Doctor Who: Official trailer
Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa has reflected on the venom aimed at the show over his casting. The actor, who made his name starring in Sex Education, was announced as the new incarnation of The Doctor in May 2022 but some people were very vocal in their disapproval of the choice.
"It’s not something I’ll avidly keep up on. The hate? It is kind of fascinating to me because there's so much energy they're putting into it ... I think they need to go find a hobby is one thing," he said.
"But another thing is that we do see a shift happening in casting, in positions of power and in the status quo. I mean, not a fast shift, things could tip over the other way a little bit quicker, but you see people kind of malfunctioning because things are changing," the 31-year-old Barbie star pondered in the latest issue of Attitude magazine.
While Ncuti's casting may have raised a few eyebrows he is not the first black person to play the Doctor. That honour falls to Jo Martin who plays the Fugitive Doctor and was introduced to audiences during Jodie Whittaker's tenure as the thirteenth Doctor, although he is the first black person to helm an entire series in the role.
The show's casting in recent times has been incredibly diverse. Aside from having not one but two female Doctors in Jodie and Jo, they have also welcomed a trans character to the cast.
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Heartstopper star Yasmin Finney was integral to the 60th anniversary specials playing trans character Rose Noble.
The upcoming series has also cast RuPaul's Drag Race star Jinx Monsoon as a characrter called Maestro.
Ncuti officially made his on screen debut in the role during the show's 60th anniversary special when he "bigenerated" from David Tennant's fourteenth Doctor.
After the months of anticipation his first full standalone episode was the festive special which was the third most watched show in the UK on Christmas Day.
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He is now gearing up for his first full series as the show returns on Saturday May 11, with a double bill.
The first episode is titled Space Babies and will see him star opposite Milie Gibson as companion Ruby Sunday.
This is the first time in the show’s history the BBC will drop two back-to-back episodes on iPlayer ahead of the official broadcast on BBC One.
This is due to the show's new partnership with Disney+ which will see international and US viewers able to watch the brand-new offerings from May 10 at 7pm ET.
The new series of Doctor Who will air on BBC One ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest on May 11.
