Ncuti Gatwa thinks only 'true fans' of Doctor Who will embrace his casting

Ncuti Gatwa thinks only "true fans" of 'Doctor Who' will embrace his casting.

The 31-year-old actor has become the first openly gay and Black man to take on the role of the titular Time Lord, but argued that anyone who takes umbrage with the casting choice needs to remember that the entire concept of the show is about "regeneration".

He told Variety: " I feel like anyone that has a problem with someone who’s not a straight white man playing this character, you’re not really, truly a fan of the show. You’ve not been watching! "

"Because the show is about regeneration and the doctor is an alien. Why would they only choose to be this sort of person?"

Meanwhile, showrunner Russell T Davies is keen to use the latest series of the hit sci-fi show to promote the importance of mental health, as he stressed he wants viewers to see the series as an example of embracing self-worth.

He said: "A Doctor of old is someone who would be a little bit aloof. Then by chance I cast the man who couldn’t hide his emotion if he tried. The one thing I keep seeing now is the fragility of the mental health of young people.

"So that’s the hero I wanted for them. If that younger audience is feeling so much, I wanted the doctor to feel it on screen as well.

"Whether you’re 12 years old, just beginning to work out who you are, 62 years old, and you’ve never been who you are, or 61 years old, like I am and beginning to worry about where we are in society, there is a hero out there cutting his way through the universe, looking damn good in his suits and doing it with a laugh and a smile."