Summary
Varada Sethu joins Doctor Who as new companion, building on her role from season 14 and connecting to main character Ruby Sunday.
The teased romance between Sethu’s character and Ruby hints at a potential queer storyline, previously missed with Thirteenth Doctor and Yaz.
Doctor Who may rectify past missed opportunities for LGBTQ+ representation by exploring a same-sex romance in season 15 with Sethu’s character.
In April 2024, Doctor Who confirmed it would welcome Varada Sethu on board the TARDIS as a new companion in 2025. The actress is known for her role in the Star WarsAndor series but also starred in Jurassic World Dominion and the 2018 drama Hard Sun. She will join Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor and Millie Gibson’s Ruby Sunday as an extra companion in season 15. Additionally, in a surprise move, she briefly joined the Doctor Who season 14 cast as a character called Mundy Flynn in episode 3, titled “Boom.”
Varada Sethu revealed in Doctor Who: Unleashed that she had so much fun filming Doctor Who season 14 that she didn’t want to leave, and was subsequently overjoyed to be invited back to the show months later. Doctor Who showrunner Russel T Davies gave some hints as to Sethu’s companion’s story in season 15; speaking on Doctor Who: Unleashed, he said, “She’s coming in, into season 2, but quite how that happens, what happens, why it happens, is very much knitted into the story of the Doctor and the story of Ruby Sunday.”
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Doctor Who Sets Up A Romance Story Between Ruby & Season 15’s New Companion
It is uncertain whether Varada Sethu’s companion in Doctor Who season 15 will be Mundy Flynn or a different character. In Doctor Who, characters have been recast before, and in-universe explanations have often been provided. Chances are, the Doctor would probably recognize Sethu, should she show up as a different character. Therefore, it seems most likely that the Mundy Flynn character will return as one of the Doctor’s companions in season 15. This makes sense, considering the comments of Russel T Davies, linking her to Ruby Sunday.
Supporting this idea, the Doctor made a joke in “Boom” as he is just getting introduced to Varada Sethu’s character, connecting her to Ruby. He suggested to Mundy Flynn that she should marry Ruby, as she would then be called “Mundy Sunday,” at which the Doctor would laugh “every day.” While this jest was made light-heartedly and also under intense pressure, it would make sense for this to relate to a future plot point. Otherwise, the line would just be a throwaway joke.
Doctor Who Season 15’s Teased Romance Can Ease The Injustice Of Thirteen & Yaz
Doctor Who Teased Queer Romance Before But Could Deliver In Season 15
The Doctor’s joke about a wedding between Mundy and Ruby teases a queer romance that the show missed out on earlier. The Thirteenth Doctor, played by Jodie Whittaker, in her famous, first female incarnation, underwent a frustrated love story with her female companion, Yaz. While Yaz’s feelings were made explicit in the show, the Doctor declined the romance to protect her. Considering their dangerous adventures thus far, this was a distinctly unsatisfactory reason for the Doctor to reject a relationship that she seemed invested in.
Show producer Matt Strevens revealed at Doctor Who convention Gallifrey One that Jodie Whittaker pushed for her character’s romance with Yaz. Ultimately, Doctor Who failed its Thirteen and Yaz romance, having teased it but abandoned it, unlike some of the straight romances that played out before it. Considering the return of older characters in the show in the past, Doctor Who could easily bring back Yaz and the Thirteenth Doctor to make up for this. In the meantime, it could prove that it won’t dodge queer romances for main characters like Ruby and Mundy.
Show writer Chris Chibnall explained Thirteen and Yaz not kissing in their last episode by describing their storyline as “an unrequited love story,” but balanced it by saying “who said it didn’t happen at some point?” This indicates that while it didn’t happen onscreen, Doctor Who is at least open to its main characters enjoying same-sex relationships. Actor Neil Patrick Harris confirmed that Ncuti Gatwa plays the first gay Doctor, so it is not a stretch to look forward to a romance between Ruby and Mundy.
Doctor Who
Originally premiered in 1963, Doctor Who is a sci-fi series that follows a powerful being known as a Time Lord, referred to as the Doctor. Using an interdimensional time-traveling ship known as the TARDIS, the Doctor travels time and space with various companions as they solve multiple problems and help avert catastrophe as much as they almost cause it. Though the Doctor is always the same character, they experience regenerations, allowing them to be recast every few seasons as a unique immortal being with new personality traits.
Release Date November 23, 1963
Seasons 14
Franchise(s) Doctor Who
Writers Mark Gatiss , Toby Whithouse , Neil Cross , Steven Moffat , Chris Chibnall
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