Playing The Doctor on the long-running BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who is not a job you take for life. Due to the nature of the show, the actor playing The Doctor frequently changes, and there are some unwritten real-world around that, too.
The most popular Doctors are also the two who played the part the longest; Tom Baker, known his flamboyant scarf, had the longest tenure at seven seasons and David Tennant, who took over the relaunched series in its first Christmas special, did three seasons and a long string of specials that could be considered a fourth. No one since has played the roles longer than these two, and until someone comes along who engenders the same sort of love from the fandom, it’s unlikely anyone will stay in the role as long as they did.
Jodie Whittaker is great as The Doctor, but her tenure has been accompanied by some terrible writing and poorly-received plots that have overshadowed just how good a performance she’s given as an actor under those circumstances. The forthcoming season of the show, set to air in the fall, will be her third with the show, and that’s when both Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi chose to bow out in respect to David Tennant’s tenure.
U.K. tabloid The Mirror is reporting that Whittaker’s exit from the series has already been decided by the actress herself and that the production crew is getting ready to film a regeneration at the end of production.
I still think Kris Marshall, star of My Family and Death in Paradise, would be the best choice if the show is going to go with a known actor for the role. But really, it would be better if The Doctor was someone who was less well-known.
The BBC has simply offered a “no comment” to the report, saying “We won’t be commenting on any speculation around Jodie’s future on the show.”