Turns out Doctor Who isn’t replacing companions after all
Rather than replacing Millie Gibson, Varada Sethu will join her as a second companion for Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor
Aux News Doctor Who
Ruby Sunday’s safe for now! Previously, it was reported that a new companion would replace Millie Gibson on Doctor Who. However, those rumors—which originated in The Mirror, so it was always a grain of salt situation—turned out to be slightly inaccurate. News out of Whoville today is that Varada Sethu (Andor) will actually join Gibson as a second companion to Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor in the second series of the show’s Disney+ era.
“I feel like the luckiest person in the world. It is such an honour to be a part of the Whoniverse, and I’m so grateful to the whole Doctor Who family—because that is what they are—for welcoming me with open arms and making me feel so at home,” Sethu said in a statement. “I couldn’t ask for a better team than Ncuti and Millie to be on this adventure with, this is SO much fun!”
Showrunner Russell T. Davies added, “I first worked with Varada on a BBC production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and it’s a joy to welcome her on board the TARDIS. Right now in the studio, shooting for 2025, we’ve got Ncuti, Millie and Varada fighting side by side – we need all three, because the stakes are higher than ever!”
In January, The Mirror claimed that Davies had made the decision to write Gibson off the show at the end of filming her first series, describing it as a “shock twist.” The most shocking bit about it was that at the time, we’d only seen one episode with Gibson and Gatwa together, so it was a bit jarring to already be looking towards her departure. However, given that many companions over the course of the show’s long history only stuck around for one full season (Martha, Bill, and Dan, to name a few in the modern era), it didn’t seem unreasonable that she might depart.
Of course, all of the speculation was happening (and still is) when we’ve barely gotten to see Gatwa in action. Though his second season has already gone into production, the 14th season doesn’t begin airing until May 11. That said, since the speculation has already begun, let’s take it a little further: maybe the truth about Sethu being a replacement or an additional companion lies somewhere in between. We can look to the example of another young, plucky, blonde Davies character, Rose Tyler, who left after the second season and then returned for guest appearances in the fourth. The Who source told The Mirror in January that Gibson had “all but left,” meaning perhaps her storyline in the 15th season sees her getting written out in some way for plot reasons, leaving Sethu as the only companion. Maybe Ruby is only there for the first part of the season, or maybe she leaves and comes back in some fashion like Rose did. Whatever the case, Davies surely has something juicy and dramatic cooking to put those companions in peril.
11 Comments
Well, that’s all right, then!
Can this one PLEASE not be a mystery box companion? I audibly GROANED when I realized Ruby was going to be ANOTHER Amy/Clara/Bill.
ENOUGH. STOP IT. The adventure is supposed to be the draw, not the mystery.
The adventure still is the draw. But it’s pretty obvious how getting to know a companion over a season is a simple way of making a season-long arc pay off at the end. Arguably perhaps a bit too simple, but there are worse ideas.
Also I’d say only Clara was a real mystery box character, and that was only during the Matt Smith era. Amy Pond had mysteries happen to her, but it’s not like her being River Song’s mum was her only arc. And Bill was just another companion, wasn’t she? There was no real foreshadowing that she’d become the first Cyberman. It just ended up being her fate. Not really a mystery box.
So, yeah, it seems Ruby has some mystery around her birth. It’s a time travel show, they can do that. The main thing is that the story is interesting and entertaining. If they can do that then they can have all the mystery boxes they like.
They’re all so damn pretty.
I want to see them all kiss lots
These bitches love BBC. Both kinds!
No one cares about your mom’s preferences
Historically many Who companions have only stayed around for one season, but it is starting to be rare enough that it would have been surprising if it had been the case for Millie Gibson. Also some of the recent one season companions have either been big time enough (Catherine Tate, Freema Agyeman) to only want to commit to one season or just a victim of timing, like Pearl Mackie who ended up basically having to leave when Peter Capaldi left to clear the decks for the new showrunner
Well don’t those people claiming it was “wOkEnEsS gOnE mAd” feel stupid now, eh?
…
No. No, those people don’t have the capacity for self-reflection.
So what’s going on with Yasmin Finney? It really felt like they were setting her up to have a more significant role after the specials, but it doesn’t seem to be playing out that way.
AFAIK she was just part of the 60th anniversary specials.
Doesn’t mean they can’t bring her back in future though.