'Doctor Who' Christmas special 2017 release date news: 'Twice Upon a Time' to premiere a week early in America?

The First Doctor and the Twelfth Doctor in the "Doctor Who" Christmas special "Twice Upon a Time."Twitter/bbcdoctorwho

There are only a few weeks to go until the premiere of this year's "Doctor Who" Christmas special. Is it an episode that fans are looking forward to in watching? Hopefully. Rumor has it that "Doctor Who" fans in the United States will be able to catch the episode a week before its original air date.

This rumor stems from Amazon Video in America, who announced which shows and films are lined up for this month. The list includes the "Doctor Who" Christmas Special 2017, titled "Twice Upon a Time," which was stated to premiere on Dec. 18 instead of the usual Christmas Day airing.

This means that American "Whovians" may be able to catch Peter Capaldi's last run as the Twelfth Doctor a week earlier. That certainly puts everyone else at a disadvantage, knowing that there will be spoilers if this is confirmed.

Fortunately, SpoilerTV managed to get a comment from a BBC representative who confirmed that BBC One will be showing "Twice Upon a Time."

In other news, there is still some buzz regarding Jodie Whittaker's casting as the Thirteenth Doctor. Her casting raised divided opinions from fans, former co-stars and even previous Doctors themselves.

There is one former Doctor, however, who, while approving of having a female Doctor, had someone else in mind for the part. Tom Baker, better known as the beloved Fourth Doctor in the series, had imagined another actress playing the Doctor.

In an interview with GQ, Baker revealed that if he was in charge of casting, he would have liked Dawn French to assume the role instead. As to why he thought French would be great for the role, Baker revealed that French's sense of humor and charm seem to suggest that she has a lot of secrets. He thought these traits would make her a good fit to play the rebellious time lord.

Baker is still happy for Whittaker landing the role, though. He shared that as long as Whittaker's incarnation of the Doctor comes off as "an alien, a benevolent alien," she will do very well.

Baker even suggested that he could return to the show. He has previously done so for the show's 50th-anniversary special, "The Day of the Doctor," back in 2013. He played a museum curator who seemingly recognized the Eleventh Doctor's (Matt Smith) face.

The actor even explained how he thinks he could come back. Baker said that they could probably do a bit in an old folks' home with some of the residents being former Doctors.

"Everywhere you turn, it'll be David Tennant [who portrayed the Tenth Doctor] in one thing, Matt Smith behind the bar and me in a corner looking up at someone passing saying, 'Haven't I seen you somewhere before?'" said Baker.

The "Doctor Who" Christmas special "Twice Upon a Time" will premiere on Christmas Day on BBC One.