Steven Moffat on ‘Doctor Who’ Bosses Being “Chief Satan of the Nation” and How Not to Adapt British Series for the U.S.

Georg Szalai
·8 min read

Screenwriter and executive producer Steven Moffat (Doctor Who, Dracula, Sherlock) had much insight to share about his work on Sherlock, Doctor Who and beyond, as well as his frustrations with elements of the entertainment industry during an appearance in Toronto on Friday.

The creative appeared during a “Visionaries” session at the industry conference section at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival where he was interviewed by THR‘s European bureau chief Scott Roxborough about such topics as how to reimagine known and beloved characters, how not to adapt British series for the U.S. and the challenges of window and release strategies in the digital age.

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Moffat drew laughs throughout the session. That was also the case when he explained the brilliance of Doctor Who and its format. “You think it’s that cheesy old BBC adventure series,” he said. “Actually, it is the single smartest television format ever devised. By that I mean you can sack anyone. If anyone pisses you off, you can just get rid of [them]” and regenerate a new Doctor played by a new star.

“I think this is unique to Doctor Who. It is a star vehicle every single time,” he continued. “But you can switch out the star. Where else can you do that? … I’m sorry, all Doctors, if you’re listening, we love you all.”

Questioned about what kind of content he grew up on and enjoyed as a kid, Moffat quipped that he hasn’t evolved much in his taste over time. “I just love Doctor Who,” he said. “I also was obsessed with the Sherlock Holmes stories” and read them in order. And he shared that Basil Rathbone was his favorite on-screen Holmes.

One insight from knowing and working with various Doctor Who actors shared by Moffat that had the audience in stitches was this: “Everyone who has ever played Doctor Who thinks they are the real one.” He also quipped: “There are a lot of crazy problems, I think, in the David Tennant family circle, because his father is Peter Davison [who played the Doctor from 1981 to 1984], and I don’t think either of them thinks the other one’s a proper Doctor.” He added that he recently watched a 2007 episode, called Time Crash, which starred Tennant as the Doctor, with Davison returning as well.

Asked where NBC’s U.S. reboot of his U.K. hit show Coupling went wrong, Moffat said that someone must have thought that the poster for the show looked similar to that for Friends and therefore thought it was more or less the same show. “When you’re comparing a massive, mainstream, brilliant NBC hit to a BBC Two sitcom from Britain, they are not the same thing,” he concluded. “If you try to remake Coupling on the assumption it’s exactly like Friends, you’re going to end up with the wrong show.”

Moffat emphasized though that he loves the work and appreciates a lot of the people who worked on the show.

Was he ever tempted to move to the U.S. because of that experience? Moffat said that has more to do with lifestyle issues. “I like living in London” and like to visit but wouldn’t want to live elsewhere, he explained. But he also acknowledged about the Coupling experience: “Did it burn me? It didn’t make me enthusiastic.”

But Moffat isn’t down on the U.S. TV production system. “The American system works brilliantly. There’s no question about that. It does amazing, amazing television,” Moffat said. “I’ve never fitted that comfortably into it.” He and producer wife Sue were struggling with one part of the way TV works in the U.S. “One thing that frustrated Sue and I a little when we were involved in that was you talk about more money — we were gritting our teeth and saying, ‘Stop spending so much. You don’t need to’,” he shared. “The more money you spend making that show, the more likely you are to disappear. If you can be an economically viable, modest hit or modest success, you’ll survive. If you’re just throwing money saying, ‘Oh, never mind, we’ll fix it in post,’ well, it costs money to fix it in post, so sometimes being … able to make economic shows is not a bad skill.”

In comparison, “I do think the British system is very nice and kind and decent and reasonable,” Moffat said. “But then I’m saying that from the perspective of someone who’s done very well in it, and who’s probably now treated a little bit more nicely than some other people, partly because I’ve done well, and partly because I’m old.”

Moffat still believes that reboots of established characters can work well if approached the right way. “If you are even slightly cynical about rebooting,” it goes wrong, he shared. “The key thing is … don’t go near it unless you love it, unless you are desperate to see this version.”

