Jodie Whittaker is reportedly poised to become the next iteration of the British pop culture icon when Doctor Who returns for its 11th season. The new rumor comes just before the official casting announcement is made by BBC sometime today.

Over the last several years, the call for the first female Doctor has been more prominent than ever, but with Capaldi doing a great job on the role, the idea of another regeneration was put to the side. Earlier this year, however, the veteran actor announced that he is bowing out from the gig by the end of the 10th season (his final outing still to come later this year in the show's 2017 Christmas Special), rousing new speculations on who might take over the spot that he will soon be vacating. That said, folks behind the show have been keeping their cards very close to the chest, with official information regarding the upcoming season still very scarce. Even director Rachel Talalay, who is tasked to helm the forthcoming Christmas special has admitted to knowing nothing about the casting process.

The news is courtesy of Daily Mail UK, which has shared that Whittaker is the current front-runner to play the 13th iteration of Doctor Who - just hours ahead of the official announcement. The actress, who came into mainstream prominence in her role as Beth Latimer in Broadchurch has rapidly climbed the ladder in possibly becoming the historic first female Time Lord.

Doctor Who Season 10 Finale

A lot of fans seem to also like the idea of the gender change-up for the Time Lord - playing the casting agent and coming up with their own respective bets to play the role. Tilda Swinton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Maxine Peake and Olivia Colman have all been suggested for the part. Apparently, Colman is still in the official running with Whittaker, but former Doctor David Tennant recently shared that while he knows that the actress will be a great Doctor Who, it is unlikely that she will be taking it given her very busy schedule. Aside from the slew of talented female actors, Kris Marshall's name has also been thrown into the pool of casting choices, and at one point was even dubbed as the favorite to nab gig.

While the major change in front of the camera for Doctor Who is imminent, some significant shakeups behind the production curtain has also been going on. Outgoing show exec Steven Moffat - who served as the series showrunner and was behind the casting of Capaldi and his predecessor, Matt Smith, is stepping down and handing the keys of TARDIS to Chris Chinabll.

If anything, Doctor Who's penultimate season 10 episode, titled ‘World Enough and Time‘, may have hinted towards the show finally succumbing to its followers' call for a gender-swap. The 12th Doctor himself acknowledged the notion by criticizing the irony of being  "the most civilized civilization in the universe," but "billions of years beyond your petty human obsession with gender and its associated stereotypes.” 

Source: Daily Mail UK