Doctor Who's Steven Moffat Explains That Surprising Companion Reveal

Steven Moffat addresses Varada Sethu's unexpected Doctor Who debut.

By Jenna Anderson

We're only three episodes into Doctor Who's new season, but it looks like the show has already dropped a pretty unexpected twist. This week's episode, titled "Boom", saw the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) land on a war-torn planet, with things quickly growing complicated when The Doctor steps on a volatile land mine. During this ordeal, the duo meet a soldier named Mundy Flynn, played by Varada Sethu, who just so happens to be confirmed to joining the show as Fifteen's second companion. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, "Boom" writer Steven Moffat addressed Sethu making her Doctor Who debut as Mundy, and what it could mean for her future tenure as a companion. 

"Yeah. Well, no, we're just doing it again,' Moffat answered with a laugh. "I mean, I was talking to Russell [T Davies, showrunner] about what we're going to do, but she's there! We're just going to do Clara [Oswald] again. So it's fun, isn't it? It wakes you up. You think, "Ah, there she is!"

"And I think I'm going to say nothing about that," Moffatt said, when asked who came up with Mundy's name. "I'm going to say nothing about what's going on there. You're not going to get nothing. It's Russell's plan and he will release the details of how that works in his own time, I'm certain."

When asked if he can say that Sethu was cast knowing that she would come back, Moffat replied, "No, you're just going to have to wait and see. That would be a waste of time. There is a plan. That's all I'm telling."

When Will Varada Sethu Join Doctor Who?

Sethu is confirmed to be joining Doctor Who in (according to its Disney+ numbering) the show's second season, and will be adventuring with both Fifteen and Ruby Sunday. It is unclear at this point if Sethu will be reprising her role as Mundy, or will be playing a different character entirely. 

"I feel like the luckiest person in the world. It is such an honor to be a part of the Whoniverse, and I'm so grateful to the whole Doctor Who family – because that is what they are – for welcoming me with open arms and making me feel so at home," Sethu says in a statement when her casting was announced. "I couldn't ask for a better team than Ncuti and Millie to be on this adventure with, this is SO much fun!"

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New episodes of Doctor Who air Fridays at 7pm ET on Disney+, followed by a debut on BBC iPlayer at 12am GMT on Saturdays, and a broadcast premiere on BBC One later that day. If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

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