Doctor Who: Who will be the next companion?

With Ncuti Gatwa confirmed as the 14th Doctor, all eyes are now on who will be accompanying the young actor in the TARDIS. Who is going to be the next companion?

Before it was announced that Russel T. Davies was returning as showrunner to Doctor Who we speculated who should take the helm of the show and of the TARDIS, so to celebrate Ncuti’s announcement, this is who we would love to see travel across time and space with the Doctor.

Given the actor himself is young, aged 29, all the names on this list will be within that age range, similar to how Matt Smith was 27, and Karen Gillan was 23.

Mawaan Rizwan

What many do not know about the comedian is that he also has acting, and filmmaking credits having also been a part of the Sex Education cast as a writer.

Rizwan has since starred in shows like Sky’s Two Weeks to Live alongside former Doctor Who stars Maisie Williams.

What would be brilliant to see would be Russel T. Davies taking two young British actors that aside from the odd piece of work are relatively unknown, and elevating them to stardom which Rizwan definitely deserves.

Similarly, as the show has a history of hiring comedic actors to become a companion like Catherine Tate, John Bishop and Matt Lucas, Mawaan would be a perfect fit.

Alice McMillan

What’s most interesting with how Russel T. Davies casts for Doctor Who is how he, and the production team, tend to go for relatively unknown actors, and Alice McMillan would definitely be a viable option.

As a young actress to match Gatwa’s youth, McMillan has had recent Hollywood success appearing in both parts of The Souvenir, a film co-starring Yasmin Paige from The Sarah Jane Adventures, and starring alongside Ryan Reynolds in The Hitman’s Bodyguard’s Wife, as well as finding roles in Amazon Prime’s Outlander series.

Lydia West

One cannot write about Russel T. Davies without mentioning Lydia West. She is a powerhouse at performing, with her career over the last few years showcasing just how phenomenal she can be.

Also starring in Years and Years with Madely, Lydia West additionally starred in Russel T. Davies’ It’s A Sin, as well as Steven Moffat’s Dracula, and more recently The Pentaverate on Netflix.

Even if Lydia isn’t the next companion, she is an actress to watch, and I would personally be astonished if she doesn’t get nominated, or win, the EE Rising Star Award at the forthcoming BAFTAs.

Ruth Madeley

Having previously worked with Russel T. Davies on Years and Years, Madeley has already built a close connection with the It’s A Sin writer, and in an era of Doctor Who set to revolutionise and shake up the scene, having Madeley accompany Gatwa would be a welcome addition.

If announced as a companion what would be a letdown would be if fans decided to focus on Madeley’s use of a wheelchair. I feel like that shouldn’t be the point of focus, she is a brilliant actress and her charming personality would easily balance Gatwa’s cheeky persona that audiences are familiar with from Sex Education.

Plus given Doctor Who has been full of able-bodied actors, who’s to say the companion can’t use a wheelchair?

Layton Williams

With Layton recently concluding his time on the West End in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, now would be a perfect time for the actor to turn his attention to Doctor Who.

From performances of Williams, he and Gatwa would clearly energise well together on set, with both adding a similar tone that would complement each other fantastically.

One thing is for sure, and that is that Russel T. Davies loves casting the unexpected actor so long as the individual in question has piqued the Queer as Folk writer’s interest.

In truth, only Bad Wolf Productions, the BBC and Russell T. Davies will have any idea on who would be the idea companion, so while we can speculate, there is nothing more we can do but wait.

Doctor Who will return to TV later this year for the BBC Centenary special when Jodie Whittaker will regenerate into Ncuti Gatwa. Gatwa’s first full episode as the Doctor will be in November 2023 when the show celebrates its 60th anniversary.