Who’s that girl?
Whittaker ready to take The Doctor to next level
Doctor Who Returns Jan. 1,
CTV Sci-fi Channel
LONDON Jodie Whittaker made history when she took the controls of the time-travelling Tardis as the first female lead in the sci-fi series Doctor Who.
Now, she says, it is time to build on that achievement by challenging the casting decisions holding back performers across her whole industry.
Whittaker triggered thousands of online debates when she got the role of The Doctor, a shape-shifting alien Time Lord played by men since the show first appeared on British television screens in 1963.
“It was a very important discussion to have and it was a very important thing to do. It’s an alien. It can be a woman. The qualification didn’t require a certain gender to play the role,” Whittaker says.
“But now it’s done and we’ve realized the world didn’t end and it’s OK ... What will be exciting is when casting ... maybe does represent more of the society that we live in.”
Many fans welcomed the change when she first got the job in 2017.
But a former Doctor, Peter Davison, spoke for others when he mourned the passing of a role model for young boys — and some critics have questioned what they see as the political correctness of her episodes’ themes and the casting of other characters.
“When it isn’t such a surprise to see a woman on screen, when that conversation dies down, that will only be a good thing because it means we’ve moved on,” Whittaker, 37, says.
“But until we’re there, let’s keep the conversation fizzing,” she adds. “In regards to me, that chat, it’s proved that I can fly the Tardis.”
Doctor Who returns for its 12th season Jan. 1 on CTV Sci-fi Channel. The new season promises guest appearances by actor Stephen Fry and comedian Lenny Henry, as well as the return of old favourites such as the Cybermen and the “interplanetary thugs” of the Judoon.
After the première, new episodes of Doctor Who will air Sundays beginning Jan. 5.