Ncuti Gatwa, the actor taking on the historic role as the first Black lead in ‘Doctor Who’, is speaking candidly about his journey to self-acceptance. Gatwa has faced criticism for his casting, but in a recent interview with Attitude magazine, he discussed lessons he’s learned about deserving love.
“We’re taught that if we’re not exceptional, we won’t be loved. That was definitely my mindset,” Gatwa shared. “But I’m learning now that you’re allowed to be loved. You don’t have to be excellent or strive for this idea of ‘Black excellence’. What even is that?”
He went on, “There’s so much mediocre work from white people that gets celebrated, but Black people have to be absolutely flawless to get half of that recognition. I’m slowly unlearning that and realizing, ‘No, you deserve love just for existing.’ And weirdly, that has made me more loving too.”
Addressing the backlash over his ‘Doctor Who’ casting, the ‘Barbie’ actor expressed confusion over people getting “so angry over something so unimportant.” However, he noted this is part of the increasing diversity he sees in entertainment.
“We do see a shift happening with diversity in casting and positions of power, albeit slowly. Change is happening, and you see some people malfunctioning because of it,” Gatwa explained.
Ahead of his debut as the fifteenth Doctor, Gatwa told The Hollywood Reporter last July that he was tuning out the scrutiny, saying, “I just have to focus on the job and stay true to what the Doctor is: a caring, adventurous alien scientist.”