The current Time Lord announced that he will be stepping down from the TARDIS last month, a decision that could have been very different.
But, according to headwriter Steven, Peter was unsure on whether to stay a bit longer.
He told Broadcast Magazine: “It took Peter a long time to make up his mind. Chris tried to persuade him to stay.
“I knew it was a possibility that he’d leave because Doctors tend to do three years. I thought that he might want to opt out, rather than go through the trauma of a change in command and maybe leaving a year later anyway,” he continued.
He confirmed: “But I think he came close to staying.”
Steven also discussed his own departure from the show which will coincide with the lead stepping down.
“I intended to do three years, so I doubled that. For various reasons, during my third series I wasn’t as happy,” the 55-year-old revealed.
He added: “It was the only time doing Doctor Who where i felt it was slipping away from me a bit.”
The writer, also behind Sherlock, revealed he felt he lost “control” of the show around the time the previous Doctor, Matt Smith, announced his departure from the sci-fi drama.
“I didn’t want to leave like that, so I tried to persuade Matt to do another year, but he was determined to go,” Steven explained.
He added: “And then having cast a new Doctor, I had to stay – and I wanted to because I was thoroughly enjoying working with Peter.”
Steven and Peter’s final season of Doctor Who will air April 15 on BBC One.
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