Doctor Who 12th Wishlist - 13 Probable, Plausible And Impossible Replacements For Matt Smith
1. Neil DeGrasse Tyson
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Did I say Gene Wilder was the ONLY American who could play the Doctor? What I meant was that hes the only American ACTOR. Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson is a world-renowned astrophysicist, but hes not your stereotypical, solitary, socially awkward scientist. Large in stature and larger in personality, Dr. Tyson is brilliantly intelligent, charismatic, charming and, as his numerous television appearances display, as comfortable in front of a camera as he is behind a telescope. He was instrumental in the demotion of Pluto to dwarf planet status and offers this sage advice to those who bristle at having their concept of the solar system redefined: Get over it. Additionally, hes a trained dancer, a former college wrestler, a pop culture enthusiast, a patron of the arts, and a wine connoisseur, all of which makes me think he must be a time-traveler because I dont know how else he would have the time for all those things
WHY HIM: Read the above description. Hes as close as we have to the real thing. I dont know if he can act, but he can certainly captivate an audience and, unlike a lot of past actors who have played the Doctor, hed have the advantage that all those lines of technobabble would pose no challenge for him. Hell, he might even be able to make a few corrections, ensuring at least on a theoretical level their scientific accuracy! And finally, check out the vest. The mans practically in costume already!
SEE HIM IN: The Storytelling of Science panel discussion (its on YouTube) wherein he poetically considers the importance of Van Goghs Starry Night to the field of astrophysics, and thus the importance of arts relationship to science in general, and later, righteously blasts Brian Greene with impassioned fury on the subject of scientific funding. And then theres The Poetry of Science, where, in an altogether friendlier discussion with Professor Richard Dawkins, Tyson explains why the universe has no center, imaginatively riffs with Dawkins on the subject of extra-terrestrial life and relative intelligence, and manages, throughout, to throw in references to X-Men, Daredevil and A Bugs Life. Or you can just tune into any of his hundreds of appearances on The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.