I almost think the "Jonah as wacky neighbour coming over for a visit" thing was an Arrested Development style metajoke.

He's the Ron Swanson of Veep.

That's basically what they did with Tennant and Smith, so I'm fairly confident they'll do the same here.

I'd love to see a male companion.

@avclub-d9773268b3b8a34af17f8cff7aa99c8f:disqus They let Sylvester McCoy use his native accent.

@avclub-b9a25e422ba96f7572089a00b838c3f8:disqus That doesn't surprise me.  Often it's the non-British fans who are the most invested in the idea of Dr Who as the most Britishy show that ever British-ed.  I presume it's because being hella into British TV is a way of signaling hipster cachet to other Americans, and…

Yeah, I agree.  Seeing someone I'd seen in movies and high profile TV shows as The Doctor would be weird.  It was even a bit weird with Eccleston, but at the time just having a Doctor Who was weird, so I could deal with it, but at this point… no.

You'd like to see Rowan Atkinson as The Doctor, in something written by Stephen Moffat?

I'd like to see an older Doctor too, but I think their audience just wouldn't respond to it.

Yeah, Eccleston and Davison did have reasonably high profiles before becoming Doctors, but they're kind of the exceptions that prove the rule, and even then, they were not in the same category as Freeman.  Freeman has been the star of a massive international blockbuster film. I just can't see them casting such a star…

While there are certainly some fun suggestions, and I enjoy the idea of Richard Ayoade as much as the next man*, I haven't seen a suggestion yet that seemed credible.  They will likely hire somebody who is not that high profile.  Even the most obscure actor discussed here has a higher profile than Tennant or Smith did…

You think?  He's kind of the Samuel L Jackson of tweedy old British guys.  Just playing the same character again and again.

They usually go with people more low-key.

The 'Benedict Cumberbatch as The Doctor' crowd are just… I don't even know where to begin, but it will definitively not happen.

I doubt they'd cast Hurt.  The core audience of the show is younger viewers, and they aren't as receptive to an older Doctor as they were in the 60s-70s.

They usually try to go with people who are less well known.

You know, most of Peter Capaldi's roles are very much unlike Malcolm Tucker.

Never mind a female Doctor or a black Doctor, try a non-British Doctor.

I prefer Lennie James myself.

It's funny because you said bacon on the internet