Actor says he won’t be following his companions out the Tardis doors



Matt Smith is The Doctor, and he’s not going to go away quietly. Or, at least, not yet.

Smith is looking to dispel speculation that he could be following companions Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill to the studio exit after next season of “Doctor Who,” providing new hope he will be The Doctor by the time the 50th anniversary rolls around in 2013.

“I am very happy to stay,” Smith recently told Graham Norton on his BBC show. “I love it, and love making the show.”

Speculation had started quite early about when Smith would exit, especially now that he is entering his third season next year. The unspoken rule is that an actor should hold on to the role for just three years, and then move on. When Gillan and Darvill said they would be departing as Amy Pond and Rory Williams, speculation grew even more about Smith leaving as well.

Smith didn’t help himself much last October when he told VH-1 that he was looking to relocate to Los Angeles after one more year of “Doctor Who.”

But all of that seems to be for naught. When Steven Moffat announced the exit of Gillan and Darvill last week, he made it clear that a new companion would join Smith (not just The Doctor, but the actor himself).

Smith told Norton he will miss Gillan and Darvill.

“I’ll miss Karen because she’s my best mate,” Smith said. “She’s mad as a box of cats, but she’s a firecracker.

“There comes a time when a story reaches its conclusion, and the essence of the show is that it constantly reinvents itself.”

It’s not clear exactly when Gillan and Darvill would leave. Many believe it would be at the end of Season 7, but it could also happen at the midway point of the season, expected to air just before Christmas next year.

“Doctor Who” airs its annual holiday special on Christmas Day in both the United Kingdom on BBC One, and in the United States on BBC America.

What does this all mean for “Doctor Who”? Alpha Waves Radio now has a special episode focused on the fate of “Doctor Who” available on iTunes. The show is available on Podbean, or at Apple’s iTunes store in the podcast section.

The episode will also broadcast on TrekRadio Dec. 22 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

You also can hear the episode right here: