Earlier today, the BBC finally revealed the identity of the individual who’ll be taking over for Peter Capaldi in Doctor Who, and it was an interesting pick, to say the least.
As you no doubt know by now, Jodie Whittaker of Broadchurch fame will become the next Doctor, and while the reaction to her clinching the role has been mostly positive, there’s still a good chunk of the fanbase who are upset that a woman’s been chosen to lead the show.
That’s something that’s not lost on Whittaker, either, as the actress released a statement expressing her excitement at the opportunity, telling fans not to be scared by her gender.
“I want to tell the fans not to be scared by my gender. Because this is a really exciting time, and Doctor Who represents everything that’s exciting about change. The fans have lived through so many changes, and this is only a new, different one, not a fearful one.”
Elsewhere in the statement, Whittaker talked about how it feels to be given the chance to take on the role, saying:
“To be asked to play the ultimate character, to get to play pretend in the truest form: this is why I wanted to be an actor in the first place. To be able to play someone who is literally reinvented on screen, with all the freedoms that brings: what an unbelievable opportunity. And added to that, to be the first woman in that role.
It feels completely overwhelming, as a feminist, as a woman, as an actor, as a human, as someone who wants to continually push themselves and challenge themselves, and not be boxed in by what you’re told you can and can’t be. It feels incredible.”
It’s not like the actress won’t have help settling into the job, either, as she revealed that she’s expecting some calls from the previous Doctors.
Well they can’t because they haven’t known until now, but I’m certainly expecting a couple of calls – I’ve got a couple of mates in there. I’m mates with a companion [Arthur Darvill], I’m mates with a trio of Doctors. I know Matt Smith, Chris Eccleston and obviously David Tennant. Oh! And let’s throw in David Bradley! Four Doctors! So I’m hoping I get some calls of advice.
Regardless of how you feel about Jodie Whittaker being chosen to take over for Capaldi in Doctor Who, there’s no denying that a female Doctor opens up a lot of new doors for the writers to head through and could certainly usher in an exciting new era for the show.
We’ll have to wait until the Christmas special to get our first taste of the actress in the role, of course, but something tells us that this will end up working out.