Doctor Who has existed for over six decades, and there has never been a single bad Doctor across that entire period. Some actors received better stories than others, certainly, but each and every Doctor has brought charisma, excitement and endless talent to the role. The show’s most recent departee is no different.

Ncuti Gatwa arrived at a strange time for Doctor Who, with the BBC’s Disney partnership resulting in a soft reboot that saw Doctor Who season 14 rebranded as “season 1.” Nevertheless, Gatwa crafted a multi-faceted Time Lord during his short time in the TARDIS, ably carrying the show through a roller coaster two seasons filled with highs and lows. Whatever failings Doctor Who may have had between 2023 and 2025, Gatwa was not the cause.

And yet, it’s hard not to think that Doctor Who missed a golden opportunity to do something very fun indeed with its main character….

Ty Tennant As The Fifteenth Doctor Would Have Been Perfect

In one of Doctor Who‘s stranger quirks, Georgia Moffett, the daughter of Fifth Doctor actor Peter Davison, appeared in Doctor Who season 4 alongside then-star David Tennant. The pair would go on to forge a real-life relationship before getting married in 2011, while David also adopted Georgia’s son, Ty, who took the actor’s last time.

Ty Tennant has since embarked on a successful acting career of his own, most notably appearing in The War of the Worlds and then House of the Dragon as Aegon Targaryen. Currently 23 years old, Ty is an exciting onscreen prospect and a growing name in the industry. Through his roles so far, Ty has shown enough range and nuance to suggest he could potentially follow in his family’s footsteps and make the TARDIS his own someday.

If that had happened in 2023, Ty’s casting would have created a perfectly poetic streak in Doctor Who‘s regeneration line. Peter Davison played the Fifth Doctor, his son-in-law played the Tenth Doctor, and his grandson would have been playing the Fifteenth Doctor. Just as Doctor Who itself passes from generation to generation, the main role could have passed down through three separate generations in multiples of five.

Ty Tennant Has A Better Chance Of Being The Next Doctor Who

In fairness, the vacancy may have come too early in Ty’s career – and that’s partly David’s fault.

Ty is in a much better position to be the “new Doctor Who” here in 2025 compared to when Ncuti Gatwa was auditioning three years ago. If Gatwa had popped up directly after Jodie Whittaker and been the Fourteenth Doctor, Ty replacing him instead of Billie Piper would have kept the “every fifth Doctor is related” trend alive.

Instead, David Tennant came along and nabbed the “Fourteenth Doctor” title for his Doctor Who 60th anniversary comeback, which lasted only three episodes. As a result, Gatwa’s number was pushed back to 15 instead, and Doctor Who‘s Davison/Tennant family streak immediately came to an end.