Doctor Who: Ncuti Gatwa Satisfies Your Bi-Generation Curiosity — And Might Be the Song-and-Danciest Doctor Yet!
The third and last of Doctor Who‘s 60th anniversary specials this month revealed how the long-running sci-fi franchise will have its cake and eat it, too.
As “The Giggle,” streaming on Disney+, drew to a close, Fourteen (played by Doctor Who vet David Tennant) urged Donna and Mel to “pull” at both his arms. The Doctor then proceeded to not regenerate, as is tradition, but “bi-generate” — introducing Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteen while also allowing Fourteen to “retire” and live a normal life.
More from TVLine
Franchise vet Russell T Davies, who reclaimed the reins as showrunner beginning with the three anniversary specials, “is here to take Doctor Who into a new era,” Gatwa attests in the TVLine video Q&A above. To that end, “he’s bringing in a bunch of new elements,” including “a few li’l additions to Time Lord history and Time Lord lore,” says the Rwandan-Scottish actor.
As covered in “The Giggle,” “There’s definitely a separation” at play here, Gatwa says. “Fourteen is in his healing era — he’s got a nice, normal life now — and I will be taking on the adventures.”
With the aforementioned bi-generation sequence, Fifteen and Fourteen literally divided up the Doctor’s clothes between them, leaving Gatwa in little more than tight undershorts.
“I did want to have a little word with David Tennant…,” Gatwa chuckles. Tennant, having filmed his half of the scene first, “got to pick the pieces of costume he stays with,” leaving only “a pair of pants, a shirt and a tie” for his successor to wear for the duration of the special. “‘Sorry! David took the rest!'” is what Gatwa jokes he was told.
In the video above, Gatwa then turns serious, talking about the weighty conversation that Fifteen and Fourteen had about all that they have been through — and all they have lost — over the course of their timey-wimey adventures.
Gatwa then gets to teasing this year’s Christmas special, The Church on Ruby Road, which streams this Monday, Dec. 25 at 12:55 pm ET and introduces Millie Gibson as Ruby Sunday, his Doctor’s companion.
“They are definitely troublemakers,” “flirty and quite cheeky,” Gatwa previews. And yet, “They also see the pain in one another, and want to heal that in one another.”
Promos and sneak peeks released for The Church on Ruby Road show Fifteen dancing up a storm and hint at a musical number for the ages (think: sharp-toothed Goblins singing about eating babies).
Is Gatwa poised to be the “song-and-danciest” Doctor yet?
“Um, yes — I reckon I might be!” the franchise newcomer reports.
Want scoop on Doctor Who, or for any other TV show ? Email InsideLine@tvline.com, and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line!
Best of TVLine
Get more from TVLine.com: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
