Sex Education star Ncuti Gatwa is the new Doctor Who, the first Black man to play the title role

The New York Times

The 29-year-old Rwandan-Scottish actor will succeed Jodie Whittaker as the 14th Doctor, starting in 2023. Incoming Doctor Who boss Russell T Davies tells Digital Spy Gatwa, who plays a gay man navigating his sexuality and identity in a religious Nigerian family on Netflix's Sex Education, was cast three months ago after "the most amazing audition." Gatwa reacted to the news in an interview with the BBC on BAFTAs red carpet. “It feels really amazing, it’s a true honor,” he said, adding: "This role is an institution. It’s so iconic and it means a lot to so many people, including myself, and so it makes everyone feel seen as well. It’s something that everyone can enjoy, so I feel very grateful to have had the baton handed over and I’m going to try to do my best.” Davies says of casting Gatwa: "It was the most amazing audition and he was the last person to audition. I thought someone else was a guaranteed hit, and then in he came, and that person will never know, sadly. I shouldn't do that because he simply stole it because he was so brilliant, and I just saw unlimited potential in him really, and that's what you're after, unlimited potential. We kept this secret for three months, and none of you got it. None of it leaked, none of you even guessed. He's so brilliant and so popular, it wasn't even a guess, so we're feeling a little bit victorious. There's been a few false stories out there and false tales and we posted a few posts ourselves, a couple of misleading things and we're very pleased that kind of worked. Not James Corden, we didn't plant that one. I never saw that one coming frankly, and I love James Corden. I talked to him about it, but we're very pleased."