After eight episodes filled with surprises and unique concepts, the first season of Doctor Who‘s Disney+ era is now in the books. The batch of episodes served as the first outing of The Doctor for Ncuti Gatwa, who is best known for acting in projects like Barbie and Sex Education. Gatwa’s role in the Netflix series already made him a fan-favorite before his Doctor Who debut — and apparently, it also led to one of Doctor Who’s most unconventional episodes. In the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine (via the Radio Times), showrunner Russell T. Davies revealed that Gatwa’s schedule with filming the final season of Sex Education allowed the show to do a “Doctor-lite” episode like “73 Yards”, which almost-exclusively featured The Doctor’s companion, Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson).
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“Casting Ncuti meant casting him before he’d finished on Sex Education. That was a risk that we took, but it was absolutely the right risk, because it meant we got the best possible Doctor in 2024 that we could wish for,” Davies explained. “I love a Doctor-lite episode. But, let’s face it, if Ncuti had been available, we would never have done a Doctor-lite episode in season one. And the marvelous thing was, I’d had this idea kicking around for ages, of the Doctor and his companion stepping outside the TARDIS and seeing someone in the distance. But I could never make it work with two people. So when it became Doctor-lite—when it was just Ruby, and we were able to follow her whole life—it sort of freed itself.”
When Will Doctor Who Return With New Episodes?
Doctor Who will next return with a 2024 Christmas special, which is written by former showrunner Steven Moffat. Season 2 (under the Disney+ branding) of Doctor Who has already wrapped production, although an exact release date has yet to be set. Both Gatwa and Gibson are confirmed to return for Season 2, as well as Varada Sethu as a mysterious second companion.
“It feels so much fun now,” Gatwa previously said of acclimating to the role. “I’ve relaxed and [the Doctor] seems to have sunk down a little bit deeper, from my chest into my gut.”
The first season of Doctor Who is available to stream exclusively on Disney+. If you haven’t signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.
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