Depp as the Doctor (Sigh)

We normally wouldn’t give this type of ‘news’ the time of day as it sounds so silly it has to be false, but as it’s getting quite a bit of media coverage, we felt we should really comment.

Basically a rumour has surfaced that Johnny Depp is being lined up to play the Doctor in an American Doctor Who movie, written by Russell T Davies, for release in 2012.

The supposed plot will involve the Doctor going “on a journey through time and space with a crew of volunteers treating humanity’s illnesses brought on by invading aliens. He cures the bubonic plague and then goes to Africa to fight Ebola.”

Right…still with us? Well, there is even an apparent quote by Davies, “Bringing the Who franchise to the theaters is a regeneration for the character beyond the usual one. A theatrical release has a greater range and can reach millions of more people than just the fans. There will be brand new concepts and the film will be just as adventurous, scary and humorous as the television programme. But none of us working the film will forget what makes the character great and interesting and the long-time fans will not be disappointed because yes, the Daleks make an appearance.”

This rumour seems to stem from one website, Tor.com, who claim to have taken the info from another site, PubArticles.com who have now conveniently removed the article. Yes, it’s all as dubious as it sounds.

What we think has happened here is a classic case of Chinese whispers mixed with someone with an over-active imagination on a slow news day. Back in January Billie Piper name checked Johnny Depp when talking about a Doctor Who movie, and we think it’s been spun from there.

If this turns out to be even remotely true we’re fully prepared to eat our words!