Doctor Who is going in a new direction with their Sex Education and Barbie star Ncuti Gatwa.
After an epic conclusion to Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor later this year, Doctor Who will be moving forward with Ncuti Gatwa as the time-travelling alien.
Not only will this mark the first time a person of colour has played the Doctor, but will also be the first time they’ve been openly gay.
The latest version of the Time-Lord is expected to be a big revamp and a soft reboot of the show. The series has been suffering from dwindiling ratings and a poor critical reception.
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In the next series, Neil Patrick Harris is set to go head-to-head with another version of the Doctor. But speaking to Variety, Harris confirmed he’d met with Gatwa and knew of the exciting shifts in the series.
“I got to meet and interact with [Gatwa] a bit and he’s glorious,” says Harris. “He’ll be the first gay Doctor, which is going to be super cool, a sexier Doctor.”
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Now, fans of the show would point out that a same-sex relationship has been suggested between the current Doctor and her friend Yasmin Khan. However, we are yet to see if that culminates to anything beyond heavy hints.
In 2023, Doctor Who will be once again helmed by Russel T Davies who originally brought the series back in 2005 and recently worked with Harris on the groundbreaking series It’s A Sin.
“I get a text from Russel T Davies saying, ‘so I’m doing this thing and I’ve written a thing and there’s a part in it that you might like. I think it’s delicious. Is it OK if I send it to you?” continued Harris.
“And I say, ‘Of course Russell, you’re Russell T Davies. Of course.’ And he sent it and I started reading it and from the very, very first scene I was like, ‘Ah, this is delicious.’”
Alongside Harris and Gatwa, viewers will see the return of fan favourites David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor, Catherine Tate as Donna Noble and recently deceased Bernard Cribbons as Wilfred Mott.
New to the cast will be Yasmin Finney as Rose, who will be the first trans companion in the series.
Eagle-eyed fans will note that the character shares the same name as another companion from Russell T Davies’ earlier run. But it is unclear as to what the connection is.
Check out the trailer below for Whittaker’s final episode
