There’s no denying that David Attenborough's Planet Earth II was the breakout TV series of 2016.

The gripping nature show literally had it all, from heartbreak (think baby turtles crawling to their certain deaths) to triumph (the unlikely survival of the fluffy snow leopard cub was a highlight) and even terror (anyone who watched the snake versus iguana scene will understand why it won a BAFTA for “Must See Moment” at Sunday night’s awards ceremony).

So we were thrilled to hear that producers have already decided to make a Planet Earth III – although the hit show might look a lot different the third time around.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, one of the producers admitted that Attenborough might not be able to take part in the new series, considering it will take a good 10 years to make – by which point the veteran presenter will be 101 years old.

“Who knows, we hope David will be with us. You never know,” the producer said. 

“If he’s here, he’ll be doing it… He is the voice of Natural History. He’s the voice of Planet Earth II, and if he’s still willing to do it, then he’ll do Planet Earth III.”

The unnamed producer went on to heap praise on Attenborough, who at 91 years is widely considered to be a national treasure (although he has spoken before about how he considers himself a scientist and, as such, does not like the term “national treasure”).

Read more: Sir David Attenborough’s most profound quotes

“I think it’s fair to say without him it definitely wouldn’t be the same, no. All of us owe so much to Sir David for making the series what it is,” the producer said. 

“There’s no way else to tell the stories than he does.”

The producer also went on to reveal what really goes into the filming of a series such as Planet Earth, which was screened on the BBC last year.

“It’s more of a team effort than any other genre. We’re going off for three years around the world to film in really difficult places,” he said.

“They give their heart and soul to film these behaviours that are so hard to capture. Quite often we come back with nothing.”

He also added that, for every 400 minutes of film the crew capture, only one minute actually makes it onto our screens.

The third series of the show is still in its development stage and, with filming slated to last for at least 10 years, plus another few years of editing, we have a while to wait until it hits our screens.

But fear not, nature fans, for Attenborough is currently working on filming the third season of our beloved Blue Planet.

And if even that is too far away for you to contemplate, you can have a read of Attenborough’s most profound and heartwarming quotes right here.

Don’t ever say we don’t spoil you.

Images: Rex, BBC