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Ncuti Gatwa, the new “Doctor Who,” spoke out about “white mediocrity” and his career journey in a new interview.
For actor Ncuti Gatwa, becoming the first Black thespian to play the iconic character of Doctor Who has revealed a lot, especially in the backlash from bigots to his taking over the role. And he’s not afraid to talk about it. In an interview, the British-Rwandan actor spoke about fighting to be accepted in such an atmosphere.
“There’s so much white mediocrity that gets celebrated, and Black people, we have to be absolutely flawless to get half of [that] anyway,” the Sex Education actor said in his interview with Attitude magazine. “So, I’m slowly training myself out of that and being like, ‘No sh–. You deserve love just for existing.’”
“The hate? It is kind of fascinating to me because there’s so much energy they’re putting into it,” Gatwa responded when asked about the comments directed his way after being cast in the sci-fi series. “You are so angry over something so inconsequential that you can’t be an interesting person. You can’t have much in your life. But another thing is that we do see a shift happening in casting, in positions of power, and in the status quo. I mean, not a fast shift, things could tip over the other way a little bit quicker, but you see people kind of malfunctioning because things are changing.”
The openly queer actor also spoke about being in the Barbie movie and about the United Kingdom’s lack of progress when it comes to those gender-diverse and other LGBTQ individuals as a whole in the nation.
“Everything trickles down from the top, and when you see politicians openly attacking marginalized communities, when you see our politicians openly attacking trans people, it makes it OK for everyone else. It’s sick because it’s a hiding away of your own ineptitude,”Gatwa said. “You’re going to put the blame on immigrants, Black and Brown people, trans people, queer people, to hide the fact that you are not doing anything for people? It’s easier to just create discord amongst people. It’s divide and conquer, isn’t it?” But Gatwa was adamant about pushing forward: “We’ve got to keep pushing for more. Lots and lots and lots and lots more diversity, lots more inclusion on our screen.”
The new season of Doctor Who is set to premiere on May 11.
See how social media is reacting to Gatwa’s comments below.
