According to the British newspaper The Telegraph, the BBC has made an offer to Rory Kinnear to replace Matt Smith as the next incarnation of the Time Lord in the long-running sci-fi series Doctor Who. According to The Telegraph’s source, Kinner – who portrayed MI6 officer Bill Tanner in the Bond films Quantum of Solace and Skyfall and also fornicated with a pig as the British Prime Minister in the Black Mirror episode ‘The National Anthem’ – “has been offered the part and we are waiting to hear if he will accept. He is the perfect choice.”
Since Matt Smith announced he was bowing out of Doctor Who after the 50th Anniversary Special and this year’s Christmas Special speculation has been rife as to who will become the Twelfth iteration of the Doctor, with Domhnall Gleeson (Dredd, Anna Karenina), Daniel Kaluuya (Johnny English Reborn, Welcome to the Punch) and Dominic Cooper (Captain America: The First Avenger, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) all linked in recent days. Other rumoured candidates have included Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers, Thor: The Dark World), Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek, Arthur), Ben Daniels (House of Cards, Jack the Giant Slayer) and Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Star Trek Into Darkness).
Despite The Telegraph’s claims that Kinnear has been offered the role the BBC has remained silent, so we should probably take this with a pinch of salt until an official announcement is forthcoming.
Originally published June 9, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
