At the end of January, Peter Capaldi, the Scottish actor who portrays the 12th Doctor on “Doctor Who,” announced that he was leaving the show. Capaldi has been a part of the show since 2013, when Matt Smith left. Capaldi was first shown briefly in the 2013 Christmas Special and then made his full appearance in season eight. History might repeat itself and show the next Doctor in the 2017 Christmas Special. Since Capaldi made his announcement, fans and news personals have been creating their own lists on who should be the next Doctor. Here is my list of who I think should replace Peter Capaldi:
1.Olivia Colman
The new writer, Chris Chibnall, is the writer for “Broadchurch.” For this reason, Olivia Colman would be a great choice for the next Doctor. Chibnall has worked with Colman for three seasons of “Broadchurch” and knows how she acts. It would be simple for the two to come over as a pair. Colman can be weird and fun if the scene needs her like that, but also strong and powerful when that is necessary. Colman is only filming one movie right now and it should be done filming by the time season 11 is ready to start filming.
2.Hayley Atwell
From Marvel to CBS, Hayley Atwell has been doing well for herself over the last couple years. She is a young actress who has been great in any role she has been given. Atwell would be a great addition as the next Doctor. Additionally, she would be letting the Doctor go back into their youthful spirit. She is not in any other roles at the moment, except for a couple cameos in the Marvel universe so it would be the perfect time to snatch her up. Plus, she has said on a Twitter Q&A that she wants the role, so BBC, get on that.
3.Rupert Grint
The Doctor has talked about not being ginger for years now, and if Rupert Grint is the Doctor, they would finally become ginger. Rupert hasn’t been as successful as his Harry Potter co-tars, but becoming the Doctor could be the role that shows off his talent. Fans have wanted Rupert to become the Doctor ever since it was announced that Tennent was leaving. Rupert has a couple other projects that are coming out this year, so him being on the show depends on how they do. If they flop, there is a chance that he would be able to do it.
4.Lara Pulver
Lara Pulver would be a great Doctor to go against Missy, the female regeneration of the Master. Lara would be able to contest Missy and would be able to stand up against her. Lara has shown BBC her talents as Irene Adler in “Sherlock,” but she hasn’t been able to land a big leading role worthy of her talents. She isn’t currently in anything, so having her become the Doctor would be the role to show the world her amazing talent.
5.Ben Whishaw
Ben has been the front runner to become the Doctor since Matt Smith left in 2013. He has been in a couple of James Bond movies, “Suffragette,” “The Danish Girl,” and others, which would follow how Peter Capaldi has been playing the role. He would be the first openly gay actor to play the Doctor. In addition, he is currently filming “Mary Poppins Returns,” but that is filming in London, so it would be easy for him to just jump into the “Doctor Who,” role once he was done with filming Mary Poppins, because he would already be in the area.
6.Richard Madden
Richard has been considered to a favorite to take on the role for a long time. The actor, who was on “Game of Thrones,” knows how to play an action role and would be able to handle being the Doctor. Richard has told many people that he loves the show and would love to be in it, so why not have him be in the main spotlight. A source told The Sun, a popular British newspaper, “Richard’s name has come up in discussions in the past, and will be high on the list of potential replacements when the formal casting process gets underway.” So, it’s sounding like good news.
7.Paterson Joseph
Paterson has been another name that is thrown around each time the Doctor has needed a new actor. He actually auditioned to be the 11th Doctor and was in the running until it was given to Matt Smith. Paterson says that just being considered was amazing, and it feels like he is part of the “Doctor Who” story. He is currently in “Timeless” so he might not be able to do both, but he would make a great Doctor.
8.Alexander Vlahos
Alexander has said that he would love to play the Doctor. He has been a big fan for a long time, even telling RadioTimes that his earliest memory is watching “Doctor Who” on VHS. Having fans of the show has been a trend that was started with David Tennent as the 10th Doctor. Peter Capaldi was also a big fan of the show before he was cast as the Doctor. Alexander has tweeted many times that he wants to be a part of the Whoniverse, even tweeting at the official “Doctor Who” twitter account.
9.Domnhall Gleeson
Gleeson is another Harry Potter alumni who would be amazing as the Doctor. The Irish actor is well-known for his part in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” Many people were sure that he was going to become the 12th Doctor, but he was not approached to replace Matt Smith. Having him as the next Doctor would make a lot of fans happy, because fans of Domnhall and “Doctor Who” have wanted him in the role for a while. Domnhall is currently filming a movie, but he would be done by the time “Doctor Who” will be filming.