Matt Brittin has shared a positive reaction to a 50-minute Doctor Who episode created entirely by AI. Doctor Who has always been a show built around human imagination, resourcefulness, and empathy. This explains why the BBC’s AI experiments with the franchise have never resonated with fans. The broadcaster has previously tested AI-generated promotional copy for Doctor Who emails and mobile notifications.

There were also fan projects such as The Unmade Season. Both have proven to be contentious subjects within the fandom. And now, things are about to get even more contentious, thanks to BBC boss Brittin's recent statement.

At the Royal Television Society conference in London, BBC boss Matt Brittin shared his thoughts on the growing role of AI in scriptwriting. According to Variety, Brittin revealed that he was recently sent an entirely AI-generated Doctor Who episode, and, surprisingly, he liked it.

"Somebody sent me a 50-minute episode of ‘Doctor Who’ that was AI-generated the other day. It’s pretty good."

Brittin also added that despite liking the episode he still does not believe AI can replace human creativity.

"I mean, it’s not going to replace humans, and we’ll come on to that. So everyone’s a creator. Not all the creativity is bad," he added, as per Variety. That statement may not sit well with the Doctor Who fandom, many of whom are already frustrated by what they perceive as a decline in the show’s quality.

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Many believe a combination of compressed seasons, storytelling choices, and financial pressures has affected Doctor Who’s quality.

Fans have long complained that Doctor Who simply does not have enough episodes anymore. The original series had much longer seasons because its episodes were only 25 minutes long. Stories, therefore, were often spread across multiple parts. When the BBC revived Doctor Who in 2005, the show moved to longer 45-minute episodes and largely self-contained stories.

That made every episode more substantial, but it also meant fewer stories per season. As a result, a weak episode or rushed finale now carries far more weight than it would have in the show's earlier, longer seasons. 

Some viewers also believe Doctor Who has become too focused on spectacle and messaging at the expense of strong storytelling. Financially, too, the BBC has less room to mount a huge sci-fi production by itself.

The BBC has relies on its partnership with Disney+ to support the scale of the series. But the partnership also came with corporate expectations, creative compromises, and disagreements over what Doctor Who should ultimately be. Now, as AI becomes another potential point of scrutiny, the question is where the show, hopefully returning in 2028, goes from here.

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What do you think about Matt Brittin's statement? Let us know in the comments!