The Doctor and Companion We Need Right Now

Doctor Who has long been a geek culture touchstone, providing fans with a glimpse into a world where good prevails and humanity inspires. For more than 60 years, we have watched as an alien with two hearts saves the galaxy accompanied by human friends who provide inspiration. In many ways, Doctor Who captured our imaginations because it gave us stories brimming with kindness, intelligence, and hope.

As we roll into the newest season of Doctor Who, premiering on April 12, 2025, we find our Doctor with a new companion who shows us just how important kindness, emotional vulnerability, and strength of character are.

Introducing Us to Belinda: A Partnership of Equals

In this new season, we find ourselves introduced to Belinda Chandra, played by Varada Sethu. In Belinda, we have a reluctant companion with a fierce sense of individualism. For viewers, Belinda offers a different kind of companion, one who knows her value and lives an authentic life. Without giving away anything about the episode (we will save those conversations for after the premier!), Belinda is a companion who Ncuti Gatwa, who plays the Doctor, describes as having “absolutely no interest in and is not charmed at all by the Doctor at first.”

Historically, the companions are stand-ins for the viewers, seeking adventure across space and time and trying to live a life of unimaginable adventure. However, Belinda is a different companion. As Sethu notes, “she doesn’t want to be somebody else’s adventure.” Belinda is a leader in her own right. Unlike companions who want to follow the Doctor’s lead, Belinda gives us a strong female character that Sethu describes as someone who “challenges him, holds him accountable” and has a “really strong equal partnership” with the Doctor.

The Doctor: Showing Emotional Vulnerability

Over the years, viewers have seen the Doctor experience loss after loss. Despite the male-presenting Doctors nearly always giving us an alternative masculinity that relies on intelligence rather than physical strength, the Doctor has long been an emotionally constipated being who hides feelings underneath a veneer of humor and energy.

Many of the character’s iterations give us a damaged Doctor who seeks an emotional connection while being too damaged to give the same connection in return. With Gatwa, we finally get a Doctor willing to show his vulnerable side and admit that the losses he experiences impact him. During the press conference, Gatwa noted that in coming back for the second season, he’s able to “explore the character further” and allow the character to “grow in different ways” because he has new people in his life.

Simultaneously, Gatwa brings what his co-star Sethu calls, “a brilliant, bright energy” whose Doctor “is so dynamic. There’s just this energy that [he] brings to the text, to the screen. There’s this vibrancy for how he plays the Doctor.” This energy combined with a warmth we’ve rarely seen gives a Doctor that shows us how, even in the darkest and most trying times, vulnerability and energy can lead us to be better versions of ourselves.

The Representation We Need When We Need It

For Whovians, this duo is the first team composed solely of people of color, something that Sethu notes, “we acknowledged quite early on. We just both have this moment where I was like, ‘Look at us, just look at us.’”

Despite the importance of this representation, Sethu notes that she tries “not to take on the pressure of that. I want to free myself up to being creative, to being playful. If you put on the pressure of being the first of anything, it takes away, in some ways, the joy.” At the same time, she hopes that “what we create is something authentic and that feels genuine.” Within this dynamic, Gatwa explains that the two of them “have to lean on each other equally as actors playing these roles, but then also, narratively they’re really leaning on each other this season.”

Both actors noted that this show is a story that inspires hope in difficult times like these. Gatwa explained that it “feels really great doing something artistically that does that. It’s quite rare that a show has a real message behind each episode that is hope and upliftment.” Going further, Gatwa explained something that most fans will say sets Doctor Who apart from other science fiction, that these “heroes that are attuned to non-violence are quite rare and beautiful.” Sethu followed up by noting that “what I like the most about Doctor Who as a franchise is that it’s the core themes coming from the Doctor’s point of view is curiosity, is about learning.”

Messages That Continue to Inspire

As we anticipate the upcoming season, with the premier set for April 12 on Disney+, the message of Doctor Who is something we need now more than ever. Sethu summarized why we love this show – and why it continues to bring viewers out – by reminding us all, “it’s about understanding each other, communicating with, connecting with other people. The belief system comes from a place of love. And I love, I’m so grateful, to be part of the show. I think the world can be a scary place, and so it’s nice to be part of something that feels like it’s coming from the right place.”