Doctor Who and Disney share a lot of connections these days. With the show moving to Disney+ for fans outside of the UK and Ireland, the show is bound to pick up some new fans now that it will be more widely available. But for the newcomers, where have they seen the show’s stars before?
Of course, many of these actors are known widely for many amazing roles, but let’s specifically look at where Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel fans might know them from.
Catherine Tate
Catherine Tate returns to Doctor Who as fan-favorite companion Donna Noble in the anniversary specials this year. Donna was introduced to the show in 2006’s Christmas special “The Runaway Bride”, returned as a full-time companion in series 4 in 2008, and was last seen on the show in 2010 for the Tenth Doctor’s final episode. So where do the Disney fans know Catherine Tate from?
Fans of the 2017 DuckTales reboot certainly know Catherine Tate’s voice. She voiced the brilliantly evil, revenge-seeking Magica De Spell- a longtime nemesis of Scrooge McDuck. Magica was a shadowy figure in the show at first, trapped in Scrooge’s Number One Dime. She used her “niece” Lena De Spell to find a way of freeing her from that curse. Eventually, she did escape and started her revenge on Scrooge and his family before losing her magic and fleeing. DuckTales ran from 2017 to 2021 and included a few other Doctor Who alum in the show, but more on that later!
David Tennant
In the upcoming three Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials, David Tennant returns to the show as the 14th Doctor after previously playing the 10th Doctor from 2005 to 2010 and reprising the role in 2013 for Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary. So what are his Doctor Who and Disney connections?
Most recently, Disney fans will have heard David Tennant’s voice in Ahsoka as Professor Huyang- Ahsoka’s droid companion who formerly taught Jedi younglings how to build their lightsabers. This character made the jump from a 2012 Star Wars: The Clone Wars storyline to live action, with Tennant voicing the character in both projects. The role of Huyang actually won him his first Emmy Award. Tennant won Outstanding Performer in an Animated Series for the Daytime Emmy Awards in 2013.
Fans of the 2017 DuckTales would also recognize David Tennant as the reboot’s Scrooge McDuck! Though the roles that he is most known for have him speaking in a different accent, Tennant is Scottish. So he was a perfect fit for the very Scottish Scrooge. The show followed Scrooge and his family as they reunited after nearly a decade. They went on many adventures and rebuilt their family relationships. In addition to Catherine Tate, another Doctor Who alum to show up in DuckTales was Michelle Gomez as Scrooge’s sister, Matilda McDuck.
In a much darker and sinister role, Marvel fans will know David Tennant as Kilgrave from Jessica Jones. Appearing as the main villain in season 1 in 2015, Kilgrave was a very sharp departure from his time in Doctor Who. The mind-controller with little compassion or understanding for the people around him was thought to be dead by Jessica Jones at the start of the series. But he returned. Kilgrave professed to love her, but it was clear that she was simply an obsession for him. This was because she was no longer susceptible to his control.
For the pre-school audience, though, David Tennant has also appeared in guest roles in a few animated shows. In 2015, he lent his voice to Igor the Door in an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. The same year, Tennant appeared in Captain Jake and the Never Land Pirates as Dread the Evil Genie. Aimed at a slightly older audience, his voice can also be heard as Oscar’s Brain in two episodes of Fish Hooks.
Other Upcoming Doctor Who and Disney Connections
Of course, there’s even more cast members soon to join the “Whoniverse” as part of Ncuti Gatwa’s run. And a few of these announced and confirmed cast and crew have Disney connections as well!
One of the earliest guest cast confirmed for Ncuti Gatwa’s first series was stage and screen star Jonathan Groff. For Disney fans, he’s perhaps most recognizable as the lovable Kristoff from the Frozen series. Disney+ also streams the original Broadway cast pro-shot of Hamilton in which Groff plays King George.
Indira Varma will also guest in the new series as a character called “The Duchess”. She has appeared in the worlds of Doctor Who before, but Star Wars fans would recognize her from somewhere else. Varma played Tala Durith, Imperial Army officer turned Rebel in Obi-Wan Kenobi.
There’s Doctor Who and Disney connections behind the camera, too. It was announced that an upcoming episode will be co-written by Kate Herron and Briony Redman. Kate Herron’s work is known to Marvel fans. She was the director for all of the first series of Loki.
Of course, there’s a lot of Disney and Doctor Who connections in the older episodes of the series as well! But with Disney+ being the new home of Doctor Who outside of the UK and Ireland, are there any other Disney, Star Wars, or Marvel stars that you’d like to see pop up in the show?
Doctor Who returns on November 25th on the BBC in the UK and Ireland and Disney+ worldwide.
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