Series 11, Episode 4 | 1 part | First broadcast: 28 October 2018 | Writer: Chris Chibnall | Director: Sallie Aprahamian
Cast
- Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor
- Bradley Walsh as Graham O’Brien
- Tosin Cole as Ryan Sinclair
- Mandip Gill as Yasmin Khan
- Chris Noth as Jack Robertson
- Shobna Gulati as Najia Khan
Summary
Back in Sheffield, the Doctor and her companions investigate a sudden infestation of giant spiders traced back to negligent waste dumping by a luxury hotel owned by the brash American businessman Jack Robertson, uncovering a chain of corporate cover-ups as the mutated arachnids grow increasingly dangerous throughout the building. The Doctor is forced to confront both the monstrous spiders and Robertson’s callous refusal to take responsibility, ultimately having to make a difficult ethical choice about how to deal with the creatures without simply resorting to lethal force wherever possible.
Interesting Facts
- Chris Noth’s character Jack Robertson was written as a thinly veiled satire of a real estate mogul and then-U.S. president, complete with references to hotels and a presidential ambition tease.
- This episode formally introduces Yasmin’s family, including her mother Najia and sister Sonya, expanding the show’s approach to companions’ home lives.
- It marks the end of the “trio try out life together” arc, with Ryan, Yasmin, and Graham each explicitly choosing to continue traveling with the Doctor at the episode’s end.
- The production built and used a mix of practical animatronic spider props and CGI to depict the various sizes of arachnids.
- Chris Noth’s Jack Robertson proved popular enough with the production that the character was brought back for a later episode the same season.
No Responses