DOCTOR WHO Again?

DOCTOR WHO Again?
by Timothy Liebe

Jodie Whittaker’s casting as the title character on DOCTOR WHO was game-changing, not just for casting a non-Male in the role, but for the energy she brings to the character. Yes, DOCTOR WHO has had its share of eager, quirky Doctors; Matt Smith was so much so that legendary UK character actor Toby Jones dropped by to give him Hell about it! But Whittaker’s take has a flavor all its own – which got us to thinking: Who else not a Straight White Male Briton would make a great Doctor once Whittaker inevitably Regenerates...?

For those of us who like our Doctors to be older (but still able to keep up), Bollywood Legend Amitabh Bachchan seems a perfect next choice. If you’re Indian or British, or a Baz Luhrmann fan, you already know “Big B”, as he’s called by his legion of fans. Imagine him in the most colorfully outrageous outfit since Tom Baker hung up his scarf and floppy hat, bringing his fifty years of gravitas, Still-Got-It dance moves, puckish sense of humor, and the empathy of a man who’s seen both the worst and best of humanity.

 

But say Big B’s not ready to give up Mumbai for a time-traveling blue box, or you want to capitalize on the idea of Women Doctors. Might I present someone who’s already known for playing a doctor – Gillian Anderson, OBE? She’s still beautiful at 52, impressively convincing as an Englishwoman for someone born in Chicago, and she’s played everything from Agent Scully to Margaret Thatcher. Next to Whittaker’s lively take on The Doctor, Anderson could bring her aura of cool detachment, mixed with an often-comical sense of exasperation to the role. She’d draw fans globally thanks to her connection with THE X-FILES – and we all know Daleks and Cybermen wouldn’t be the first aliens she’s faced down!

 

While we’re thinking about Doctors we’d love to have seen who weren’t cast before, Chiwetel Ejiofor comes to mind. We first noticed him modeling his Kinky Boots, but it was his nuanced performance as the Righteous but Wrongheaded Operative in Joss Whedon’s Serenity (not to be confused with last year’s batcrap-crazy brain-melter starring Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway!) that convinced us He’s The Doctor of Our Dreams. Between his mellifluous voice and polymorphous handsomeness, Ejiofor’s Doctor doesn’t need to use violence – he’ll just persuade you to do what he says.

Admittedly we’re blueskying here, but why not have Dame Helen Mirren in the TARDIS? While Amitabh Bachchan has gravitas, it’s hard to beat Mirren when it comes to noble deportment. She has that air of breeding which makes her utterly convincing as either Her Majesty Elizabeth II or a British Hitwoman, going from Slightly Scattered Auntie to Cold-Eyed Executioner in the blink of an eye. Watching her as The Doctor will send shivers of terror and joy up your spine – and she’ll do it with just enough of a twinkle to make us all love her for it.

And to wrap it up, let’s go all the way for Doctor Jackie Chan! Jodie Whittaker’s done a great job of showing us The Crazy Person With a Time Machine’s silly side, so we can’t think of a better Next Timelord than the seemingly-klutzy, marvelously-nimble Chan. He’d bring a real sense of athleticism and play to our favorite Doctor. It’s easy to picture him traveling anywhere (and anywhen), saving the Universe on a weekly basis, and he can be deadly serious when he wants to be – he just so rarely wants to be…