Doctor Who star Matt Smith will be taking the male lead Ryan Gosling's directional debut picture 'How to Catch a Monster'.

The story is set against the surreal dreamscape of a vanishing city and centered on a single mother of two being swept into a macabre and dark fantasy underworld while her teenage son discovers a secret road leading to an underwater town. Production is set to start this spring.

Christina Hendricks and Eva Mendes will co-star in the movie which is produced by Marc Platt (not the Doctor Who Author), Adam Siegel, Michel Litvak, David Lancaster and Ryan Gosling.

Since the news broke, fans are already wondering where this leaves Series 8 of Doctor Who, questioning his involvement and sparking regeneration rumours.

DWO would like to point out that Smith was recently quoted in an interview with The Sun newspaper as saying:

"His first episode sounds great. It hasn't been written yet but the idea is as brilliant and as mental as you'd expect from Steven. So there's a lot to look forward to.

When Steven was going to pitch the next season to me not long ago, he said, 'Are you ready to cry?".

It is likely that the filming schedule for Series 8 will be a tighter one than normal, and could very well be transmitted in the Autumn of 2014. This is yet to be confirmed by the BBC.

[Source: Variety]