He then explained that he likes to concentrate on bringing out elements or dimensions of a character that haven’t been in focus before. “Demonstrate your knowledge of the character but never your reverence,” Moffat explained his approach. “You always have to do something outrageous.” And he added that “passion” is a key driver.

Moffat even offered that most shows are derivates of past content. “Every detective story is a reboot of Sherlock Holmes,” including Hercule Poirot, he told the TIFF audience. “It basically is Sherlock Holmes fan fiction.”

In his appearance, Moffat also discussed his latest show, Douglas Is Cancelled, an ITV commission with SkyShowtime, which was produced by Hartswood Films and launched at the annual BBC Studios Showcase in London earlier this year. The series, which debuted in the U.K. in June and will be rolling out in other markets soon, stars Hugh Bonneville (Downton Abbey, Paddington) and Karen Gillan (Doctor Who, Guardians of the Galaxy) in four 45-minute episodes revolving around respected news host Douglas, regarded as a national treasure, and his younger co-anchor Madeline. Co-starring are Ben Miles (Hijack, The Crown), Alex Kingston (A Discovery of Witches, Treason), Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso, Intelligence), and Simon Russell Beale (Firebrand, Thor: Love and Thunder). Ben Palmer (Breeders) directed the series.

Douglas apparently can do no wrong “until he makes an ill-advised joke at his cousin’s wedding, which is overheard by a fellow guest, who threatens to expose his comments on social media,” according to a synopsis. “Speculation is rife and during the ongoing hysteria and digital storm, Douglas’s alleged indiscretion is dissected, analyzed and blown out of all proportion. Everyone appears to have an opinion, and Douglas is struggling to escape the controversy. It’s a chaotic and unmanageable situation, but can Douglas count on the support of his agent and colleagues? What will Douglas do next? Is he a casualty of ‘cancel culture’? With two million followers, what is Madeline’s motivation to social post on Douglas’s behalf?”

Asked to explain the premise to the audience since the show hasn’t aired in Canada yet, Moffat quipped: “Illegally download it.” He later joked: “Please watch my new show. Legally.” In the context of piracy, Moffat shared that he used to look online to see how quickly new shows of his became available, suggesting the entertainment industry’s approach to release and windowing strategies may not be the best. “We are a strange industry. We get really, really cross that people are so enthusiastic about our product that they desperately want to get it early,” Moffat said. “I feel as though some other industries might have had a different solution to that. Yeah, it may not be the greatest business idea in the world: ‘no, you can’t have it yet’.”

Moffat does not believe in the argument that in an age of political correctness comedy can’t be successfully conceived. “You make comedy by breaking rules, right? So the more rules there are, the better,” he explained.

Was he ever canceled? He recalled that when he worked on Doctor Who, there was much hatred from fans directed at him. “The level of hate you get could down three passenger jets. I mean, seriously, it doesn’t stop,” he shared. “I was vilified endlessly. I was a homophobe, misandrist and a misanthrope and a sexist and misogynist and a racist. I was against so many people I could only be described as an omni- bigot, which I would suggest means I’m treating everybody equally.” Moffat concluded by joking that any Doctor Who showrunner is taking on the role of “chief Satan of the nation.”

He also made fun of the notion of “appointment television,” saying: “Is it not grotesque to be making an appointment with the television set? Make an appointment with your dentist or your friends or your lover. You don’t make an appointment with the television set. That is absurd. Get in control of your lives!”

In July, ITV Studios acquired a majority stake in Hartswood Films, which was founded in 1979 by Beryl Vertue. It has been led by CEO and executive producer Sue Vertue, Moffat’s wife, alongside director of operations Debbie Vertue, managing director Dan Cheesbrough, and creative director and executive producer Moffat.

Moffat closed his appearance by explaining that his advice on writing is simple. “Every sentence has to make you want to read the next sentence,” he shared. “Keep people reading.”

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