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KingPizza1 t1_irjbe2r wrote

Insane! Still not sure there was any way to salvage this script, though. It's weird that you would pitch tv film about a time-travelling good-Samaritan to a new audience and then have it focus on a lore-intensive fight between the time traveller and his arch nemesis exclusively in contemporary san francisco and then also have him switch faces partway through the film. This movie was about as beginner unfriendly as it could've possibly been.

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TiberiusCornelius t1_irjcw4g wrote

Ultimately as a fan I'm glad we got something that fits better into the overall continuity than some of the initial ideas that were discussed for an American reboot, but ironically those earlier ideas probably would've been a better starting point for onboarding new fans.

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caspy7 t1_irmy4fw wrote

Funny they went to the trouble of fitting into the lore but still made him half human.

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TiberiusCornelius t1_irn8qjg wrote

That was one of the few things that carried over from Segal's original attempt at a reboot that he was working on with Spielberg's production company of all people. The Doctor and Master were supposed to be half-brothers who shared a Time Lord father but the Doctor had a human mother and the Master was fully Time Lord. I think the fact that they carried it over means he was probably still pushing for that story arc to turn up if the series had been picked up after the TV movie.

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marasaidw t1_irk38hv wrote

I think SF debris has pitched the only decent way to save it. start at the regen wake up in the locker not knowing anything due a a poor regen then get memories, bits of the 7th and what not over the course of the episode Play it as a mystery

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Angelwind76 t1_irk9b84 wrote

Even Sylvester McCoy has gone on record to say they should have done an origin story after the series was established. I get why they kept him in ("Look, this alien can change his body when the old one is about to die!"), but as a pilot they should have just came in TARDIS a-blazin' and let the Doctor do his thing.

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MyredShadow t1_irlg021 wrote

And that’s basically what they did with Eccleston… and that’s how I got hooked. I knew classic who existed but Eccleston was my first doctor. It took 3 episodes before I was googling the older stuff and trying to find out if it was a reboot or a continuation.

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Angelwind76 t1_irli8ij wrote

Eccleston was my first official Doctor too. I've seen some of the older Doctor Who on and off (and without context), but the return of the Doctor was my actual introduction to the show.

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bhind45 t1_irljkmt wrote

Pretty much why it failed in the US

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Monster-Zero t1_irj790t wrote

Eric Roberts: a man who won't say no to any role

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SirButtrubber t1_irj9gm5 wrote

when i was a young kid though, best of the best was like karate kid for the big kids and i loved eric roberts.

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spongeboy1985 t1_irjntda wrote

He just filmed 5 cameos for 5 different movies in the time it took you to write that

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SecretDracula t1_irjhuj4 wrote

Or how most working actors operate.

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spongeboy1985 t1_irjo47g wrote

Most working actors don’t have nearly 700 film and tv acting credits

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BrewtusMaximus1 t1_irk8m7y wrote

Most working actors aren’t Julia Robert’s brother

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SandysBurner t1_irjkn3w wrote

Yeah, most professional actors don't really have the stability to turn down a bunch of work.

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January28thSixers t1_irkfb6x wrote

He's always fine to good in everything, too. People like to talk shit about him but I'm never upset to see him pop up.

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ranch_brotendo t1_irk6amu wrote

It was RAMIREZ

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bob1689321 t1_irl3t7a wrote

Weirdly the only things I've seen Eric Roberts in is TDK and the music video for Mr Bright side. I know he's been in a lot but I just haven't seen anything.

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creggieb t1_irjmjlv wrote

Even if it's getting eaten in a small mountain town.

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cheemsgyaru t1_irl1wc1 wrote

He was even in the Human Centupede 3, I remember hearing his family had an intervention about his career when it was announced he was in it.

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JQuilty t1_irkfw2v wrote

To billed man on Bigfoot vs DB Cooper Eric Roberts?

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Mericax t1_irkwvaw wrote

Holy shit his imdb just for the last few years.

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makecowsnotwar t1_irja9po wrote

Can’t stream the movie anywhere!

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The-Soul-Stone t1_irjkqgp wrote

…except Britbox.

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cringes-orange t1_irjl06v wrote

I had never heard of BritBox before but looks quality! Thanks for sharing!

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MartyMcfly1738 t1_irjwtfw wrote

If you decide to subscribe to britbox check out “inside no. 9”.

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derrhn t1_irk8869 wrote

Masterpiece of a show, even their live episode was trippy as hell when it aired!

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Neo2199 OP t1_irjaw1g wrote

This is one of the cases where sailing the high seas is the only option to find something.

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AppointmentLonely523 t1_irjeowu wrote

Or buy the dvd

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SinistraUtebatur t1_irjk4n2 wrote

I'm not the same guy, but I haven't had a functional DVD drive in my house since my 360 died

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707breezy t1_irjkru4 wrote

DVD? Is that a venereal disease from the 70s my grandpa talked about? How could it effect your house by 360 degrees?

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Pr0xyWarrior t1_irjyg4z wrote

Excuse me? I’d much rather show my support for my favorite intellectual properties by ensuring their financial and viewing metrics are as bad as I can make them, thank you very much.

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bloodyserb t1_irjwd2x wrote

I haven't seen it since 1996, but I don't think you're missing much.

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oomoepoo t1_irk5ynx wrote

It's worth a look if you're a fan of the show, if only for McGann's portrayal of the Doctor. It's a very cheesy 90s movie otherwise though.

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bloodyserb t1_irkcbl8 wrote

Like the Peter Cushing movie, I'd only recommend it for completionists.

