Neil Patrick Harris’ villain is revealed in the Doctor Who 2023 Special trailer.
The Doctor Who 2023 specials trailer has arrived just in time for Christmas. The new specials, which will be released in November 2023, will commemorate the iconic sci-fi show’s 60th anniversary and will feature David Tennant reprising his role as the Fourteenth Doctor rather than the Tenth. The Doctor Who specials are expected to pave the way for Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor to make his series debut, but not without the return of a few other familiar faces.
The BBC has officially released the first Doctor Who 2023 specials trailer after teasing its release. The video provides a proper look at Tennant’s performance as the Fourteenth Doctor, as well as introducing Neil Patrick Harris’ eccentric, yet unnamed, villain and revealing Donna Noble’s return. Watch the trailer below:
What the Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Specials Trailer Tells Us
One of the most important takeaways from the Doctor Who 2023 specials trailer is that Catherine Tate will reprise her beloved role as companion Donna Noble. Rumors of her return to the fold circulated earlier this year, to which Tate responded by stating that she hadn’t been in contact with anyone as of March 2022 to bring the character back. Her reappearance was announced alongside Tennant’s, with many assuming he would simply reprise his role as the Tenth Doctor, though the 2022 special “The Power of the Doctor” saw the titular character regenerate as the Fourteenth Doctor after being mortally wounded by The Master.
Donna’s last major arc was seen in Doctor Who season 4, in which she becomes imbued with the Doctor’s memory and uses it to save the world from Julian Bleach’s Davros, though the revived Doctor is forced to wipe her memory of him in order to prevent her from dying, as her memory returning would cause her mind to “burn up.” The trailer for the Doctor Who 2023 specials heavily references this arc, as Tennant’s Fourteenth Doctor does his best not to be seen by her, despite the fact that she is in grave danger.
The arrival of Neil Patrick Harris’ yet-unnamed villain, who appears to have some involvement in the Fourteenth Doctor retaining the appearance of the Tenth Doctor, is the other major reveal from the Doctor Who 2023 specials trailer. While it is unclear who Harris is playing at this time, the presence of a Toy Emporium and the grandiose nature of his character have led many to speculate that he could be a new version of the Celestial Toymaker, which former Doctor Who writer Mark Gatiss recently hinted could be in the works. Only time will tell what other surprises await viewers when the Doctor Who 2023 specials premiere in November.