David Tennant’s return to his most iconic role as Doctor Who is a savvy business and marketing choice, but it does risk upsetting die-hard fans.

Doctor Who is the longest running science fiction television show in history, celebrating its 60^th anniversary this year with 862 episodes, 14 different actors in the key role and millions of viewers globally.

The show was off the air from 1989 to 2005, and Tennant is acknowledged as the Doctor that ensured the revival returned the franchise to its status as a cultural icon in 2005. Up to 13 million United Kingdom viewers, averaging 8 million per episode, tuned in during Tennant’s time on the show.

UK viewer numbers have been dropping since Tennant left the role in 2010, so his return represents a golden opportunity to recapture viewers.

What better way to recapture audiences than with its most iconic Doctor responsible for the revival alongside writer and showrunner Russel T Davies, who will also be returning.

Also returning is Catherine Tate as Donna Noble, a beloved companion of the Doctor.

But this is where the danger lies. Nostalgia, and leveraging positive memories of past characters, comes with strings attached.

Research has found that audiences have expectations about narratives and characters and will be angry if a revival or retelling does not respect these expectations. Essentially, there are certain ‘rules’ around the return of beloved characters.

And there are already red flags in Doctor Who’s reuse of Tennant.

Tennant has said his return as the 14^th Doctor will not be as the same character he played as the 10^th doctor. Since the 10^th Doctor, Dr Who has had three regenerations, which is potentially a whole lot of character development.

No other actor has portrayed different regenerations of the time-travelling cultural icon.

Also, the next actor to play The Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, has already been announced.

But the main problem is that viewers loved and connected with Tennant’s original 10^th Doctor. That is who they will be expecting to see, at least in part. And Tennant’s few seconds of screen time revealing his return fed into those expectations by dressing him very similarly, delivering a single line – an iconic 10^th Doctor catchphrase.

Tate’s return as Donna Noble is also risky. Her character left the show after Donna was forced to either have her memories of the Doctor removed, or die. How the show respects that prior narrative, which viewers will require, while the character returns, will be a difficult balancing act.

Tennant’s return will also likely be short, given there is a new Doctor already waiting in the wings, or Tardis, which means viewers will have to say goodbye again to Tennant’s beloved Doctor Who. And soon.

Viewers will be asked to become emotionally attached again and then have those connections quickly broken.

Also appearing in the new Tennant episodes is a character called Rose, the same name as the first and iconic companion of Tennant’s Doctor played by Billie Piper, but Yasmin Finney will play this Rose. And this Rose is the daughter of Tate’s Donna Noble.

But name dropping such an iconic character as Rose can raise expectations that she too might appear, and anger those who feel they are being teased about her possible appearance with such a specific character name.

Viewers’ emotional attachments and expectations are complex and passionate, and they are smart. If they feel they are being teased, mocked, or manipulated, they can lash out.

How well Doctor Who navigates these emotions and expectations will be revealed in November 2023 when Tennant’s return is broadcast.

The cast and crew will need Tardis-like precision to do this successfully.

Either way, Tennant’s return is suitably dramatic for such a beloved international cultural icon.

Dr Jacqueline Burgess is a Lecturer in International Business at UniSC.