Doctor Who: Jodie Whittaker Credits Chris Chibnall for Thirteenth Doctor Casting


There is little doubt that Jodie Whittaker is one of the most memorable incarnations of the Time Lord on Doctor Who. However, the Attack the Block star credits one man for making sure she nabbed the role in the first place. Whittaker says that exiting showrunner Chris Chibnall was crucial in her casting as the Thirteenth Doctor.

Back in 2017, it was confirmed that Chris Chibnall would take over as the head writer and showrunner of Doctor Who following Steven Moffat and Brian Minchin's exit. Soon, it was confirmed that Jodie Whittaker will play the thirteenth incarnation of the Doctor.

For most Whovians, Whittaker's casting was a stroke of genius and the Black Mirror star wants fans to know that it was Chris Chibnall who made it all happen.

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“For a long time, I don’t think anyone knew that I had a Yorkshire accent and laughed a lot. Had Chris not been the person to give me this job I don’t think I’d have been seen for it,” Whittaker told Radio Times.

She continued by sharing how Chibnall got to understand who she truly is when they worked together on Broadchurch. According to Whittaker, the writer saw her for who she truly is, who is “a bit fidgety, a bit twitchy, doesn’t sit still, tries to have about 15 conversations but doesn’t quite get to the end of any of them, winds everyone up because I’m really exhausting and I don’t know when to shut up…”

Either way, we're glad that Chibnall realized that Whittaker is the perfect person to play the Thirteenth Doctor. With that in mind, we're hoping that Whittaker returns to reprise her role in future Doctor Who projects.

The latest Doctor Who special featured Whittaker's regeneration where the Time Lord somehow incarnated into the Tenth Doctor played by David Tennant. It has since been confirmed that Tennant is playing the Fourteenth Doctor and the previously announced Ncuti Gatwa will be the Fifteenth Doctor.

Related: Doctor Who Moves to Disney+, Drops New Logo for 2023 Return

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