Jodie Whittaker Getting Erased From Doctor Who?
Jodie Whittaker made history as the first female Doctor in Doctor Who, but recent promotional materials have fans worried that the franchise is sort of erasing her character. Fortunately, showrunner Russell T. Davies addressed these comments, saying, “Oh my God, the TARDIS, the Jodie exterior, she has NOT been erased (and yet by not erasing her, are we erasing the argument that she’s been erased and therefore this is an act of erasure, IS IT?)” (via Radio Times).
The lack of Jodie Whittaker in Doctor Who promotional materials has some fans worried her version of the Doctor is being wiped from the timeline.
Of course, Davies says it in a bit of a cheeky way, as it’s silly to think that Whitaker’s time as the Doctor would just be ignored.
It is a bit strange that Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor Who hero hasn’t been featured more in marketing material like the magazine covers and annual issues, but that’s more on those publications making those calls rather than the show just ignoring Whittaker’s history in the Tardis. In any case, maybe all the online discussions will ensure Whitaker gets more coverage in the near future.
For now, it seems likely the fan discussion will start leaning more toward the upcoming 60th anniversary specials, which will consist of three special episodes.
The special episodes will also be followed by a Christmas special where Ncuti Gatwa will take over as the Fifteenth Doctor after Tennant’s Fourteenth Doctor and Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor.
While Jodie Whittaker won’t be returning as the Doctor in the upcoming Doctor Who 60th anniversary sepcial episodes, history will be made in the franchise again as David Tennant returns to reprise the role, with one actor returning to play a different Doctor being a first for the franchise.
The special won’t be about Tennant’s Tenth Doctor and instead will have him playing the Fourteenth Doctor (who just so happens to look a lot like the Tenth Doctor). Tennant’s tenure as the character is one of the most beloved by fans, so it’s not surprsing that he was chosen to be the first to reprise the role.
The upcoming Doctor Who 60th anniversay specials will consist of episodes titled “The Star Beast”, “Wild Blue Yonder” and “The Giggle”. The plot of these specials is being kept under wraps for the time being, but Catherine Tate will be returning as Donna Noble and Yasmin Finney will be playing Donna’s daughter Rose.
The special episodes will also be followed by a Christmas special where Ncuti Gatwa will take over as the Fifteenth Doctor after Tennant’s Fourteenth Doctor and Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor.
“Oh my God, the TARDIS, the Jodie exterior, she has NOT been erased (and yet by not erasing her, are we erasing the argument that she’s been erased and therefore this is an act of erasure, IS IT?)”
-the snarky response from Russell T. Davies regarding Whittaker’s supposed erasure.
Ncuti Gatwa will be taking over as Doctor Who for the next season of the show, and fans are looking forward to that as well. After Jodie Whittaker made history as the first woman to play Doctor Who, Gatwa will make some history of his own as the first Black actor to play the Doctor in a lead role. Jo Martin did play a Doctor in 2020’s Fugitive of the Judoon, but not as the regular season lead role.
While we wait for the upcoming season of Doctor Who in 2024 and the anniversary specials, you can revisit Jodie Whittaker’s run as the Doctor in the 13th season. Meanwhile, the anniversary specials are reportedly set to come out in November while the Christmas special will come out during the holiday season. Stay tuned for more Doctor Who news.
