Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis
- Publication: Daily Express
- Date: 1988-10-01
- Author:
- Page: 27
- Language: English
TIME LORD Dr Who has won another epic battle against an extraordinary being-this time defeating Rocky and Rambo star Sylvester Stallone.
The man from the Tardis was all set to be played by Stallone, the world's highest paid film star, if the American money men had had their way.
Shocks
They were putting up the 19 million dollars for a big-screen epic of the BBC programme and were demanding that Stallone should play the eccentric Time Lord, more prone to wearing tweed coats and 12ft scarves than beating his chest Tarzan-style.
But British producers Peter Litten and George Dugdale, along with others associated with vetting the scripts, insisted that the good Doctor could not possibly become a super-macho style hero.
But there could still be other shocks in store for die-hard fans of the Doctor, who celebrates his silver anniversary this year as a new series starts on BBC1 on Wednesday, at 7.30 p.m.
After 25 years as a man, Dr Who, currently in his seventh reincarnation, could come back in the movie as a woman. And the film could well explore the Doctor's sex-life -a previously undocumented past.
Co-producer Peter Litten admitted: "The Doctor could be a she. We also open a question mark concerning his past that has never been opened before.
"If you remember, in the first series he is accompanied by his granddaughter.
"Dr Who has a strange combination of ingredients, and we want to hold on to those eccentricities. Some backers would have been delighted with someone like Harrison Ford."
The solution looks like being either an internationally known British actor or a star who can do a convincing English accent.
Names being bandied around include Bob Hoskins, Dudley Moore, John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, Monty Python stars John Cleese and Michael Palin. Sean Connery and Michael Caine are fainter possibilities.
Crazy
"We will be making a final decision in a couple of months. I think it is unlikely that it will be the present TV doctor, Sylvester McCoy, but I am not ruling it out."
Adds Mr Litten: "I am disappointed that we have not got British backing. It is crazy really, because if you study how much money any film is going to make, then Dr Who probably goes straight to the top.
"I did some research in the States and discovered that 16 per cent of the population said Dr Who was their favourite programme and 39 per cent said they thought it was very good, which is phenomenal."
The design team have already worked on spectaculars like Star Wars, Greystoke and Little Shop of Horrors.
"We want to bring back the feeling of people wanting to hide behind the sofa when they watch it. Not making it abjectly horrific, but exciting."
Because the Doctor is a humanist and concerned with preserving life, he will have four assistants, including a mercenary who will be involved in the rougher conflicts on his behalf.
The only cast name to be announced is Caroline Munro, who plays a villainess in the film, scheduled for release Christmas, 1989.
Caption: Sylvester Who? What might have been...
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- APA 6th ed.: (1988-10-01). Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis. Daily Express p. 27.
- MLA 7th ed.: "Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis." Daily Express [add city] 1988-10-01, 27. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: "Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis." Daily Express, edition, sec., 1988-10-01
- Turabian: "Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis." Daily Express, 1988-10-01, section, 27 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr_Who_boots_Stallone_out_of_his_Tardis | work=Daily Express | pages=27 | date=1988-10-01 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=25 March 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Dr Who boots Stallone out of his Tardis | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr_Who_boots_Stallone_out_of_his_Tardis | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=25 March 2025}}</ref>
