Matt Smith quickly became a household name when he was chosen to take over from David Tennant as Doctor Who's Time Lord. The youngest actor to play the character, the House of the Dragon and Morbius star admits to initially having reservations about filling such big shoes.
"I was turning up to work going, ‘F**k, I can’t do this,’" the British actor admits. "I used to phone my dad, going ‘I can’t do this.’ And he’d be like, ‘Come on, get your head down, you can.’ The show is such a jewel in the BBC crown, and has such global appeal...if it doesn’t work, and you’re at the centre of it, then there’s nowhere to hide. I remember walking down the street around that time and someone shouting, ‘Don’t break Doctor Who!’"
Describing the series as "f**king brilliant," Smith went on to share his thoughts on Ncuti Gatwa becoming the latest actor to take on that iconic and historic role. "[Ncuti]’s going to be fabulous," the actor says, later calling David Tennant "a totally seminal Doctor" when he was informed of his return for next year's 60th-anniversary celebrations.
"Can you imagine? Because [David] was as popular as it gets, really," Smith notes. "But he was so kind to me, David, in the transition. He’s just a good bloke."
Of course, that begs the question of whether Smith would ever be tempted to return to the franchise. He's had mixed success in Hollywood thanks to flops like Terminator Genisys and Morbius, but is now heading to Westeros for the aforementioned Game of Thrones prequel series.
"Maybe, if it was the right script," he says of a possible return. "I mean, I don’t know if I’ve got too old now. It would have to be really right."
How would you feel about seeing Smith back as The Eleventh Doctor?