Doctor Who Star Regenerates Into Billie Piper, But Fans Think She's Not Actually Playing The Doctor

Doctor Who prima Ncuti Gatwa has discontinue the amusement and passed his Time Lord baton to Billie Piper — but fans judge each is not what it seems.

This weekend's play finale saw Gatwa permission the BBC's large sci-fi amusement aft 18 episodes successful the rubric role, and regenerate into a quality played by erstwhile bid regular Billie Piper.

But is Piper really playing the Doctor? As the credits rolled, Gatwa (and the returning Jodie Whittaker, who popped up for a beauteous cameo) were some credited arsenic The Doctor. Piper was not. Instead, the credits simply noted "And introducing Billie Piper" to admit her astonishment reveal, without a relation named.

Piper antecedently starred alongside Christoper Ecclestone's Ninth Doctor and David Tennant's Tenth Doctor arsenic loyal companion/love involvement Rose Tyler, who was past seen settling down with different mentation of Ten successful a parallel universe.

But Piper besides aboriginal returned arsenic The Moment, a sentient limb with a humanoid interface, which was cardinal to the series' 50th day occurrence The Day of the Doctor.

Of course, successful erstwhile years, an actor's regneration series has ever been utilized to manus disconnected from 1 pb histrion playing the Doctor to the next. So, the aboveground accusation present would evidently beryllium that Ncuti Gatwa's Fifteenth Doctor has go Billie Piper's Sixteenth Doctor.

In-universe, regeneration is simply a process of renewal — portion the Doctor's assemblage and property changes, they are inactive playing the aforesaid entity.

But the credits tease, the astonishment casting of Billie Piper, and the world of the show's existent accumulation presumption has fans wondering otherwise, particularly aft erstwhile shenanigans astir the series' past regeneration.

Remember, of course, that Gatwa's Doctor appeared done a caller benignant of regeneration not seen earlier — bigeneration, allowing him and Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor to coexist. Have we conscionable seen a caller benignant of regeneration again, if Piper has not been officially confirmed arsenic The Doctor?

"What if this is the adjacent portion of bigeneration," 1 instrumentality wondered connected reddit, "re-merging with 14 present 15 has finished their therapy, and the Rose/Bad Wolf is the last portion that returns to 14 for the brace to go 16 freshly?"

And past there's the practicalities of the series' existent production. The BBC has maintained that a determination to renew the amusement by itself and co-production spouse Disney would lone instrumentality spot aft the existent play has ended. This has led to immoderate disorder among fans and successful the media implicit the show's future. Currently, nary confirmation of a caller season, oregon docket for it to beryllium filmed, has been laid out.

With Gatwa acceptable connected leaving and the show's aboriginal inactive to beryllium announced, the BBC would person faced the enactment of casting the adjacent Doctor without being capable to corroborate erstwhile (or if) they'd beryllium needed to return. Alternatively, the amusement could person breached normal by not showing who Gatwa's Doctor regenerated into — though this would person apt lone led to a greater question people implicit the show's existent status.

"I don't deliberation the writers themselves cognize who Billie is playing. It seems similar specified a past infinitesimal determination to formed her that was lone done to debar having an unfastened ended regeneration," different instrumentality said. "So she could beryllium The Doctor. She could besides not be. I don't deliberation they decided yet."

Is Billie Piper the caller Doctor? Photo by Kate Green/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA.

Piper's confirmation arsenic the look of the amusement going guardant — whether for a afloat season, a special, oregon thing other — astatine slightest anchors the amusement for now, and prompts instrumentality speculation. Could she beryllium playing The Moment again? Maybe she's the Valeyard, a long-teased aboriginal evil incarnation of the Doctor? Or possibly she truly is the Sixteenth Doctor? After all, Tennant's Fifteen lone stuck astir for a fistful of peculiar episodes.

"It reads arsenic a gag but [the showrunner] conscionable brought backmost Sutekh, Omega, and Two Rani's," different instrumentality wrote. "What funnier mode to yet bring backmost the Valeyard than with Rose's look and to marque them the manic/overemotional aspects of the Doctor's property alternatively of the grumpy/dark ones arsenic the quality was introduced."

With nary episodes presently successful production, fans deliberation Doctor Who is present improbable to instrumentality to screens overmuch earlier 2027 — truthful it whitethorn beryllium immoderate clip earlier we find retired what's happening next.

Photo by Kate Green/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social