When it was announced in 2008 that David Tennant was leaving Doctor Who I was upset. I didn't sit around moping or claiming I'd never watch the show again but I did think it was the beginning of the end for Doctor Who's mega popularity. I didn't think any other actor would be able to generate the interest and adoration that Tennant had managed with his combination of good looks, good acting and good scripts.
Matt Smith has proven me wrong. He's been mostly as
popular despite not seeming to be quite as good an actor or being quite as good
looking. The show becoming a larger presence on US television has doubtless
helped him. Smith has been the face of the show during a huge push into an
incredibly important TV market. Imagine how astronomical Tennant's popularity
would have become if he'd stuck around for that. It doesn’t bear thinking
about.
Where Smith's been let down is in the scripts. He's not
been given the broad range of things to do that Tennant was. The reason for
that is Steven Moffat. Yes, I'm blaming him again but I'm not doing it for the
sake of it. He really has let Smith down. His time as showrunner has been
characterised by supposedly clever paradoxical plots, uninteresting
personalities and, most recently, the movie poster approach.
All are shallow and fail to give actors, be they regulars
or guest stars, anything worthwhile to do. They don't give audiences much to get
excited about either. Russell T Davies (mostly) understood what viewers wanted.
That was drama featuring likeable characters with some humour and references to
the past tossed in for good measure. He gave us something that could be enjoyed
in forty-five minutes on a Saturday afternoon and then forgotten about, but with
enough depth for obsessive fans (like those who write blogs on the subject for
example) to go back and analyse them over and over again.
Moffat doesn't write drama. He seems incapable of it. He
writes comedy with Big Epic Moments inserted into them. Because that’s his idea
of drama. It's an approach that has meant Matt Smith has had very little chance to
showcase what acting talent he has, instead having to trot out wearisome quips
and catchphrases, occasionally breaking the monotony with a bit of shouting to
show that he's an Angry Doctor.
Which, to get back to the point, is why I'm not terribly
fussed that he's going. I've not been given a reason to care about his
character. Truth be told I’m more interested in the possibility an incoming
Twelfth Doctor presents for a clean start.
It's impossible to predict who'll be cast as the new
Doctor. The people that audition don't have their names revealed during the
casting process. Which is fair enough really. It only becomes the concern of
the viewers once someone's been cast.
It's interesting to note that the BBC has stated that
they won't be casting anyone based on race or gender. Once again the tease of a
female Doctor rears its head (although in a distinctly more subtle way than JNT
could ever have managed). Personally I don't think they'll do it. Jenna Louise
Coleman has been confirmed for the 2014 series and I think the BBC will be keen
to stick with the established setup of a male and a female lead. It doesn't
strike me as a particularly Moffatian move either. He seems to understand the
show enough to know his approach to writing women wouldn't lend itself to a
female Doctor.
I'd quite like a forty-something black Doctor. It would
be something new for the show, and considering the broadly liberal undertone
it's had since 2005 I think it's time it happened. I imagine the likelihood of
a black Doctor is higher than the likelihood of a female Doctor, mainly because
Moffat can cast a black dude while sticking to his confirmed "the Doctor
should be an older gentleman" preference. Hard to cast a woman as an older
gentleman, isn't it?
A few years ago I liked the idea of Richard Ayoade
playing the Doctor. I've gone off that idea over time. I now like the idea of
Paterson Joseph playing the part. He’ll turn fifty next year, which places him
snugly into Moff’s preferred age range for the part. He's a good actor and
comes across as very supportive of the show when quizzed on it. Whoever's cast
will need his level of exuberance to put on a brave face with Moffat's writing.
Something tells me Joseph's casting is unlikely though. He was
open about the fact that he auditioned to be the Eleventh Doctor, and was a
tabloid fave for the part at the time. I think such a high profile loss of the
role last time it was up for grabs will make him look like a second choice
should he be cast now. Which is a shame, because I think he’d be good in the
part.
I expect an announcement sometime this year that the next
series will be Moffat’s last. An RTD-style year of specials in 2015 may be a
part of his leaving schedule but it’s not something I’d bank on. I've a feeling
(based only on the fact that Moffat’s been doing the job for a good few years
now) new executive producer Brian Minchin has been brought on board to learn
the ropes for a year and then take over as showrunner. Considering Moffat's
recent form the sooner he goes the better.
