(Note: Portions of this article were taken from the LI Who 2023 panel bearing the same name that I moderated)

I started my journey in Doctor Who fandom 16 years ago. My timing was a bit off because I started between the end of Freema Agyeman’s companion run as Martha Jones and the beginning of Catherine Tate’s as Donna Noble. At that point in time I didn’t expect to see a Doctor who looked like me or even other main characters for a long time. The announcement of Ncuti Gatwa was confirmation that the hard work I and countless other Whovians of color have done over the years to make the fandom recognize racism as a problem was rewarded. So many white fans are also just as excited for the episodes following the 60th Anniversary specials, which is proof that things are getting better.

The Fifteenth Doctor symbolizes the hope of a bright future regarding racial representation in Doctor Who. Clear progress has been made as the show hasn’t always made decisions with racially diverse representation in mind. Modern Who has featured a Black Doctor from an alternate time plus several Black companions and friends of the Doctor, but these characters didn’t always have plotlines free of unexamined racial stereotypes. In addition, public opinion in fandom wasn’t always favorable to Black characters. Gatwa’s casting is proof that the decision-makers behind Doctor Who are considering a more radically inclusive course for the series.

All possibilities hinge on showrunner Russell T. Davies and others thinking outside the box in regards to hiring behind the scenes. Hiring more Black and POC screenwriters to write or consult on episodes would ensure that these bold possibilities are fully actualized. This is especially important given the previous critiques of Davies’s handling of Martha’s character. While Davies has gained experience with writing characters of color since his departure, he doesn’t have the life experiences racialized minorities would have that would make plotlines realistic to fans of color.

Why is there so much excitement for plotlines fans have no idea about yet? For Whovians of color, Chris Chibnall’s era represented positive progress in some regards and frustration in others. Many white fans derided the Timeless Child plotline in Season 12 for example for going against the previous canon. However, many fans of color saw the plotline as a more complex critique of colonialism and cultural appropriation than previous season arcs. This plotline was very popular with Whovians of color, but these sentiments were ignored or downplayed by Chibnall critics. Chibnall’s era also made a concentrated effort to diversify Doctor Who both on screen and behind the scenes. He featured Malorie Blackman and Vinay Patel as screenwriters. The BBC recently announced writers Kate Herron and Briony Redman are joining the series. Doctor Who definitely benefits from having more women writers, there are still hopes that Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor will have writing that is culturally relevant and specific from Black and POC screenwriters.

It must also be acknowledged that some fandom criticism for Chibnall’s era was in fact the result of racism, misogyny, and queerphobia disguised, and conflated with nostalgia for previous eras of the show. In addition, these sentiments are also fueling some corners of fandom to celebrate the 60th Anniversary specials more than the arrival of Ncuti Gatwa. Celebrating the future of Doctor Who shouldn’t depend on the erasure of the recent past. It’s concerning that some sections of fandom are only celebrating the possibilities of the Fifteenth Doctor solely because they hated Jodie Whitaker as a Doctor or Chris Chibnall’s writing.

Fifteen’s main companion is Ruby Sunday played by Millie Gibson. I was initially hoping for a Black or POC companion in the TARDIS but I believe Doctor Who has to cater to white British audiences who want at least one character who is like them. There’s still an opportunity for Ruby to have a different relationship with the Doctor compared to the recent past. A student-mentor relationship along the lines of Bill and Twelve or platonic buddies would still allow for the growth of Ruby’s character. I’m not entirely opposed to seeing a more romantic relationship but I remain concerned that the problems regarding Martha’s one-sided pining will resurface in this new era.

My primary source of excitement for this new era of Doctor Who is all of the Black and POC children who will be seeing the series for the first time ever. There are a lot of arguments both for and against Disney+ as the primary international distributor, however it cannot be disputed that Disney are experts in marketing to children. I’m looking forward to the same adorable videos of little Black kids reacting to the live-action The Little Mermaid trailer for Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor. Along with the growth of younger Whovian fans also comes the possibility of more adults from the Global South joining the fandom. The 2014 World Tour was a great reminder that the audience for the series is indeed global. Gatwa’s Doctor will definitely draw people in who may not have connected to the previous white Doctors. There will also definitely be Whovians of color returning to fandom who may have had mixed reactions to previous eras but want to support the TARDIS being piloted by a Black man. Space is indeed for all and I’m looking forward to welcoming all of these new and returning fans to the universe of Doctor Who.

The Fifteenth Doctor will be able to travel through all of time and space and one possibility for future episodes is Doctor Who embracing elements of Afrofuturism. So far, there are hints of the ethos in some of Gatwa’s costuming, but it would be even more amazing to see Afrofuturist-inspired episode locations and characters. While many would point to Black Panther and Wakanda Foreverin terms of recent Afrofuturism on screen, there’s an even better example from the BBC. Afrofuturism was a key part of their television adaptation of Malorie Blackman’s Noughts & Crosses YA dystopian book series. Although the future of Noughts + Crosses is not clear at the time of writing, the idea of Fifteenth Doctor encountering the future of the African diaspora whether in outer space or Earth in the distant future would be such an empowering experience for Black fans.

Traveling through history while having the outward facial appearance of a Black male will likely present complications other Doctors previously have not faced. The Tenth Doctor in particular was inclined to walk around the universe as if he owned the place while Thirteen faced sexism from some historical characters but was not affected by racism in the same way her companions were. Will Gatwa’s Doctor charm the contentious or will he fire back a witty insult? These are moments for potential character development and tone-setting.

There are so many exciting possibilities for racial representation in historical stories. Modern Doctor Who so far has avoided sub-Saharan African history and has made occasional references to Ancient Egypt. Ancient African civilizations and mythologies would be the perfect setting for a contemporary revisiting of the classic serial “The Aztecs.” Doctor Who is also very much overdue on making an in-depth visit to Central and South America plus the Caribbean. Brazil was briefly touched upon in the Thirteenth Doctor era but fans from these regions certainly want to see a contemporary or historical representation of their cultures.

What about more recent African histories? “Rosa” and “Demons of the Punjab” both treated historical racism with sensitivity and also retained a pinch of the escapism Doctor Who episodes are known for. I do not believe many fans of color would want to see the Fifteenth Doctor engage directly with the 17th- through 19th-century transatlantic slave trade in Africa. Personally, I think that the wider period drama genre would be a better platform for explorations of those issues because Doctor Who has age-related topic constraints. The BBC has already confirmed a Regency-era episode featuring Jonathan Groff is in the works so there may very well be some acknowledgment of the British Empire’s colonialism blended with Bridgerton-esque historical fantasy.

The introduction of Jo Martin as the Fugitive Doctor/Ruth Doctor was one of Chibnall’s best ideas and in fact set the stage for the possibility of a full-time Black Doctor piloting the TARDIS. Alternate timelines are already well established in the expanded universe of Doctor Who comics, novels, and Big Finish audios but have not been seen fully in the televised episodes. Many fans of color believe that her Doctor’s potential has not been fully realized and that the Fifteenth Doctor era should buck the trend of showrunners avoiding the reuse of characters unique to other writers and bringing back Fugitive/Ruth Doctor.

In conclusion, there is a lot we don’t know about Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor but there’s also so much to look forward to. The future of Doctor Who lies in all Whovians seeing themselves reflected in the TARDIS and it’s up to each of us to accept that racial diversity and inclusion is not a short-term trend but here to stay.