Axed Doctor Who star Millie Gibson joins Ncuti Gatwa at US premiere for new season
Axed Doctor Who Millie Gibson hit the red carper with new Doctor Ncuti Gatwa at the US premiere of the BBC show at Hollywood’s NeueHouse on Wednesday.
The sci-fi show will return on May 11 with two episodes, Space Babies and The Devil’s Chord, starring Ncuti, 31, as the Doctor and Corrie star Millie as sidekick Ruby Sunday – in the final scenes she will star in prior to her dismissal from the show.
Millie, 19, who is being replaced by Varada Sethu in the sci-fi series after her brief stint as a sidekick, wowed on the blue carpet alongside showrunner Russell T Davies.
The teen, who appeared in Coronation Street as Kelly Neelan between 2019 and 2022, cosied up to the new doctor, as she prepared to showcase her final scenes – which will air in both the UK and US this week.
Her red carpet display comes five months after it was first reported she had been written out by Russell after just one series – following the announcement she was being made the youngest ever sidekick in November.
Axed Doctor Who Millie Gibson hit the red carper with new Doctor Ncuti Gatwa at the US premiere of the BBC show at Hollywood’s NeueHouse on WednesdayThe sci-fi show will return on May 11 with two episodes, Space Babies and The Devil’s Chord, starring Ncuti, 31, as the Doctor and Corrie star Millie as sidekick Ruby Sunday – in the final scenes she will star in prior to her dismissal from the showThe teen, who appeared in Coronation Street as Kelly Neelan between 2019 and 2022, is showcasing her final scenes – which will air in both the UK and US this weekIn January, sources alleged that Millie had been written out of the show after just one series before news of Varada’s debut was confirmed last month (PICTURED: Millie, left, Ncuti, center, and Varada, right, seen announcing Varada’s new role in April )It was announced that Millie was set to make her debut over the festive season in 2023, just months before her departure was revealedDespite her departure, she has been blazing the promo trail for her series while her replacement Varada has been filming (Varada pictured on-set for the first time in January)
In November, during a special appearance at the 2022 Children in Need fundraiser her role as Ruby Sunday was announced, after which she branded the new role a ‘dream comes true’ before making her debut in the 2023 Christmas special.
In January however, sources alleged that she had been written out of the show after just one series before news of Varada’s debut was confirmed last month.
Despite her departure, she has been blazing the promo trail for her series while her replacement Varada has been filming.
Previous Doctor Who companion Bill Potts, portrayed by Pearl Mackie, only had a one-series run on the sci-fi show alongside Peter Capaldi’s version of the Doctor.
Other companions have stayed on the show for years, including Jenna Coleman’s Clara Oswald, Billie Piper’s Rose Tyler and Karen Gillan’s Amy Pond.
Millie looked ethereal as she embraced the carpet on Wednesday in a white floor-length dress which gathered over one shoulderRussell T Davies, Craig Erwich, Ncuti, Millie, Ayo Davis, and Charlie Andrew (LR) attended the premiere of the show on Wednesday nightNcuti is making his debut as the 15th Doctor in the iconic show
At Wednesday’s premiere Ncuti was feeling playful as he scrunched up his face in hilarious style. He cut a very trendy figure in his striking black and white two-piece pinstripe suit and a statement biker belt.
His double-breasted blazer featured 80s-inspired padded shoulders, which he layered over a basic black T-shirt.
Their appearance comes after the show’s runner Russell T Davies said it is time for a new incarnation of the Time Lord to carry ’emotions on the surface more visibly instead of hiding them away’ after years of being emotionally reserved.
Russell, who returned to the series as showrunner in 2022, described the Scot as ‘already one of our great actors’.
He said: ‘Quite by chance, I wanted a more emotional Doctor, and he and behold, we have cast someone whose emotions are vast, turbulent, and visible…
‘Historically, Doctors have tended to keep their emotions to themselves and play the game of being reserved. And the actors have done that brilliantly…
For the outing, she exuded Hollywood glamor with a golden makeup look and a wavy bobNcuti, 31, cut a very trendy figure as he wore a striking black and white two-piece pinstripe suit and a statement biker belt
‘But right now in 2024, I want a man who cries when it’s sad. And Ncuti does that to an astonishing degree.’
Russell said he couldn’t take his eyes off Ncuti during Netflix series Sex Education, in which he played Eric Effiong, and predicts in five years’ time he will be starring as the next James Bond in the MI6 film franchise.
He went on: ‘It’s so exciting that it inspires me. It generates stories in me. It’s an absolute joy to work with him.
The showrunner, executive producer and writer said the new sci-fi series will see an ’emotional’ Doctor open up about his family ‘in a way that he’s never done before’, as well as connect with Ruby Sunday – who is also an orphan .
‘It’s time for a new Doctor who carries those emotions on the surface more visibly instead of hiding them away,’ Russell said.
‘The Doctor doesn’t just wear one heart on their sleeve; They wear two hearts on their sleeve. I thought it was just the right time for that to be center stage.’
His double-breasted blazer featured 80s-inspired padded shoulders, which he layered over a basic black T-shirtThe Sex Education star finished his fabulous ensemble with a pair of shiny black chunky boots and a diamond hoop earring
The first episode titled Space Babies will see the Doctor and Ruby Sunday on a baby farm being run by babies facing off against a Bogeyman, alongside Bridgerton star Golda Rosheuvel, who will play Jocelyn in the episode.
