BEVERLY HILLS, CA – FEBRUARY 05: Alan Cumming (Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images)
Alan Cumming has been on the Doctor Who want list for years. Now, we finally get him, just in a slightly different role.
Alan Cumming came out to Entertainment Weekly today, announcing that he would be part of series 11 of Doctor Who. However, despite the longtime wish of Cumming being the Doctor, he will be playing a ‘baddie’…but a ‘nice baddie’, if that’s any correlation.
"“Like a nice baddie,” the actor clarified. “I’m James I, so I’m kind of like a dandy, foppy sort of coward who comes all right in the end. They said he might come back.”King James I (also bearing the name King James VI) was the first to take the throne of England after the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603. So it looks like Whittaker’s 13th incarnation of the good ol’ doc will be getting in a trip to the 17th century early on in her adventures."
A couple things to point out by this little bit of information. First of all, Chibnall must be truly looking majorly ahead of time, as he promised. Cumming already says he might come back. So it’s likely that, barring any major issues or ratings drop, Chibnall has a plan that looks out further than season 11.
The second thing we can extrapolate from this little quote is that the 13th Doctor will definitely be spending a good amount of time in the past. After many futuristic and space-y scenes, I think going back to the roots of Doctor Who, whether it’s 17th century England or the 1960’s is a great idea.
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It also appears to look like Chibnall will be staying away from overall arc storylines, and instead going for single story arcs. Unless you can tell me what the desert, 17th century England, and 1960s Alabama have in common.