On Sunday, it was announced that British actress Jodie Whittaker would be the new face of the popular sci-fi series "Doctor Who," making her the first woman to play the Time Lord.
Meet the Thirteenth Doctor #DoctorWho#Doctor13pic.twitter.com/wycdcneZ7o
— BBC One (@BBCOne) July 16, 2017
And wow, people had a lot of feelings about it.
Some of it was good:
My daughter watching the #DoctorWho announcement. #doctor13#DoctorWho13pic.twitter.com/eX0w1rW4E9
— 🏳️🌈Jenny Trout (@Jenny_Trout) July 16, 2017
FEMALE DOCTOR WHO FEMALE DOCTOR WHO FEMALE DOCTOR WHO FEMALE DOCTOR WHO FEMALE DOCTOR WHO. #Doctor13pic.twitter.com/1wnEJ1F1Gs
— Plumpy (@AdamTheBlampied) July 16, 2017
I'll be able to buy my 5 year old niece Doctor Who merchandise where the woman is at the front. In charge. Not a companion. The Doctor. Fab.
— Susan Calman (@SusanCalman) July 16, 2017
Some of it was sexist:
Imagine one of your favourite shows but with someone of the opposite gender playing your favourite character(s). Hell.
— Jamie Ghis (@GhisPerrier) July 16, 2017
there's really no fucking need. the dr is male. hate how it's fashionable to make male characters female. it's utter shit
— darren pop (@DX_1) July 16, 2017
In a dramatic attempt to be "politically correct" Dr Who just lost thousands of fans 😂
— Joshua Cooper (@joshiee_coops) July 16, 2017
Women are inferior to men. There's your answer
— ㅤ (@ffsharry) July 16, 2017
You mean kill it with a horrible pandering choice. It's just WRONG
— Michybean (@michybean) July 16, 2017
And some of it was hilarious:
I took Daily Mail comments from people angry about a possible Female Dr Who and turned them into episode titles for the new series pic.twitter.com/k586EeVpld
— TechnicallyRon (@TechnicallyRon) July 15, 2017
*Doctor Who literally breaks the laws of physics* - Oh yeah makes sense
— Ruth (@anxiouslion) July 16, 2017
*Doctor could be a woman* - IMPOSSIBLE HOW DARE YOU #doctor13
Oh great a female Doctor Who. What next? Female real doctors? Female pilots? Female scientists? Female sisters and mothers? Female WOMEN?!
— m@®|{ µø₽₽û§🏳️🌈 (@markhoppus) July 16, 2017
A girl Dr Who, my God where can I go anymore to see white men in sci fi and fantasy pop culture. pic.twitter.com/QZ9UZ6eC12
— Low-Quality Goat (@JuliusGoat) July 16, 2017
But the ultimate smackdown came courtesy of dictionary Merriam-Webster, which tweeted. "'Doctor' has no gender in English."
'Doctor' has no gender in English.
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) July 17, 2017
For her part, Whittaker said she's "beyond excited" to play the Doctor.
Asked by the BBC how she feels about being the first woman Time Lord, the "Broadchurch" star said, "It feels completely overwhelming — as a feminist, as a woman, as an actor, as a human, as someone who wants to continually push themselves and challenge themselves, and not be boxed in by what you're told you can and can't be. It feels incredible."
"I want to tell the fans not to be scared by my gender. Because this is a really exciting time, and 'Doctor Who' represents everything that's exciting about change. The fans have lived through so many changes, and this is only a new, different one, not a fearful one."
