Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat has said that Matt Smith apparently regrets handing over the key to the TARDIS.
The Mirror reports that Moffat admitted Smith's decision to leave was a "tough time", and he was disappointed that he "couldn't get him to stay" on the BBC One show.
However, the showrunner hasn't given up hope that Smith will don that bow tie again, just as he did for his surprise post-regeneration cameo appearance in 2014.
"[Matt] is quite open about how much he misses it, and how much he wishes he hadn't left," Moffat explained.
Of course, Matt has already returned on screen as the Doctor in Peter Capaldi's first full outing 'Deep Breath', emotionally telling Clara (Jenna Coleman) to stay with the Twelfth Doctor.
He's also been quoted as saying he'd like to come back in some way, quipping last year: "They will ask me back one day, won't they?"
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And the likes of Paul McGann and David Tennant have also played their Doctors again.
Eighth Doctor McGann returned after a long break for the special mini-episode 'The Night of the Doctor', and Tennant played Ten again in the epic 50th anniversary episode 'The Day of the Doctor'.
Peter Davison also re-appeared as the Fifth Doctor in a Children in Need special opposite Tennant, and Tom Baker returned to the series too – not as the Fourth Doctor, but as a mysterious character called 'The Curator' in the 50th anniversary special.
Basically, anything can happen in time and space if you put your mind to it – and there's history within the canon for multi-Doctor adventures and crossovers.
Have your say in our poll below if you want to see Matt Smith back as the Eleventh Doctor.
Movies Editor, Digital Spy Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor. Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies, attending genre festivals around the world. After moving to Digital Spy, initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.
