While Jodie Whittaker’s initial outing as the 13th Doctor managed to get a lot of traction back in 2018, mostly due to the fact that she was the first female to portray the titular protagonist in the show’s history, Doctor Who has taken a continuous nosedive over the past two years in terms of ratings and viewership figures under Chris Chibnall, leading many to wonder whether the BBC will keep the duo around for the future.
And to be fair, it’s not just the alleged SJW agenda that sets a lot of Whovians off. Many fans also criticize the narrative for its uncompelling resolutions and illogical developments. Take the Timeless Child twist, for instance, which, to a lot of folks, essentially undermined more than 60 years of continuity. Even worse, all of it was done in the service of a plot that we still know nothing about. In fact, some argue that when you take away the spectacle and the improved aesthetics of the show, what remains is a mildly entertaining series wrapped around a middling narrative.
The weak characterization, or lack thereof, has also hugely affected Jodie Whittaker as the latest incarnation of the Doctor. And now, according to a rumor from YouTuber Tzvi Lebetkin, the actress’ agents are telling her to exit the show before it plummets even further in terms of popularity.
As he explains in a recent video, one of his sources in Cardiff has told him the following about Whittaker:
“Jodie Whittaker’s agent has been screaming at Jodie Whittaker,” Lebetkin says. “She’s got to get off the show. She’s got to get off the show because [her] agent business is looking at the reality, not the fantasy. And the reality is the ratings have been on a nose dive. It’s been an incredibly successful show, an incredibly successful international juggernaut, which is coming off one of the most successful periods ever. And now it’s now gone to one of its least successful periods ever and she is the public face of that.”
The YouTuber also notes that ratings suffered during Peter Capaldi’s era as the 12th Doctor as well, but that’s nothing compared to what the show is currently facing. It remains to be seen how viewers react to the upcoming Holiday Special, “Revolution of the Daleks,” but in any case, with production on Doctor Who season 13 picking up speed, it’s safe to say that both Chibnall and Whittaker will be sticking around for the time being.