Golda said she got to the end of a press tour for the Bridgerton prequel Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, and she told her agent she would love to next star in Doctor Who.
‘It’s one of those shows that every actor has their eye on. It’s like a rite of passage,’ she said.
‘I had auditioned for it several times over the years, and friends had always pipped me to the post. But now the timing was definitely right…
‘…I just randomly put the request out there, and it came back. So the stars, the solar system, the whole Doctor Who universe aligned.’
Gatwa said the monster in the first episode is ‘absolutely terrifying’. He said: ‘We certainly are on track to get a whole new generation of kids hiding behind the sofa.’
The second episode of the series will see the Doctor and Ruby Sunday meet The Beatles, but discover that the all-powerful Maestro – played by US drag queen and actor Jinkx Monsoon – is changing history.
Jinkx Monsoon, real name Jerick Hoffer, said ‘no-one cared that this was only my third live-action scripted TV appearance’, adding that Gatwa ‘was just so generous’ while filming.
Doctor Who will be released at midnight in the UK on BBC iPlayer, and Disney+ internationally. The first two episodes will then air on BBC One at 6:20pm.
Doctor Who will be released at midnight on Friday in the UK on BBC iPlayer, and Disney+ internationally. The first two episodes will then air on BBC One at 6:20pm
Doctor Who: What the critics think
Guardian
Rating:
‘Conventionally, an episode to open a much-anticipated new season will be tightly honed, but Space Babies bulges loosely, despite going to absurd lengths to accommodate new fans…
‘Much better is episode two, The Devil’s Chord, which takes the Doctor and Ruby to Abbey Road to witness the Beatles recording their debut album.
‘If the narrative’s ultimate message is sentimental, amounting as it does to Davies saying, ”I love music, me! It’s brilliaaaaant!”, [Jinx] Monsoon’s wicked-witch flamboyance gives it a menacing edge.’
The Telegraph
Rating:
‘Mostly, there’s nothing here to scare anyone who has recently graduated from Bluey and Peppa Pig… The talking babies make for a silly bit of storytelling, but I enjoyed it on my children’s behalf.’
‘[The Devils Chord] has a good opening scene but then goes on for what feels like forever, with drag queen Jinkx Monsoon chewing the scenery as Maestro.
‘The main asset of the new Doctor Who is Gatwa, who carries the series along with the force of his megawatt charisma. When the Doctor tells someone: ”Nobody grows up wrong. You are what you are, and that is magnificent,” it may be another example of Davies hammering home a point, but in Gatwa’s delivery it becomes a joyful message of self-acceptance.’
Variety
‘Even with this new energy, some episodes are more riveting than others. Episode 2 leans into the twist-dancing and beehive hair of the ’60s.
‘But it doesn’t quite come together, despite Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon’s appearance as the music-stealing Maestro. Yet the profound bond between Ruby and the Doctor keeps the season from ever going off-kilter.’
The Radio Times – Space Babies
Rating:
‘Space Babies is a frothy sci-fi romp that serves as a solid jumping-on point for newcomers but should also satisfy traditionalists with its scares, larks and intergalactic derring-do.
‘More than in his two previous appearances, Gatwa gets to run the gamut of the Doctor’s emotional complexity here – their joie de vivre, their compassion, their absolute compulsion to keep on moving forward and never look back, but also their shattering loneliness. ‘
The Radio Times – The Devils Chord
Rating:
‘Maestro is a villain that feels like they could jump out of the screen and they’re impossible to look away from. It’s almost difficult to hate them because it’s clear how much Monsoon relished bringing such a camp, theatrical and, in the best way, completely ridiculous villain to mainstream TV.
‘Is The Devil’s Chord a perfect Doctor Who story? Absolutely not. But it’s vivid, silly, gripping, and sees our brand new Doctor battle a larger than life villain across the streets of 1960s London. We could certainly be doing a lot worse.’
The Times
Space Babies
Rating:
‘In the opening two episodes of his first full series with his new Doctor, Ncuti Gatwa, and companion, Ruby Sunday, Davies certainly goes to amazing places with an almost child-like glee — all aided by dollops of cash from his co-producer Disney that can really be seen on screen.’
‘There are also some pointed ”Russellisms” here too – we get a homily on refugees, one of the babies is told that no one is made ”wrong” and the Doctor says that ”monsters … [are] just creatures you haven’t met yet.
The Devil’s Chord
Rating:
‘The sound of Who is an important part of the show that is overdue a celebration and it’s one of many perfectly judged imaginative leaps that Davies is clearly keen to take. His new Who’s definitely got his mojo back.’
Collider
Davies adds a richness to the stories of the previous era and stitches Fifteen’s journey to that of the past Doctors, with the help of Gatwa’s well-researched performance.
‘Nothing’s been glossed over or ignored, despite not necessarily being required viewing for new audiences to keep up.’
IGN
‘The Sex Education breakout is electric in its new role, encapsulating everything that The Doctor is on the surface, utilizing a youthful energy that’s tied up in, or even masking, a mind that’s lived for thousands of years.’
‘There’s a familiar feeling to this new era, but Episodes 1 and 2 still sparkle with ingenuity and embrace the changes at every opportunity. If that isn’t Doctor Who, then I don’t know what it is.’
