‘Doctor Who’ season 8 spoilers: Will Matt Smith return as The Doctor?

Right before the season 7 finale of “Doctor Who” airs on BBC One (the American airing comes later on tonight), we have some news breaking that may help to put your mind at ease: The plan is for Matt Smith to have one more season as the trademark Doctor at the center of the series.

Speaking to The Sun in a new interview, the brilliant man behind the classic character confirmed that he has quite a lengthy shooting schedule still to come for the eighth season of the series, which should bring a smile to the face of many concerned parties:

“I’m on a break for a couple of months while I’m in Detroit making How To Catch A Monster [he plays the lead role in Ryan Gosling’s directorial debut] … We come back and shoot the Christmas special over the summer, then we go on to the next series, which will either start filming at the end of this year or at the start of 2014.”

Smith has played The Doctor since 2010, and while everyone has their pick as to who played him the best, he has done by and large a remarkable job. He claims that he takes the role year by year, but with this being the 50th anniversary of the series, this seems to be the right move in an effort to not be a distraction. Plus, Jenna-Louise Coleman is still new to the scene, and it would be a waste to not have her character of Clara around alongside Smith for a while longer, given the wonderful / fun chemistry that they share.

“The Name of the Doctor” is just mere hours away, and we will of course have a full review upon its completion. If you don’t want to wait and need some more excitement related to the series now, our suggestion is to watch some of the fun videos that we have over at the link here.

Photo: BBC One