on it... and that there be no mention of River Song since she irritates me so, but I'm sure I'm the minority...
"I don't know which is more likely, honestly" I'm actually getting a little choked up to witness such heroic optimism. When the Blue Lanterns need a new recruit who can keep a tight grip on hope in the face of obvious futility, we'll give them your name, Rob.
I don't understand a lot of the criticism I've seen regarding David Yates movements towards a Doctor Who movie and I say this as a UK citizen who adores not only Doctor Who but British television. If Hollywood bankrolls a Doctor Who movie hope to god Yates has something to do with it. Not only did he prove with the Harry Potter movies that he can ensure British sensibilities survive children who were repeatedly dropped on their heads (i.e. 9/10 Hollywood executives) but he also has a track record as one of the best directors working in the BBC in the new millennium. State of Play was 6 hours of kick ass political drama that he directed and it holds as one of the best dramas the BBC has made - right up there with their rendition of Tinker Tailor and Edge of Darkness. Moffat's run is incredible but Yates is a top rate British director whose body of work commands enough respect to be trusted with an interpretation of Doctor Who and not just cheap cracks he's going to run after Jason Statham.
Moffet could have solved this easily enough: shown the BBC brass his version of Coupling, shown them the American remake, said "I know what I'm talking about here."
Yeah. Think I'll believe Moffat over some no name blog writer. Sorry to dash your hopes.
As much as I don't normally care for CAD, they did have that Statham as Dr Who comic I likehttp://www.cad-comic.com/cad/2...
And, yeah, I have a bad feeling it's the second possiblity, one hand not knowing what the other is doing.
Well from reading these I would have to guess most of the posters are under 40. back in the 60s they actually made 2 independent Dr Who movies staring Peter Cushing. These movies were unrelated to the series at the time (Patrick Troughton era) even though they included the Daleks in one of them. So the concept of a American big screen boot isn't that surprising. I will wait until I see it to make a final judgement.
What would be brilliant is if they used a movie on the 50th anniversary to unveil a 12th Doctor.
Given the anniversary is 2013, there's DEFINITELY enough time to do so.
(For that matter, I notice Moffat and the BBC have been cagey about the amount of Doctor Who in 2012/50th anniversary plans)
I think the thing is here that if a Hollywood studio wanted to make a Dr. Who reboot movie, they will and Moffat can say it isn't going to happen all he wants but reality is BBC would let it happen once the right amount of money filled dump trucks showed up.
Because Dr. Who is just like Transformers, it has a decent fan base that will go and see it because of the title hate it (or love it), then there will be the fringe group that knew of it but the bright shiny new package will draw them in. Then the pop corn crowd. It will make a ton of money just because of that. Then add in the fact that like star wars there is so much room for toys.
Dr Who is a money printing machine if the hollywood machine gets a hold of it. If they figure this out, and BBC figures this out Moffat is going to be out of luck on his opinion of the movie.
Damn it dont connect those two now I have the mental image of a Urinating TARDIS with testicles surrounded by explosions instead of the time vortex. (yes they would probably make the pissing part of the time travel...)
I'm not proud of that post, but sadly my week has so amazing that I had to share logic that makes people cry
If they were to make a movie I would like it to be like one of the specials back during the old series meaning that it will star Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill, and Alex Kingston BUT also have David Tennant and Catherine Tate AND Christoper Eccleston and Billie Piper... with a small guest appearance by Paul McGann.
Too greedy?
Wow. I hope to god that Moffat's tweet is legit. I don't think I could stand another American-Akria style plot synopsis showing up in six months or so... or ever again.
My guess is they saw the results of the contest from the other week and added up all the nerd hate, deciding to pull the plug.
Oh, wait. That would involve listening to the fans. That never happens...
Dammit. I would watch that...[but that's a void that can be filled by some ridiculous Sherlock/DW crossover, meet an alien that can force like body switches?...I'll be in my bunk]
Movie thing: David Yates, great director, was speaking off the cuff, on a red carpet. You've seen the rubbish I talk when I'm cornered.
Yeah, I believe Moffat was referring to when Yates was at the BAFTA Los Angeles 2011 Britannia Awards.
But he also said:"If, and when, the movie happens it will need to star television's Doctor Who – and there's only ever 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 that everyone wants.
Who knows what's actually going on, but maybe they're both secretly working together and are trying to create hype for a movie. Especially since he ended with this:"Keep asking me about it – maybe I'll surprise you with an answer!"
more likely: moffat thought he could ignore it because it was obviously untrue, much like the loads of other movie "stories" that crop up every month or so in the UK tabs. ignoring it is often better than lending credence to it by acknowledging it.
he probably had his head down working on Sherlock and when he poked it back up to do Christmas Special press everyone was asking him the same question over and over and over again. sensing it wasn't going away, he handled it.
like a boss.
I couldn't give a shit about Dr. Who, and you know who else doesn't give a shot about Dr. Who?Pretty much every single person on the planet who isn't a hardcore fan.
You know what I might give a shit about? A Hollywood reboot movie as opposed to some BBC movie crap that only caters to the fans.You know who else might want to go the movies to see such a thing as a Hollywood reboot of a show with name-brand recognition? The rest of the world.
Hopefully, they'll do it right, but I can at least guarantee that it will make a lot more money than something only Who fans would care about, and in the end, that's what matters to the people in charge.
