Doctor Who showrunner explains David Tennant’s regeneration

When a Doctor regenerates on Doctor Who, there are some things that usually happen, and others that don’t. For instance, if you look back at past regenerations, you’ll notice that the newly regenerated Doctor is always wearing the clothes of his or her predecessor; their clothes don’t change upon regeneration.

However, this was not the case for Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor in the recent episode “The Power of the Doctor.” She she changed into the Fifteenth Doctor (played by David Tennant!), the clothes also changed. What was the deal with that?

Showrunner Russell T Davies, who is taking over for Chris Chibnall from here on out, spoke to Doctor Who Magazine about this anomaly. “I was very certain that I didn’t want David to appear in Jodie’s costume. I think the notion of men dressing in ‘women’s clothes’, the notion of drag, is very delicate. I’m a huge fan of that culture and the dignity of that, it’s truly a valuable thing. But it has to be done with immense thought and respect. With respect to Jodie and her Doctor, I think it can look like mockery when a straight man wears her clothes. To put a great big six-foot Scotsman into them looks like we’re taking the mickey.”

Why Doctor Who handled regeneration a bit differently this time around

Davies concern comes from a place of being nervous that Tennant’s regeneration moment would be “weaponized” by bad actors to mock drag culture. Whether or not we agree with his perspective, it’s true that Doctor Who has produced backlashes before, especially when it toys with gender. When Jodie Whittaker first got announced as the Thirteenth Doctor, there were a lot of fans upset about the Doctor being played by a woman. There was a huge uproar, even though it made absolutely no sense to me.

Whittaker has spoken about the “terrifying” backlash. Ideas of gender and sexuality have always been sensitive topics for Doctor Who, so I get where Davies is coming from.

For now, I’m just happy that David Tennant is back and that we will see him next year during the show’s 60th Anniversary special. These are exciting times, Whovians!

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h/t Radio Times