Doctor Who will say goodbye to Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor by the end of 2022, and while there’s excitement about a new actor or actress stepping into the role, there’s still plenty to celebrate in the meantime. Whittaker had some great moments on the series, of course, and has reflected on her own personal favorite moments from her three-season run.
Jodie Whittaker spoke to Empire about her run on Doctor Who thus far, and when asked about her favorite episode, she gave a response I wouldn’t think many fans would consider her best work, though the star's reasoning for the pick is solid. In her words:
I think mine is ‘The Woman Who Fell To Earth’, just because it was my very first episode. I transitioned into a different costume – that we'd created – and we firmly cemented this team. Everything about that time lived up to every expectation that had been built up over a lot of months for me. It lived up to all of it, and I really enjoyed filming that.
I can understand why Jodie Whittaker likes her first full episode as The Doctor more than others, especially when tying in all the importance of the event. Doctor Who had a new showrunner, Chris Chibnall, shaking up things behind the scenes and a new actress playing the first female Doctor. There was a lot of hype, intrigue, debate, and drama. To step out and actually film the episode had to be exciting, and maybe even a relief.
In "The Woman Who Fell To Earth," The Doctor arrived freshly regenerated but a little out of sorts. Luckily, she met Yasmin, Ryan, and Graham, and together, they all went out to save the day while also forming what became a strong bond with the trio across two seasons.
Overall, Season 11 of Doctor Who was one of the most polarizing seasons of Jodie Whittaker’s run, though it’s hard to say a bulk of the criticisms fell on her particularly. Regardless, it’s interesting to hear she’d pick an episode from that season, and perhaps not something from Season 12, which was much more well-received. Again though, it seems what made the episode great for Whittaker specifically was the experience from her perspective, and not so much the writing or actual plot or fan response.
Jodie Whittaker will say goodbye to The Doctor in the fall of 2022, and so far, fans don’t know who will replace her. We do know that former Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies will return for a second run, and he’s got a plan. Former showrunner Steven Moffat knows a bit of that plan, and he’s excited, so perhaps fans should get excited as well.
Doctor Who is on a break between specials at BBC America, but anyone with HBO Max can stream the series right now. We’ll see Jodie Whittaker’s goodbye episode as The Doctor along with other new shows later this year, so be sure to keep an eye out for what’s around the corner.
