Jodie Whittaker promises 'scarier' & 'more ambitious' final season for her Doctor Who

Jodie Whittaker's Time Lord will go out in a blaze of glory in the upcoming 13th season of Doctor Who (a six-part story subtitled Flux) on the BBC. Chatting with Empire Magazine ahead of the season premiere this weekend, Whittaker characterized her final batch of episodes as "scarier" and "more ambitious" than ever before.

"It's a massive arc," said the actor. "And what has been interesting is realizing that at [the] end of Part 3, you're only halfway there. So it's about having that kind of stamina, and not playing all your narrative cards at once."

Whittaker said something similar while catching up with the BBC website: "It’s bigger and better than ever, it’s my final (full) series, there’ll be questions asked, there’ll be answers, there’ll be exclamation marks, and huge exclamation marks and I think that in itself will pique your interest and pique your curiosity."

"People can expect a rollercoaster of a ride, very different episodes, six very specific chapters, lots of different places in time and space, lots of returning monsters, some really brilliant guest stars, some brand-new monsters, and some of my favorite cliffhangers we’ve done!" added showrunner Chris Chibnall.

The scare factor comes courtesy of a number of different creatures, including the Sontarans and Weeping Angels. Veteran Doctor Who writer Steven Moffat, who created the Angels during David Tennant's time as the Tenth Doctor, apparently spoiled their return on Instagram over the summer without realizing it (via Bleeding Cool). The post in question has since been amended with an addendum: "Now we all know I made a slight screw up there. Now gone. Please respect my idiocy and SHHHHH."

Moffat owned up to his mistake again in a video message posted to Instagram Thursday. "That Doctor Who trailer is amazing. I've watched it 413 times and for me, that is only the beginning," he said. "But I would like to apologize for blowing the return of the Weeping Angels. I really didn't meant to do that, I am tremendously sorry. But now, you've all seen them in the trailer — you know they're there. Please accept my heartfelt apologies. Chris was incredibly cross and in fact threatened to send the boys 'round."

Moffat then moved the camera to reveal that a Weeping Angel statue was right behind him. "But I think he rather overestimates his power in that regard," the writer continued. "Anyway, it was the best trailer ever for Doctor Who and I hope you all enjoy the show."

But what does "Flux" refer to? "It’s kind of the biggest nemesis that the Doctor has ever faced," executive producer Matt Stevens teased to the BBC. "It’s a huge destructive force but quite what it is and why it’s become unleashed will become apparent as you watch the serial unfold. It’s quite awe-inspiring and terrifying and the way it’s realized on screen will be I think quite breath-taking for the audience as they realize what the Flux is and what the Flux does."

Doctor Who Season 13 won't be the end of Whittaker's tenure in the TARDIS, however. She'll continue on in a trio of specials slated to premiere throughout 2022. The titular hero will then regenerate — no actor has been cast yet — with Russell T. Davies (the writer who originally rebooted the series for the 21st century) back in the role of showrunner.

“I’m beyond excited to be back on my favorite show,” Davies said in a statement last month. “But we’re time-traveling too fast, there’s a whole series of Jodie Whittaker’s brilliant Doctor for me to enjoy, with my friend and hero Chris Chibnall at the helm – I’m still a viewer for now.”

Doctor Who: Flux premieres on BBC America this Sunday (Oct. 31), aka Halloween.