The news that Peter Capaldi is leaving his role as the titular timelord on BBC’s Doctor Who has, understandably, kicked off a flurry of speculation about who will replace him. The role of the Doctor is considered one of the highest profile spots in popular culture, but this time round the scrutiny is likely to be even more intense than usual. The reason for this added interest is the fact that, for the next Doctor, the BBC is widely thought to be planning to stray from their traditional choice of a white male.
There have been calls for more diverse casting from Doctor Who fans for many years now, but 2017 looks likely to be the year a woman or person of color might finally be given the iconic role. Peter Capaldi and past Doctor, David Tennant, have both offered suggestions on who should get the role next, and both of them suggested female actors. Capaldi put forward the name of Harry Potter actress, Frances de la Tour, while Tennant suggested Broadchurch and Peep Show star, Olivia Colman.
Colman has been a been a hotly-tipped favorite to take the role ever since the news of Capaldi’s resignation broke, but now it would appear that a new frontrunner has emerged, one with some serious heavyweight credentials.
According to UK betting group Ladbrokes, a huge betting trend (yes, people are laying some serious coin down on this) has emerged in the last 2 or 3 days, with punters heavily backing the chameleon-like actress, Tilda Swinton. As a result, Ladbrokes and most other oddsmakers have placed Swinton firmly at the top of their lists, offering odds of 7/2 for her to get the role.
In truth, it would be hard to be disappointed with either Colman or Swinton getting the role. Colman possesses an acting style that could inject both whimsy and drama to the role, while Oscar-winning Swinton has regularly shown that she is capable of excelling at just about any role put in front of her.
However, there is still a chance that the next Doctor will be another white male, with Love Actually’s Kris Marshall currently in second place in bookmakers’ eyes. Check out a full list of the bookies’ favorites below:
- Tilda Swinton (Snowpiercer, Doctor Strange) 7/2
- Kris Marshall (Love Actually) 4/1
- Olivia Colman (Broadchurch, Peep Show) 5/1
- Maine Peake (The Theory of Everything) 8/1
- Richard Ayoade (The I.T Crowd) 10/1
- Ben Wishaw (Skyfall, Paddington) 10/1
- Andrew Buchan (Broadchurch) 10/1
- Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag) 12/1
Who’s your money on? Let us know in the comments below.
