Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies says Ncuti Gatwa’s upcoming episode is a "complete reinvention" of the show
Dec. 1, 2023EXCLUSIVE: Russell T Davies speaks to SFX about the Fifteenth Doctor
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Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies says Ncuti Gatwa’s upcoming Christmas special is a complete reinvention of the show, and that we’re heading into a brand new era.
“It’s completely a reinvention. Reinvention of the show, brand new, but not a reboot, it’s the same old show, everything starts again, everything’s seen through the eyes of Ruby Sunday and it’s that lovely feeling of here we go, a new era beginning,” Davies tellsSFX magazinein the new issue, which features Doctor Who on the cover. “Lovely. Kind of goes into territory we’ve never touched before. In many ways that’s more… fresher than special two. We’ve never done this before.”
Doctor Who: The Church on Ruby Road, a special Christmas episode of the series, fully introduces Gatwa as the Fifteenth Doctor and Millie Gibson as his companion, Ruby. Gatwa is best known for playing Eric Effiong in Sex Education, and recently played a Ken in Greta Gerwig’sBarbie. It was initially reported over two years ago that Gatwa would play the Fourteenth Doctor, taking over for Jodie Whittaker, and that Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor would regenerate into a new incarnation played by Gatwa. Reports later confirmed that fan-favorite Doctor David Tennant would be back as the Fourteenth Doctor, with Donna Noble, companion to the Tenth Doctor, back as well.
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“Let me tell you, I’m used to sitting in rooms acting with people – I was absolutely blasted away,” Davies says of Gatwa’s audition. “I was literally… – Phil [Collinson, producer] was in the room, Andy Pryor [casting director] was in the room, and I was just saying the lines thinking ‘I hope they’re getting this. I hope that camera’s getting this. I hope they can realize what’s happening. I hope they can see what’s happening in his eyes and what’s blazing out of him, because this is magic.'”
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I’m the Editor of SFX, the world’s number one sci-fi, fantasy and horror magazine – available digitally and in print every four weeks since 1995. I’ve been editing magazines, and writing for numerous publications since before the Time War. Obviously SFX is the best one. I knew being a geek would work out fine.
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