There is perhaps no other respected British actor who has portrayed so many supporting characters whilst having to wait so long for his own starring role. When his time finally came in 2008's The Escapist, in a role written specifically with him in mind, his C.V already boasted the more than impressive list of two Bourne films, X2, Braveheart, and the now underrated Chain Reaction, a 90s thriller starring Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz, and Morgan Freeman. The following year in 2009, Cox also lent his voice to David Tennant's swansong story The End of Time, providing the revered tones the of the Elder Ood. It may have been a voice only performance, but then with bigger stars come bigger price tags, something which hiding such a well known face under impenetrable alien make-up would most likely have been wasting. Despite this, it is worth remembering that Doctor Who was far from his only casting in a British sci-fi series; he had previously appeared in Red Dwarf in the small but comical role of the virtually recreated, but unmistakably human, medieval King in Stoke Me A Clipper. What this Doctor Who performance did do however, was open the door to high profile names that would be recognisable on both sides of the Atlantic. Following Cox's lead came big names who were now becoming increasingly convinced that Doctor Who was more than just a standard TV show, which helped it to break not just the international, but also increasingly desired American TV market.
