Steven Moffat on The Fiftieth Special and the Twelfth Doctor.

124»

Comments

  • mossy2103mossy2103 Posts: 84,307
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    Theophile wrote: »
    Did you ever see Bewitched? They replaced the main guy in the show halfway through and they kept going.
    I do remember it, and it was never the same post-replacement. The male lead was too different.
    The replacement of an actor who is playing a character in mid-stride is not as unique as you think it is.

    I didn't say that it was (nearly) unique, but a series like Bewitched has the main character as Samantha, Darren was the support. Would it have continued for as long had Elizabeth Montgomery left? We will never know. But what is likely to have happened is that the character would have been written the same, with the same mannerisms, the same style to fit with the show.

    These days, we would call it a head transplant (cf. Eastenders, Corrie etc). Head transplants seem to leave a bitter taste with many viewers.

    Doctor Who - yes, the lead actor changes. But the show also changes to reflect that, and it rejuvenates. Which is for the better. And no-one seems to see it as a head transplant either.



    As for DW actors being in the role for fewer years, my initial response is "So what? This is DW that we are talking about".

    My more considered response is that we now have more channels, more TV output (= more TV production = more TV opportunities), more ways to consume output, and an easier path into the States (a greater demand for British actors, with a much wider and expansive platform), all of which is likely to lead to more and more lucrative opportunities (and hoped-for opportunities) for DW actors, especially as it is now far easier (and more likely) to get signed up for a US series, or a Hollywood film than it was back in the days of Pertwee, Baker et al.


    Meanwhile, US TV production, the episode counts, the filming timescales, the studio setups, they are all rather different from those in the UK, and hence comparisons between the two countries are problematic to say the least.



    All in my opinion of course.
Sign In or Register to comment.