Except everyone I've ever shown Doctor Who to has enjoyed it. They all go on to watch it religiously, but they do like it. You don't have to be a hardcore fan to not want to see something you enjoy get run into the ground.
That is the exact same logic that gave us Bayformers.
And you know what, no matter how much the fans hate those movies, they make a shit ton of money
No, the incredible shitiness of Michael Bay gave us Bayformers. I am certain that pretty much -any- director (sans Uwe Boll) could have made a better Transformers flick, and people would have watched it regardless. If people are willing to sit through 3 hours of shiny robots and explosions, they will sit through anything.
Now imagine this, if you will; a Dr. Who movie directed by Darren Aronofsky, David Lynch or Bryan Singer. A new interpretation of the classic story, not weighted down by 30(?) years of established mythology and the need to be familiar with the TV series. It could be something fantastic, and it could draw in a whole new generation into the Dr. Who mythos, which of course would benefit the TV series. Admittedly, I couldn't give a flying fuck about Dr. Who, but I would watch the movie and I do recognize potential where it can be found.
So what you're basically saying is -
I don't like Dr Who and I'm kind of jealous and full of envy that I don't get the show. But like if they completely changed then it, yeah, I could love a completely different show with the same name because I'm a bit of a dick and would rather wreck something for everyone who enjoys it, than have them change the name and make a movie that doesn't dick over a whole bunch of people simply for some free advertising?
You sir, suck pustulent rancid goat balls through a garden hose and that is the very reason we get movies like bayformers. Oh hey guys, we'll use the name and basic idea because it's got potential. But just because you guys like it doesn't mean anything. I can make it better and bigger and more interesting and COMPLETELY FUCKING DIFFERENT, stuffing the whole thing up.
That is my point, why would they use a higher quality directory when they use some like Michael Bay, who as much as it pains me to say isn't that bad of a director as long as it is just action and no plot.
But the general populace would rather have a movie like that then a Aronofsky movie
And admittedly, the movie toys have led to the engineers getting more creative and putting out some damn good toys.
And then the movie engineering found itself back into the more G1 style stuff, which upgraded a lot of the posability/mechanics.
Let's face it - without the movies we probably wouldn't be getting toys of obscure characters like Straxus and friggin' BLACK SHADOW (a guy who has NEVER turned up in American fiction save for a recent cameo)
By the way, Moffat did actually respond to Yates the day it happened. He just did in by using the following metaphor “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.”
Based on the amount of time that passed and the fact that I deal with this in the day job here's what I think happened.
Moffat had his lawyers review his contract and they helpfully pointed out there were clauses in it guaranteeing if a Doctor Who movie was made during his tenure with the show he would have the option of first refusal.
The point of Doctor Who over the decades has been, don't get too attached to this actor or that actor. There was a lot of continuity drift back in the day as well, and how the Doctor interfaced with the military.
I think a "reboot" franchise that shows the Doctor's "origin" might be cool. Someone down below said a Time Lord movie...That would be cool.
I honestly think that Yates and the BBC Worldwide spoke without getting the OK from BBC UK. I was pretty sure that when Yates made the announcement that the regular BBC said wtf??? Then waited to see the reaction before using Moffat to set the record straight (if it was positive they would have ran with it.)
I think you're going to see an updated post from Yates saying that he was "just speculating"
I'd advise everyone to take this with a grain of salt also. First, just because a movie has someone interested in making it, doesn't mean it will be made.Second, the sad fact is that the BBC owns Doctor Who, not Moffat. If the BBC wants money from licensing Doctor Who to a Hollywood studio, then they'll do it, even if it means putting dollar signs in front of artistic integrity.Third, the BBC may be realizing that Doctor Who merchandise is similar to Star Wars: every new character or alien means more action figures and other crap. Making a movie means new versions of the Doctor, the Daleks, the Cybermen, etc, which can be turned into action figures.
Yes but, the BBC is almost entirely funded by its licensing of 2 shows to the international community, Dr. Who and Top Gear, if they were to screw up Dr. Who by doing things that lead to a Moffat walk out, they lose money.
If they made a Dr. Who movie in the style of Crank or the Transporter staring Jason Statham, I would watch that shit hundreds of times.
Stath as Dr Who would get a large payout from my ill gotten gains.
Better yet, Dr. who starring Stath directed by pre-madonna guy ritchie.
If they were making a Time Lord movie....no big deal.... But rebooting a franchise that is doing an amazing job.... WHY WHY WHY ?!
You can not make a Doctor Who movie....without acknowledging the current Doctor nor the work Davies and Moffat have done to revive the series. It is an utter slap in the face.
It doesn't matter if the end product is any goodIt's all about Projected Minimum Return (PMR)The marketing algorithms say it'll make a profit All hail our marketing algorithm overlords
CRISIS AVERTED?
sadly, i don't think this is the end of it. hollywood may retreat from a bad idea for a little while ... but not forever. case in point - Akira
Well that will be okay. Let Hollywood make a Doctor Who movie something like Extraordinary Gentlemen and they can enjoy it crash and burn.
If it's not made by Moffet, maybe there would be an episode where the Doctor has to correct rumors about his existence claimed in a Hollywood movie.
I can see it now:
Marketing douche: "Does it have to be a bowtie? Why not...a trucker cap?"
The Doctor: "But I wear bowties. Bowties are cool."
Marketing douche: "Not in the Midwest they aren't."
Nerd news, humor and self-loathing. Edited by Luke Y. Thompson
