For many people, when they think ofDoctor Who, they think of David Tennant. Likewise, when they think of David Tennant, they think of Doctor Who. It makes a lot of sense - Tennant has by far the most appearances of the modern era, even if he’s only fourth in the list overall. However, that number could have been drastically lower. In fact, it could have been zero.
Tennant took over the role in 2005, when he appeared in the Christmas special and regenerated from Christopher Eccleston, who played The Doctor for just one season. Tennant remained as The Tenth for five years, eventually leaving in 2010, though he briefly returning in 2023 as a different character (but also the same character, wibbly wobbly timey wimey and all that), becoming The Fourteenth. He typifies the modern era more than any other actor, but it was close to never happening at all.
“Don’t Touch It. It’s Not Going To Work”
Speaking on hisDavid Tennant Does a Podcast With…show (andspotted by Screen Rant), Tennant revealed that his then-agent was steadfast that Doctor Who would not endure and his career would be better off without it. “I had an agent at the time who was like, ‘Don’t touch it. It’s not going to work’,” Tennant said. “Not my current agent. A previous brilliant agent who’s since retired, but she didn’t call that correctly.”
Obviously, Tennant did not turn down the role, with a total of 50 episodes to his name (including his time as The Fourteenth), and instead became a cultural icon, helping to propel the modern revival to the world stage again. However, Tennant does admit that taking the role was not without its off-screen challenges.
“Suddenly you’ve got to establish what the rules are for yourself, and there’s not really anyone to help you or teach you,” he said on the show. “And that can be a little bit challenging. I’ve found things like my parents being doorstepped a lot early on, I found that really difficult because I felt like I had to protect them and they were not interested in being protected.“In other Doctor Who news, one of itsMagic: the Gatheringcards hasrecently spiked in price because of a synergy with the latest Deadpool collection. Can’t imaginethe Merc with a Mouthwould fit in well with the BBC, though he probably couldn’t resist making a joke about one.
