The popular Doctor Who spinoff, The War Between the Land and the Sea’s heartbreaking death, is finally explained by the showrunner, Russell T Davies.

In the third episode of The War Between the Land and the Sea, humanity faces off against the Sea Devils, also known as Homo Aqua. And, to the horror of viewers, the showdown leads to Colonel Christofer Ibrahim’s (Alexander Devrient) demise. He died soon after the show finally cemented his relationship with Kate Stewart (Jemma Redgrave) after much fan speculation and subtle hints. The new development made the audience even more upset about the character’s death.

In a new documentary posted on Doctor Who’s official YouTube page titled The Making of The War Between the Land and the Sea, Davies addressed Ibrahim’s tragic death and why it had to happen. According to the showrunner, the tragedy was necessary to move the story forward and raise the stakes of the war.

Davies added that The War Between the Land and the Sea’s emotional weight is grounded in reality. While the episode features mystical sea creatures, the environmental issues in the series aren’t fictitious. And realistically, when it comes to war, the loss of lives is “inevitable,” so it wouldn’t make sense for all the characters to live to see the end of the series.

Sadly, there has to be a loss. The problem at the heart of The War Between is real. Never mind your fantasy creatures from under the sea, what we’ve done to the oceans is real, so the drama has to get a patina of reality that you wouldn’t necessarily put into every episode of Doctor Who — it kind of just opens us up to the fact that someone’s got to die.

Redgrave also chimed in about how this loss affected her character. She explained that Kate had never fully acknowledged how much Ibrahim meant to her. The actor stated that his sudden death made her realize how much she cared for him, and it was a major turning point for her.

I felt, when I read the scripts, that she didn’t know quite how much she felt for him. She never allowed herself to really know how deeply she loved him. The loss of him, in that moment, she knows everything she didn’t allow herself to know. It’s life-changing for her.

The War Between the Land and the Sea will be available to stream internationally on Disney+ in 2026. However, no official date for its release has been confirmed.