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Neo2199 OP t1_irj4u7b wrote

> In the mid-1990s there was an attempt to reinvigorate Doctor Who which went off the air in 1989. A television movie was planned as a backdoor pilot, which was being produced by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment for broadcast on the FOX Network in the USA and the BBC in the UK. The film would introduce a new Doctor (the Eighth), played by Paul McGann. And the project came very close to having a sort of Star Trek connection with Leonard Nimoy. Following his feature film debut with Star Trek III in 1984 Nimoy began a successful career behind the camera, including the hit 1987 movie Three Men and a Baby, he continued directing into the ’90s.

> Producer Philip Segal: "I had several meetings with Leonard Nimoy who wanted to direct it. I met with him at Amblin [Entertainment], and we had wonderful conversations. He was genuinely excited about the possibility."

> "FOX did not want him to do it. They were concerned it looked very kitsch to go, ‘Aren’t we clever? We’ve got Spock from Star Trek directing.’"

> According to the producer, FOX would only allow Nimoy to direct if he agreed to play the film’s villain The Master, The Doctor’s longtime adversary. Segal considered the idea “insulting” to Nimoy as that “wasn’t the object of the exercise.”

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haysoos2 t1_irjcbb4 wrote

If they were afraid of Nimoy being attached looking too gimmicky, wouldn't having him play the villain make that much worse?

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psuedonymously t1_irjk9so wrote

I think it would have, but maybe they figured he’d attract enough Trek fans as an actor as opposed to a director to make it worth looking gimmicky.

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Tradman86 t1_irjkgrm wrote

No, it would distract from it. They could market it as "starring Spock".

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qawsedrf12 t1_irje879 wrote

TIL Nimoy directed 3 Men and a Baby

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kia75 t1_irjk3fz wrote

Incorrect, it was Shatner that directed Nimoy, Kelly, Doohan, and Shatner in Star Trek 5, and I resent you calling Shatner a baby!

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Valmoer t1_irkh1qs wrote

TIL the Americans remade that one too.

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xhabeascorpusx t1_irjmzwf wrote

Eric Roberts will play a villain in a music video for Kohl's Cash and a Costco hotdog

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ThirdFloorGreg t1_irjz5by wrote

He guest starred on Justified after they had a character shit-talk his sister by saying she looked too much like him.

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reddig33 t1_irjk7lw wrote

Eric Roberts did a decent job. Paul McGann is still one of my favorite Doctors.

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Drahima t1_irjcbtb wrote

Definitely would bring back Eric Roberts for new era of Who under RTD’s second wave. Would seem like the kind of casting he would do.

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DMPunk t1_irjczmz wrote

Roberts has done some of the Big Finish dramas as the Master, so he would probably be open to a return in live action

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TiberiusCornelius t1_irjd738 wrote

Roberts is the type of actor who will quite literally not turn a project down if he can fit it in his schedule.

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Grafikpapst t1_irjmr3d wrote

It would be kinda fun to instead of a Multi-Doctor Storx having a Multi-Master one. I know we had the Series 10 finale, but that didnt have quite as much interaction between the Master as a proper special themed around them could be.

Roberts Master with Dhawans (or a new Master, whatever) could be seriously fun.

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oomoepoo t1_irk6500 wrote

Say what you want but Nimoy as Master would've been at least interesting.

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SVNBob t1_irmbi9n wrote

One could say it would have been...

Fascinating.

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Temp89 t1_irjkgaf wrote

I recall Roberts doing a good job. The problem was everything else.

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Now_Wait-4-Last_Year t1_irmdnzr wrote

Paul McGann was a great Doctor too both in his last appearance to date especially and audio and we have this movie to thank for it.

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scottishdrunkard t1_irjcrr7 wrote

FOX should have let him direct regardless. That would have been awesome.

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imgrandojjo t1_irk0459 wrote

Nimoy as The Master could have been incredible.

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Redshirt-Skeptic t1_irjxdii wrote

Am I the only one that thinks that Nimoy would have been a fantastic Master?

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kingofstormandfire t1_irkg0ld wrote

I watched that tv movie a few years ago when I was really into Doctor Who and it wasn't that good. The only good things were the Eighth Doctor and the Master. I really wish actually we could've seen more of the Eighth Doctor outside of the novels because Paul McGann did a great job. The short he's featured in showing his regeneration into the War Doctor is fantastic.

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StarWreck92 t1_irlkab9 wrote

You should check out his audio dramas, they’re amazing. A bunch of them are on Spotify.

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silk_1233 t1_irkal1u wrote

And the cosmic ballet continues....

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CommanderMaxil t1_irlf2dq wrote

Probably for the best, Nimoy could have made a good Master but was already too old in 1996. Who would have believed he was a paramedic

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MyredShadow t1_irlfss0 wrote

I have a soft spot for that movie. For all it’s flaws and missed landings, McGann is a wonderfully compelling Doctor. His audio Dramas are so much fun.

But Nimoy as the master could have been DARK, and I would love to see that.

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Ex-Machina1980s t1_irk92qw wrote

I remember watching this and just hating it. Sylvester McCoy getting gunned down by gangbangers? The Master now a paramedic guy? WTF

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Now_Wait-4-Last_Year t1_irljk8x wrote

Well, the Master certainly has been jealous of the Doctor so taking over a paramedic is a step in the right direction!

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JQuilty t1_irkh57u wrote

The Master took the paramedics body.

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Delicious-Tachyons t1_irjpxp4 wrote

Eric Roberts was a poor choice for an iconic villain.

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