What would you say to a fan who wants more diversity in all of Doctor Who, but who doesn’t necessarily believe the Doctor should be played by a woman? Throughout the show (especially the classic series) the Doctor has always been portrayed as a very strong father figure. Although the original showrunners might not have conceived of the Doctor this way, that’s what its become. What are your thoughts?
Sometimes the Doctor is a father figure, and sometimes the Doctor is your best friend. He comforts you and berates you. He guides his companions and depends on their perspective. He’s old and wise and weary, and he’s young-at-heart and curious and meddlesome. Basically, the Doctor is many things. Sometimes he is a father figure, but I would argue that he is not just a father figure.
But I’d would also ask: Why shouldn’t a woman portray that kind of character? We tend to think many of the Doctor’s characteristics are “male” or “father figure” characteristics: his wisdom, his power and authority, that slightly paternalistic and condescending way he treats the people around him. But really, there’s no reason why those characteristics couldn’t be portrayed by a woman.
In fact, that would be an utterly fascinating character. Show me a woman who unquestionably commands respect and authority, who is eager for new experiences but frequently betrays a sense of weariness with all she has seen. Give me a woman who is fiercely intelligent, and clever and who can get away with being slightly condescending because she’s just brilliant. And we’ll forgive her because we know she believes that every person is important (or because we knew that jerk had it coming to them).
I know it’s hard to view the Doctor as anyone but a man when there’s such a strong association between those “father figure” characteristics and men, but I’d urge you to challenge yourself and try to imagine a woman taking on that kind of role. You can start by watching Laura Roslin in Battlestar Galactica.
