Speculation is mounting over the future of Jodie Whittaker after reports she will depart Doctor Who at the end of the upcoming series, putting an end to her tenure in the Tardis after three years.
On Sunday, the Daily Mirror reported that Whittaker intended to leave the BBC show, which returns this autumn, with an anonymous source saying a new Doctor would emerge when the next “regeneration” happens.
A BBC spokesperson said it would not comment on the reports regarding Whittaker. Her co-stars Bradley Walsh and Tosin Cole left the programme in the New Year’s Day episode.
Whittaker made history when she became the first woman to play the Doctor after she followed Peter Capaldi, making her first appearance in the show’s 2017 Christmas special.
The actor’s time in the Tardis has signalled a step-change in the way the show operates, with Whittaker’s iteration of the show having a reduced number of episodes and a new Sunday night slot.
Whittaker’s Doctor Who tenure has been considered a success, with the launch show being the most watched for a decade with 9 million viewers tuning in. The show has also evolved during her time with a virtual reality episode released in 2019 and a mini DIY episode airing in March shortly after national coronavirus lockdown measures came into force.
Whittaker has spoken about the pressure of playing the role, telling a crowd at Comic Con in 2018 that she was “somehow representing all women ever in playing this part”, while her male colleagues who were new to the show did not have the same attention.
Speculation will mount as to who could follow Whittaker if she is to depart at the end of the 13th series, with the role of the Doctor still one of the most coveted and high-profile acting roles in the UK.
Names said to be in the running for the role include Friday Night Dinner’s Tom Rosenthal, the Death in Paradise star Kris Marshall, the Fleabag creator, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and the Homeland actor David Harewood.
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