There have been 13 “official” Doctors in the increasingly confusing world of Doctor Who. While there have been deviations in this in the form of spin-offs and specials, the Doctor role remains coveted, and when a new one makes their way through the Tardis and onto TV screens, it’s an event. With Jodie Whittaker, the current Doctor, stepping down from the role next year, the hunt for a new Doctor is on. Who’s it going to be? Well, if you ask Whoopi Goldberg, it should be Whoopi Goldberg. Per Deadline, Goldberg told the crowd at the Edinburgh TV Festival, where she was named this year’s International Icon, that she wants the gig and has been interested in it for a while. Who are we to deny an EGOT winner her dream?
“I wanted to be Doctor Who and I still do,” she said. “I think it would mean an evolution into being American and I don’t know that that’s correct for Doctor Who. I don’t know I can usurp that. As much as I love it, I love watching it still in all the iterations.” But, as Whoopi points out, this would be a significant change for the decidedly very English series. But is the world ready for an American Doctor? Whoopi isn’t so sure. “There are certain things that are blatantly all English. Doctor Who is like that to me. It’s like Marmite. It’s very English and needs to stay that way.”
Still, it’s hard not to get wrapped up in the idea of Whoopi as the Doctor. She’s certainly got the gravitas and the humor. But a Doctor without an English accent? It doesn’t seem likely that fans or Whoopi are that excited about it, but maybe if there’s ever an American adaptation. Never mind, let’s not go down that road.