Actor Matt Smith Will Be 11th Doctor Who

Jerry Smith was among a large number of readers letting us know that the 11th Doctor Who has been named. It's Matt Smith, 26, who will be the youngest actor to play the time-traveling Doctor. The head of drama at BBC Wales said this about Smith's audition: "It was abundantly clear that he had that 'Doctor-ness' about him. You are either the Doctor or you are not."

Comments

Waiting

[lostinbrave]

I heard about this earlier I am waiting out to see his performance as the doctor, before I start judging.

Re:Waiting

[Anonymous Coward]

Be honest... Doctor Who has been moving towards being a lame version of Buffy the vampire slayer. This is just one more step: Doctor Who The Teenage Years (yeah he's 26... so are most "teen" US TV actors).

Boston Legal had it right - no-one over the age of 50 is allowed on TV these days. The Doctor Who writers haven't got a fucking clue... just like every other TV hack, they assume that children will only watch other children or young adults.

Re:Waiting

[grantek]

You've got a point, having such a young Doctor will throw a new light on the Doctor-companion dynamic - Matt's younger than Freema Agyeman (Martha), and is the same age as Billie Piper (Rose), although he will be starting the show 5 years after she did. The relationship always had a "fatherly" element that stopped it going too far and getting in the way of the show.

Re:Waiting

[garett_spencley]

"The relationship always had a "fatherly" element that stopped it going too far and getting in the way of the show."

Getting in the way of the show ? Have you actually bothered to LOOK at Rose ? IMO the show is getting in the way of the porn.

Re:Waiting

[Anonymous Coward]

Actor and age when they started Doctor Who:

William Hartnell - 56
Patrick Troughton - 46
Jon Pertwee - 51 (He will always be Worzel Gummidge to me)
Tom Baker - 40
Peter Davidson - 29
Colin Baker - 40
Sylvester McCoy - 44
Paul McGann - 37
Christopher Eccleston - 41
David Tennant - 34
Matt Smith - 27 (when he starts playing the part in 2010 not now)

So only 2 of the Doctors were over 50 when he started. Yeah it is some ageist conspiracy alright. The BBC have cast 2 people under 40 in a row as the Doctor! OMGWTFBBQ! I think people's nostalgia tinted glasses are getting the better of them. You need to take them off and get over yourself. The doctor's age has clearly fluctuated a lot over the years. But Davidson to McCoy really ruins the age downward trend conspiracy. Seeing as Matt Smith is only 2 year shy of Peter Davidson's age I fail to see the problem really. Plus I'm 32 and the guy looks older than me.

I'm not gonna be a precious fanboy and will wait to see how his Doctor turns out. Like Tennant if he is good then he is good. And by the way anyone considering they have cast a pretty boy might want to take a look at the guy. My mom said politely when she said his face has "character". Me I think he looks like the guy in the film "Mask".

Re:Waiting

[Artifakt]

Perhaps increased budgets and high popularity, plus all the improvements in special effects since, say Tom Baker, mean it's more possible to do more stories where lots of physical movement, agility, and sheer conditioning play a part. A young Doctor is a Doctor who can run. Remember Tennant (as the Doctor) describing the job? "Well.. and running, lots and lots of running.".
 

Re:Waiting

[PCM2]

Probably very true. Remember how much of the old Who episodes took place inside the TARDIS control center? A bunch of characters standing around a room with the walls painted white, pondering the "readings" from "the scanner." That stuff has been all but nixed in the new show. And where would the old show cut to after a nice, long scene inside the TARDIS? Probably to the bridge of a starship, where a man sitting in a chair would have an argument with a standing man about orders from "the Company." Or maybe to the drawing-room of an English mansion, where a sinister-looking man in period dress would have a conversation with another man, who would then leave via the door. Or maybe to a long shot of a quarry, where a man in a nylon jumpsuit holding some kind of gizmo would stagger for a while, before succumbing to an unseen foe. The new show is far, far less static than the original, in general -- and though it jarred me at first, in hindsight I have to say that's a very good thing.

Re:Waiting

[RichardJenkins]

I'd agree, but remember it's not just David Tennant leaving the show but Russel T Davis, the creative force behind much of the remake.

You're best off looking not just at the general trend of the episodes, but who wrote them. Most of the schmultzy luvvy duvvy episodes that I (and most others here I'd wager) aren't fond of were written by Russel.

Steven Moffat is taking over Russels position as the shows head writer, and I reckon that his episodes are some of my favourite.

28 year old actor playing the part? Hmm, will reserve judgement on that one until 2010.

Re:Waiting

[h4rm0ny]

I think not only the quality casting leads to the shows great popularity, but that they actually have decent story arcs. There are some howlers, but there are also some great moments. In "The Last of the Time Lords" where Martha Jones returns to confront the Master, the Doctor derisively asks the Master if he really thought that the Doctor would have asked her to bring a gun. The contempt in the word veritiably drips off Tennant's tongue and you know, exactly, that this wouldn't be in character for the Doctor's beliefs and he finds his own solution based on people's hope (and cleverness). So many programs and films today have no greater sophistication in their heroes than the ability to get back up after being shot and throw one last heroic punch. The Doctor is a character who wins without the cheating power of plot (mostly) but rather through staying a few steps ahead of his adversaries. That's why two of his best enemies are the Daleks (unreasoning military force, creating the tension between intellect and violence) and the Master (the clash of two equally powerful intellects).

Matt Smith

[robvangelder]

Who?

Re:interesting choice

[dbIII]

John Pertwee was the best Doctor - now get off my lawn!

I think it really depends on when you first started watching it.

Re:interesting choice

[fermion]

I think they did the pretty boy with Peter Davidson. The companions, fortunately, have been more focused on interesting features rather than just pretty, though for the girls there is often a focus on cleavage and legs. Ah, recall Sladen in the gratuitous swimming costume on one of her early episodes. I think Baker was only definitive because she was by his side.

In terms of doctors, look at some of the original William Hartnell stuff. It was a different show, more classically inspired, more logical, less magical thinking and gadgets. It was interesting. The show changes as new people get involves, not only actors by also writers. For instance, the decision to destroy K-9 and get back to more thinking show, what if this happened, who would we react?

Clearly in the new incarnation, Dr. Who is falling dangerous close to the romantic dramedy formula. For some reason we are now given a tortured Doctor. Not sure why. But this casting may indicate that we may be in for even more teen and young adult angst, something that was previously reserved for the companions, and even then it did not work out wonderfully. How man of us loved Turlough? Or it may just be that they want someone who will stay awhile, and not be so expensive. The danger is he may not be any good, and may never want to leave. As wonderful as Tom Baker was, I think he stayed too long, and damaged the ability of the show to rejuvenate when another doctor replaced him.