Doctor Who: 14 Actors Who Will NEVER Be The 14th Doctor
8. Richard Ayoade
Richard Ayoade is one of those picks that journalists like to go for because "Oooh, he's a bit quirky isn't he?" Likable and talented as Ayoade clearly is though, he's not destined to be the Doctor. Like his fellow IT Crowd alumni Matt Berry, he doesn't quite have the range to carry a show like Doctor Who. He's a distinctive character, and whilst the role is no stranger to those with a background in comedy or live performance (look at Jon Pertwee and Sylvester McCoy!), the Ayoade character would completely distract from the role.
It's likely that, when casting the next series of Doctor Who, Russell T Davies and his team will be looking for actors with a capital A to hold the show. Either a bigger name to garner interest going into the 60th anniversary or a lesser-known actor to take the show in a fresh new direction.
No disrespect to Ayoade, but he's not the right fit. Which isn't to say he's a terrible actor; he steals the show as a pretentious film student in Joanna Hogg's tremendous films The Souvenir Parts 1 and 2.