Jodi Whittaker Is The New Doctor

The announcement has been made and the secret is out...we have a new Doctor Who, and she's going to be brilliant!  I'm sure that you knew that I was going to be writing about this this morning, considering in Doctor Who's long and story life, this is the first time that the Doctor has regenerated as a woman.  The actress that will be taking up the role is Jodi Whittaker, and she won't be the only newcomer to the show.  Doctor Who's show runner, Steven Moffat will be leaving and Chris Chibnall will be taking up the reigns.  Chibnall and Whittaker have a profession history together, they both worked together on the series Broadchurch.  The choice of Whittaker as the new Doctor excited many, but there were some grumblings from certain fans that think that the Doctor should always be a man.  Unfortunately, you're going to get that from some area or another, but how does Whittaker feel about taking up the mantle of Doctor?


“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.”


While she was going through the interview process (and after she was told that she got the role) the only person that she was allowed to tell was her husband.  That meant that she had to lie about not knowing until the official announcement was made.  She said that Chibnall was the one that actually asked her to audition, and that she was his first choice for the role.


“There was no persuasion needed. If you need to be persuaded to do this part, you’re not right for this part, and the part isn’t right for you. I also think, for anyone taking this on, you have to want to fight for it, which I certainly had to do. I know there will have been some phenomenal actors who threw their hats in the ring.”


So what is the one thing that she wants to tell fans about her upcoming debut as the new Doctor?


“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.”


Whittaker will make her debut during the Doctor Who Christmas special later this year.