Ncuti Gatwa

Ncuti Gatwa (born 15 October 1992 ) is a Rwandan-Scottish BAFTA-winning actor who played the Fifteenth Doctor in Doctor Who, starting with the 60th Anniversary Specials, following his predecessor's regeneration. Gatwa has had roles in television, film, and theatre.

Gatwa had the distinction of being the very first black actor to spearhead the series in the titular role, although he wasn't the first black actor to portray the Doctor, being preceded by Lenny Henry, Daniel Anthony, and Jo Martin.

Early life
Gatwa was born in the, in , Rwanda , on 15 October 1992  , but he and his family fled to Scotland in 1994 following the.

During his childhood, he lived in and Edinburgh, but he always felt different from everyone around him, as nobody, not student nor adult nor role model, shared his heritage in Scotland. Gatwa was trained at the, obtaining a  in acting.

He describes himself as a "Rwandan-Scotsman", a term he coined.

Career
Gatwa notably performed in stage plays such as, A Midsummer Night's Dream , and 's Victoria. His first role in television was in (series two, The Van) as an unnamed customer in 2014. The series also starred Brian Cox.

Gatwa starred in Netflix's as Eric Effiong, an openly gay character who was prasied for not being a caricature, as one may expect from the typcial portrayal of black and gay characters in television and film, due to Eric being fully fleshed out as a character and never being played "second fiddle" to Otis (the primary protagonist of the series). The series also co-starred the likes of Gillian Anderson.

In 2022, Gatwa was awarded an by the. The RCS informally called him a "Doctor of Drama".

Casting and announcement
Russell T Davies explained with the casting of Gatwa, that his casting wasn't just about "diversity and representation", explaining...

Davies did also punctuate that he considered "diversity and representation [to be] very important." Russell later added: "Sometimes talent walks through the door and it’s so bright and bold and brilliant, I just stand back in awe and thank my lucky stars. Ncuti dazzled us, seized hold of the Doctor and owned those TARDIS keys in seconds. It’s an honour to work with him, and a hoot, I can’t wait to get started." When Gatwa was told that he had got the role, in around March, he didn't tell anyone about it, including his co-stars in the 2023 film.

On 17 April it was revealed by BBC entertainment correspondent Lizo Mzimba in a BBC News article that the Jodie Whittaker's successor as the Doctor was "expected to be revealed in the coming weeks".

On 8 May, Gatwa teased his role on the series on his Instagram account, where he posted a white image with the emojis of "❤️❤️➕🟦" on it; shortly thereafter, it was officially announced that Gatwa would be joining the series. Big Finish Productions quickly joked that people would start Tweeting at them about any boxsets featuring his Doctor.

By 27 May, however, Gatwa had to hire security for himself and his family following the announcement of his casting.

In a mini-interview released on 25 October, Gatwa expressed his excitement for taking on the role, despite it being "daunting", following in the footsteps of the many actors before him, but was looking forward to putting his "own stamp on the Doctor".

Casting reception
Many Doctor Who actors praised the casting of Gatwa.

Lenny Henry, prior to the broadcast of his role in Spyfall, criticised Doctor Who for never having "a black Doctor Who", jokingly adding "they would rather have a dog do Doctor Who than a black person. [Barking noise]." When Gatwa was announced in the role, Henry strongly praised Russell T Davies for the casting, stating "a lot of black fans have been looking at our watches for a while! More power to Russell T Davies." Matt Smith, who played the Eleventh Doctor, called the casting "inspired", adding that Gatwa has a "real warmth and wit and a real depth to his talent", and other actors also shared their opinions: Jo Martin (the Fugitive Doctor) called Gatwa and Davies the "dream team"; Sophie Aldred (Ace) said "wicked!"; Nicola Bryant (Peri Brown) was "thrilled by this clever casting"; Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) was thrilled about the new actor; Louise Jameson (Leela) said "I think we're going to LOVE him"; and Katy Manning (Jo Grant) had "total confidence he will be wonderful". Sylvester McCoy (the Seventh Doctor) welcomed Gatwa to the "Doctor Who club" in a video message he released on Twitter, and when Gatwa was announced, McCoy texted Paul McGann (the Eighth Doctor), telling him "Scots four, Scousers two", in reference to the nationalities of himself, McGann, and other actors to play the role of the Doctor. McGann, while initially unfamiliar with Gatwa, watched his performance in Sex Education, and thought highly of it. He also praised the casting of someone youthful, as he felt that the series needed someone like him as opposed to another middle-aged white male.

On 11 May, Gatwa released an, responding to McCoy's video message thanking him for his "beautiful message [...] especially from a fellow Scot." He also thanked the other actors for their support.

Outside of regular Doctor Who actors, other actors also supported the casting of Gatwa. , co-star of 2023's, wore a t-shirt that featured fanart produced by Matthew Purchase. The Official Doctor Who Twitter account praised the artwork and retweeted it, and Russell T Davies joked that the BBC was going to sue Gosling over the "illegal merch".

In the role
Gatwa had a role in the costume chosen for his Doctor. The Fifteenth Doctor first appeared in the Short Trips audio story The World Tree, as per the intent of the writer, Nick Slawicz, although not voiced by Gatwa. However, Slawicz revealed on Twitter due to Gatwa's costume reveal caming a "couple of weeks" after he submitted his final draft, he wasn't able to give a description of Gatwa's costume in the story.

Doctor Who
As the Fifteenth Doctor
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