"The Same Ancient Beast": Former Doctor Who Showrunner Details Why The New Doctor Embodies Past Actors
This article covers a developing story. Continue to check back with us as we will be adding more information as it becomes available.
Summary Moffat praises Gatwa's Doctor as a seamless addition to the long line of iconic Doctors.
Gatwa's Doctor maintains the age-old perspective of previous Doctors while delivering fresh reactions.
Moffat highlights the dangerous and brutal reality of traveling with the Doctor for companions like Ruby Sunday.
Steven Moffat has nothing but praise for Ncuti Gatwa as the newest lead of Doctor Who. The former showrunner ran the show from 2010 to 2017, during the Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi runs as the Doctor. After leaving the show, Moffat returned to direct "Boom", which featured Doctor Who's current lead cast members, Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson), trying to survive a horrifying war. Gatwa began his run as the Doctor during the 2023 Christmas Special, after he split from David Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor.
During Moffat's interview with Screen Rant's Caitlin Tyrrell, Moffat explained that he saw little difference between Gatwa's Doctor and previous Doctors. While his reactions are new, the newest Doctor still has an age-old perspective on situations and is more than capable of surviving terrifying and difficult situations. Moffat also describes the brutality of standing beside the Doctor for Ruby and his many other companions. Check out his full quote below:
Well, I think one of the things about The Doctor is you need to be reminded at some point that, despite all the newness - because The Doctor always seems very new at first, you hit the audience with, "No, it's still him." I think once he's on the landmine, and he's trying to give orders, and he's getting scared and he's getting quite scathing? You realize, "No, Capaldi's still in there. Tom Baker's still in there. William Hartnell's still in there." It's still the same ancient beast looking out of those brand-new eyes. I think it's important to see that. But also, I had great faith in Ncuti as an actor, and I thought, "We can't confine him to just running around." You have to do that at the beginning. You really do. It's great fun to travel with Doctor Who in his magic box, and then you've got to have the reality hit. Ruby realizes he's completely insane and not reliable. He's dangerous - I mean, all heroes are dangerous. They just try to be dangerous in the right direction. And traveling with the Doctor can be lethal. Had his foot landed a moment harder on that mine, she'd have been abandoned in the middle of a war. So, it is the lesson. This is not just for fun, and he's crazy. He's crazy.
Developing...
COMMENTS