Doctor Who stands as one of the BBC’s most forward-thinking series, but fans cannot forgive the show for one major oversight. To this day, no female has ever stood in for the Doctor. Peter Capaldi is the most recent actor to take on the Time Lord role, and the Scottish actor was the latest man to do so. With Capaldi set to leave Doctor Who after its current season, the series could make up for lost time by casting a woman to be the 14th Doctor.
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Just, don’t expect one of the series’ showrunners to apologize for the lack of female representation just yet. In a recent interview, Stephen Moffat defended his decision to hire male actors to play the Doctor during his tenure.
Speaking with BBC Radio 4, Moffat took a moment to explain why Doctor Who never cast a female Doctor during his eight years with the program. “I didn’t not cast a woman… I cast a man. I didn’t [cast a woman] because I wanted to cast Matt Smith and I wanted to cast Peter Capaldi,” Moffat explained.
“I didn’t think it was a terrible idea [to cast a woman], I just thought, ‘I want to cast those people’ – that was it.”
Before fans get too riled up, they do have something to thank Moffat for. After all, the writer is the one who confirmed the Doctor could regenerate into a female. Moffat’s run with Doctor Who even put the idea into practice when it introduced Missy, the female regeneration of the Master.
Right now, there is no word on whether Doctor Who will bring on a female Doctor for its 11th season. Both Capaldi and Moffat are exiting the show, opening up a wide door for the BBC to make changes. So far, reports have suggested Kris Marshall from Love Actually is being eyed for the role, but female actresses have also been tied to the position. Names like Michaela Coel and Hayley Atwell have been tied to the casting discussion even thought the latter star has confirmed she’s not interested in the gig.
Doctor Who airs Saturdays on BBC America.
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