Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special 2013, Steven Moffat Talks Script, Length: BBC Denies Racist Allegations, Will Matt Smith be New Stanley Kubrick?

Rumors about casting and plot lines for 2013's Doctor Who 50^th Anniversary Special have been circulating around the Internet for months now. We know that David Tennant and Billie Piper will return for the November special, but how long will the episode actually be? Luckily showrunner Steven Moffat recently elaborated on that subject. Also, current leading man Matt Smith has announced his aspirations that could come after 2014's eighth season of Doctor Who.

Known mainly as the eleventh incarnation of the popular time-traveler, Matt Smith has recently been branching out from his comfy BBC role. He is currently filming scenes for the Ryan Gosling-directed film How to Catch a Monster, in which Smith sports a buzzed head.

Perhaps taking notes from Gosling, the 30-year-old Smith has also just wrapped his directorial debut Cargese for Sky Arts. The coming-of-age television film aired last night and stars Craig Roberts, Joe Cole and Perry Millward.

In a recent interview, Smith discussed the "bleak" film with The Telegraph.

"The script that [punk playwright Simon Stephens] and me worked on happened to be quite a bleak one, but hopefully there are moments when you find something in the character... I wanted there to be a magic about Stephen; somehow you've got to fall in love with a boy that murders someone innocent. I think I'll direct a lot of things in that vein," he adds. "I'd like to direct a science-fiction film, too. Kubrick's the man to follow: a film in every genre."

How long will the anniversary special be?

With all of the news about the 50^th Anniversary Special pouring in, some have begun to wonder just how long it will end up being. Originally advertised as an hour-long special, Stephen Moffat decided against that but still has no idea himself about the length.

"People keep asking how long the Anniversary special is, and it's a fair question," he admitted. "I don't actually know, because the answer is, it's as long as it needs to be."

"The script is quite long though. I'm looking at it now. Ooh, that's quite long," he added.

Is Doctor Who racist?

After recent allegations claiming that Doctor Who is racist, the BBC responded by saying that the show has demonstrated a "strong track record of diverse casting among both regular and guest cast."