We speak with the Doctor himself, Ncuti Gatwa, and new companion Varada Sethu on their breaking new ground in representation in the latest season of Doctor Who, and the new type of dynamic for the Doctor from their characters.
Ncuti Gatwa has already made history as the first mainline Black Doctor with his casting, and now Varada Sethu and he make history as the first Doctor-Companion pairing of color. A Black Doctor and a brown companion paired together has literally never happened before in the over 60 year franchise! But besides that aspect, Gatwa and Sethu bring a rich new dynamic to the show, with Sethu’s Belinda Chandra being willing to challenge the Doctor in ways we haven’t seen in the character’s longstanding history.
Belinda, as played by Sethu, takes no crap. She’s practical and direct to a degree that’s unusual for Doctor Who, and promises for a unique adventure with the last of the Time Lords. To learn more about this new pairing and their dynamic, we spoke with Gatwa and Sethu on what fans can expect for the upcoming season. You can check out our conversation below.
Doctor Who streams Saturday, April 12 at 12:00am PT/3:00pm ET on Disney+, where available, and simultaneously on BBC iPlayer in the U.K.