Hayley Atwell Wants To Play The Doctor On Doctor Who

While she may be busy fighting evil in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for now, Agent Carter star Hayley Atwell told fans on Twitter that she’d like to one day play The Doctor in Doctor Who.

The idea came up during a question and answer session that Atwell invited her followers to participate in. One asked if the London-born actress would like to have a role on Doctor Who, presumably as a guest star. Here’s how she responded:

Excusing that she referred to the character as “Doctor Who” instead of The Doctor, the idea of Atwell wanting to play the series’ titular Time Lord is an interesting one. All 12 (or 13, depending on how you count) iterations of the Doctor have been male, and a growing segment of Doctor Who fandom has voiced its desire to see a female Doctor.

Precedent has been set for swapping genders following a regeneration, thanks to a minor bit of dialogue from the Neil Gaiman written episode “The Doctor’s Wife” and the introduction of Missy in Series 8 as the Master regenerated as female. Now it’s just a matter of willingness on the part of those behind the scenes and finding the right actress. They could do a lot worse than Hayley Atwell.

Not that anyone should be rushing Peter Capaldi, who debuted as The Twelfth Doctor in Series 8, off the stage. Capaldi will return in Doctor Who Series 9, premiering Sept. 19.

Agent Carter will return for Season 2 as part of ABC’s mid-season lineup.

(via GT)