Doctor Who made a big splash earlier today in Hall H. With Chris Hardwick moderating, the panel consisted of Steven Moffat ,Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman and Michelle Gomez. Before diving into what fans could expect from Season 9 (which they announced would be premiering on September 19th), they did a brief retrospective on Season 8, Capaldi’s virgin season on the show.
During the panel, the cast had fun playing with the audience. At one point, Peter Capaldi even had the whole room screaming.
There was a lot of talk about the Scottishness of this Doctor and how much the casting of Capaldi actually impacted the way the 12th Doctor was written. Capaldi also talked about what being The Doctor meant to him as a life long fan:
“It’s the only show that I think is in my bones very deeply. It’s the only show that I’ve followed since I was six years old. I did an episode with David Tennant. It was fantastic. I was so excited to be there. I thought that would be my only contribution. I remember saying to him, ‘David, David, where’s the TARDIS…I got quite teary.’”
Later, at the press conference, the Fires of Pompeii episode was mentioned and it was revealed that we’ll get an answer as to why someone with The Doctor’s face exists.
On the relationship between Clara and The Doctor, Jenna Coleman said that this season would be more even and joyous. Also, she’ll be driving the TARDIS more this series, something The Doctor does not approve of.
At the end of last season, we were left unsure of the fat of Michelle Gomez’s Missy, but they confirmed that she will be popping up this series as well. During the panel, she talked about how easy the role was her and that it’s still a “Pinch Me” moment for her.
Stephen Moffat then talked about the similarities between The Doctor and Missy.
“They are friends. They’re not enemies at all. Called it the relationship between a vegetarian and a hunter. The Doctor is a bleeding heart liberal and she likes to kill people for fun.”
During the panel, they also screened the first trailer for the new series (see below). Along with seeing Missy back on screen, it is also revealed that Game of Thrones actress Maisie Williams will have a role to play in the show. When The Doctor comes face to face with her, he says: “It’s You.” and she responds with “What took you so long, old man?”