Eric Roberts plays Doctor Who villain The Master in live-action for first time in 24 years
Roberts returns in a spooky new teaser, playing the Doctor's nemesis on-screen again after more than two decades.
He's back! More than two decades on from his clash with Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor, Eric Roberts' incarnation of Doctor Who villain the Master has returned in live-action.
Roberts appears in a spooky new teaser posted by audio drama producers Big Finish – making reference to being trapped (presumably within the Eye of Harmony, where he ended up at the climax of Doctor Who's 1996 TV movie), he muses on the Earth celebration known as Halloween, "when dark spirits abound and children learn to reveal in the things that scare them", and vows to escape his confinement.
Though he's been lending his voice to Big Finish's range of Doctor Who audio dramas since 2018, this teaser is the first time that Roberts has played the Master in live-action since the 1996 TV movie.
Roberts is getting his own spin-off series of audio plays from Big Finish – entitled simply Master! – in March 2021.
In this new series, this version of the Time Lord villain has escaped the Time Vortex to wreak havoc upon the universe.
Along the way, he’ll meet old enemies, new companions and the universe’s most glamorous and dangerous bounty hunter, Vienna Salvatori (Chase Masterson).
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A synopsis for the series reads:
Abandoned in the Vortex, the Master’s lost incarnation is about to be thrown a lifeline.
Earth rebuilds in the aftermath of invasion, and power rests with those who innovate. Genius Lila Kreeg makes a deal with the devil to see her dreams fulfilled.
As the Master returns, there are those – like Vienna Salvatori – who wish to hunt him, and those upon whom he wishes vengeance himself…
Roberts will also appear alongside John Simm, Michelle Gomez and Derek Jacobi in the multi-Master release Masterful, set to be released by Big Finish in January next year.
Both releases can be pre-ordered now via bigfinish.com.
Doctor Who starring Jodie Whittaker will return to BBC One for festive special Revolution of the Daleks this festive season.
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Morgan Jeffery is the Digital Editor for Radio Times, overseeing all editorial output across the brand's digital platforms. He was previously TV Editor at Digital Spy and has featured as a TV expert on BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio 5 Live and Sky Atlantic.
