The return of Doctor Who powerhouse Russell T. Davies has only been made more exciting by the newly announced casting of the next Doctor, Sex Education star Ncuti Gatwa. Although Ncuti Gatwa doesn't have a ton of roles under his belt, fans are already excited to see where he may take the Doctor in the new series after Jodie Whittaker bows out.
And as always, there are certain things fans expect from any Doctor Who story, and that is returning villains. With New Who coming up with some of the greatest villains the show has ever seen, there are those that it would be simply wrong to not revisit in Gatwa's era as The Doctor.
The Vashta Nerada
The Vashta Nerada came and went in two episodes, but they certainly left their mark. As one of the scariest aliens Doctor Who ever produced, the concept of killing through the darkness was nightmare fodder that fit perfectly into "Silence In The Library". Since their memorable debut, we've not seen the Vashta Nerada again, so they're certainly due a comeback.
It's possible that they haven't been shown again up till now due to the difficulty in portraying them, but with crazier villains under his belt, we know Davies is more than capable of crafting a compelling story for them. And it'll be fascinating to see the usual comedic Gatwa - and The Doctor - in a position where he's genuinely frightened like he was the first time he encountered them.
The Krillitane
The concept behind the Krillitane is very cool and creepy - a species that picks and appropriates its favorite physical features from races it conquers and destroys. There's so much potential for them to be a truly terrifying villain with capabilities the Doctor would struggle to overcome if he were to encounter them.
Sadly all we've seen so far of the Krillitane is in one of the poorest episodes of David Tennant's tenure, in the lackluster "School Reunion". In their true form, the Krillitane's look suffered from poor CGI that made them more like oversized bats than truly terrifying. But if the villain was to come back with a new look, they could be a formidable enemy for Gatwa's Doctor due to their evolutionary "cherry-picking".
Weeping Angels
The Weeping Angels at last returned for a brief moment in Jodie Whittaker's era during "Flux", having not been seen properly since "The Angels in Manhattan" and Amy and Rory's heartbreaking exit from the show. After almost 10 years, more than enough time has passed for them to make a full reappearance and once again become the terrifying entity that has led to them being considered one of the greatest Doctor Who enemies of all time.
Seeing how Ncuti Gatwa deals with this new threat and protects his companions will tell viewers a lot about this new Doctor and his beliefs, as each one who has encountered them has handled the fear they strike very differently.
The Sycorax
The Sycorax in many ways are the more traditionally sci-fi-looking alien fans would expect in a show like Star Trek, but after their introduction in David Tennant's first-ever episode, one of Doctor Who's best Christmas specials "The Christmas Invasion", they're never seen again (except for in the background of a few alien bar scenes). Of course, this could be due to Harriet Jones blowing up a major ship of theirs and causing an anger in the Doctor that can be summed up in just six words - "don't you think she looks tired?"
The revenge of the Sycorax is arguably long overdue, and something that could bring the aliens back to Earth during Gatwa's turn as the Doctor. It's been a long time since we've seen storylines that bring the heart of Earth into the Doctor's life properly, and the Sycorax could be the perfect way to reintroduce this element and also see more of UNIT in the upcoming series.
Madame Kovarian
Madame Kovarian's ending was more than a little confusing - which definitely leaves the possibility for her to return open. The difficulty with her character is how tightly it's tied to River Song and so a storyline including her in Gatwa's era would have to be totally separate while still acknowledging the link.
Not the most terrifying villain, Madame Kovarian could still be one of the more exciting ones to make a reappearance due to her absolute belief that she is doing what's best for the universe. An interesting moral philosophical standoff between her and Gatwa's Doctor could bring back the older Who's ability to make their viewers think, and confront their own beliefs on how things should work.
Autons
The Autons got a major upgrade during Matt Smith's era as the Doctor. Gone were the life-sized mannequin dummies that looked more silly than scary, and in their place were human clones unrecognizable from the real thing. Although it's been a while since their last appearance, this evolution gives them plenty of potential to show up again in Gatwa's era as a more dangerous villain.
Rather than focusing on their ability to kill with a gun-like device concealed in their fake fingers, the potential of their copy ability could be explored in a storyline where it's almost impossible to tell who's real and who isn't. Figuring the difference between friend and foe has sent the Doctor in a tailspin in the past, so to see how Gatwa would cope with this type of disguise would portray a lot about his version of the Doctor.
The Lone Cyberman
While no Doctor Who era is truly complete without the return of this classic villain, it has got to the point where the Cyberman trope can get a little old. During Chris Chibnall's turn as showrunner, he brought a new dimension to the villain with the introduction of The Lone Cyberman.
Although the character's arc ended up being somewhat disappointing, there's a lot of potential there to be explored. In Rusell T. Davies' capable hands The Lone Cyberman could become one of the biggest threats of Gatwa's era and bring a whole new perspective to the cybermen.
The Dream Lord
The Dream Lord, played by the fantastically eerie Toby Jones, has only made one appearance in Doctor Who so far; when he sends Matt Smith's Doctor and Rory and Amy into a world where Amy has to decide what's real and what's a dream before they die in either iteration.
The reappearance of the Dream Lord could delve deeper into the idea that he's a manifestation of the Doctor's hatred of himself and although Jones' return would be welcome, the malleable nature of the character means it's not a necessity to continue on the story in Gatwa's era. Forcing the Doctor to once again confront the darkness inside him would be a challenging and wonderful introspective into the character that if Gatwa nails, would put him up there with the best of the Doctors.
Daleks
Like the Cybermen, Doctor Who isn't complete without the return of the iconic Daleks. It's a guarantee and staple of every era that would be remiss to not include. Under Russell T. Davies, Robert Shearman wrote one of the best Dalek episodes of all time when he reintroduced them with "Dalek" in Eccleston's era.
But since then they've gone a bit downhill. The brightly colored palette introduced in Smith's turn as the Doctor had fans likening them to smarties and sadly Peter Capaldi and Jodie Whittaker's encounters have been less than memorable. If Davies can bring them back to their old glory, a solid Dalek storyline would fit beautifully into Gatwa's turn.
Sacha Dhawan's The Master
What Doctor is complete without the Master? In New Who the villain returned with a vengeance, played impeccably first by John Simms, then Michelle Gomez (as the first female Master), and now Sacha Dhawan. And although so far fans haven't got to see much of Dhawan's version of the Doctor's biggest frenemy, what they have seen has impressed.
Dhawan has taken his small storylines and brought the Master's signature insanity to new heights. There's so much more to see of his turn of the character that to not include him in Gatwa's era would be a huge misstep on Davies' part.