She’s a winner, baby. Per Variety, Rupaul’s Drag Race star Jinkx Monsoon is set to join the cast of The BBC’s long-running series Doctor Who in a “major role” this upcoming season.
“In a galaxy of comets and supernovas, here comes the biggest star of all. Jinkx Monsoon is on a collision course with the TARDIS, and Doctor Who will never be the same again,” said showrunner Russell T Davies. The creator and writer behind Queer as Folk and A Very English Scandal, Davies is returning to run Doctor Who after a 13-year hiatus from the show, which he revived in 2005 and left for the first time in 2010.
Monsoon, who won both the fifth season of Drag Race and the seventh season of Drag Race All Stars, has recently taken Broadway by storm, playing Mama Morton in Chicago—receiving rave reviews and breaking box office records along the way. “I’m honored, thrilled, and utterly excited to join ‘Doctor Who!,’” said Monsoon on social media. “Russell T Davies is a visionary and a brilliant writer — I can’t wait to get into the weeds with him and the crew! I hope there’s room in the TARDIS for my luggage.”
Monsoon joins Sex Education‘s Ncuti Gatwa, who was previously announced as the next Doctor, taking the reins over from Jodie Whitaker. But before Gatwa gets his turn as the Time Lord, the 14th Doctor, David Tennant, will return to the role with his co-star Catherine Tate for three special episodes in November 2023 that will coincide with the series’ 60th anniversary. Gatwa’s stint as The Doctor will begin during the holiday season.
First premiering on the BBC in 1963, Doctor Who follows the travails of a Time Lord a.k.a The Doctor, an extraterrestrial who appears to be human, aboard a time-traveling spaceship called the TARDIS. Many celebrated actors have taken turns as the Doctor, including Peter Capaldi, Matt Smith, David Tennant, Christopher Eccleston, Peter Davison, and Tom Baker. Wishing Monsoon and her fabulous Judy Garland impression a safe and fruitful journey aboard TARDIS.