After appearing in a small role in An Adventure In Space And Time, the BBC’s dramatization of the beginning of Doctor Who, Reece Shearsmith will now be making the jump to actual Doctor Who in what Deadline is calling “a special episode.” Mark Gatiss wrote the episode, and he refers to it as “very scary,” but that’s all we know about it except that it will be a part of the show’s new season that starts on September 19. However, this casting announcement is especially notable because Shearsmith played Patrick Troughton, the second Doctor, in An Adventure In Space And Time.
Now, as cool as it would be, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Shearsmith is playing the second Doctor. Deadline says the episode will be “special,” but Gatiss only says it will be “scary.” We assume that if one of the other Doctors were going to appear on the show—even if it’s a different actor playing one of the other Doctors—the BBC would make a big deal about it. It’d put out press releases confirming it, it’d release images of Shearsmith in costume, and it’d do everything it could to let us all know how exciting it’d be. Since the BBC isn’t doing those things, Shearsmith is probably just playing someone who isn’t The Doctor. Still, you never know. He could be The Doctor wearing a disguise.