Summary
Although a crossover withDoctor Whomay be a legal and logistical nightmare to achieve, there’s no reason thatStar Trekcan’t cast some beloved Doctor and companion actors. At a recent San Diego Comic-Con panel withStar Trek’s Alex Kurtzman,Doctor Whoshowrunner Russell T Davies stated that both franchises “must” get together. While conceding that there were a lot of legal issues to work out, RTD urgedfans ofDoctor WhoandStar Trekto help make it happen by sharing fan art and making their voices heard.
While the powers-that-be at Disney, Paramount, and the BBC work out a way to makeStar Trekcrossover withDoctor Who, there’s a much easier alternative. Many ofDoctor Who’s stars like David Tennant and Karen Gillan, are big stars who have become a draw for audiences beyond justWhofans.A shortcut to aDoctor Whocrossover would be to cast these names in the current slate ofStar Trekshows. While it’s not exactly the same as the TARDIS materializing aboard the USS Enterprise, there are severalDoctor Whoactors who could very easily appear inStar TrekTV shows and movies.
Every Doctor Who Actor Who Appeared In Star Trek
Star Trek and Doctor Who remain two of the biggest science fiction franchises, and several actors have made appearances in both.
6Sylvester McCoy (Seventh Doctor)
Star Trek could reunite the Two Doctors!
Sylvester McCoy has an impressive resume, from his acclaimed performance as the Fool in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2007 production ofKing Learto playing Radagast the Brown inThe Hobbittrilogy. McCoy is an all-rounder performer whose clownish demeanor can make you laugh and also break your heart, so he would be perfectly cast as a quixotic alien elder in aStar Trekshow.Sylvester McCoy is also an old friend ofStar Trek: Voyager’s Robert Picardo, and the two toured together with Richard Oliver in the meta-comedy playA Jokein 2017.
With Robert Picardo returning to live-actionStar TrekinStarfleet Academy, it feels like the perfect show for him to reunite with Sylvester McCoy. Whether McCoy plays an aging and eccentric Academy professor or an enigmatic alien visitor, the Seventh Doctor actor has the range to do both. McCoy’s history withThe HobbitandDoctor Whocould also attract the attention of audiences who wouldn’t normally watch Starfleet Academy.
5Michelle Gomez (Missy)
Gomez would have been terrific as Star Trek: Picard’s Captain Vadic.
Michelle Gomez memorably played the first female incarnation of the Doctor’s arch-nemesis, the Master, opposite Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor. As a performer who got her breakthrough role in the surreal sitcomGreen Wing, Gomez excels at playing slightly deranged characters with a malicious streak. While Amanda Plummer was terrific as Captain Vadic inStar Trek: Picardseason 3, it’s easy to see Gomez in the same role, amping up the Changeling’s unpredictability ever further. WhileStar Trek: Picardmay have missed an opportunity with Gomez, there are still plenty of opportunities to cast theDoctor Whostar.
Michelle Gomez also starred inDoom PatrolalongsideStephanie Czajkowski, who played Lieutenant T’Veen inStar Trek: Picardseason 3.
Michelle Gomez’s best opportunity for a role inStar Trekmay come courtesy ofThe Flight Attendantcreator Steve Yockey. Michelle Gomez played Miranda Croft, one of the murder suspects in Steve Yockey’s mystery thriller series. The long-gestatingStar Trek 4is currently undergoing another rewrite by Yockey,meaning that there could be a role for Michelle Gomez as the latest nemesis of Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk.
14 Best Doctor Who Episodes To Win Star Trek Fans Over
With recent talk of a crossover at San Diego Comic-Con, Star Trek fans may be wondering about the best Doctor Who stories to watch as a primer.
4Peter Capaldi (Twelfth Doctor)
Capaldi was one of the names put forward to play DS9’s Sisko.
Peter Capaldi was one of the names on the long list of potential actors to play Commander Benjamin Sisko inStar Trek: Deep Space Nine. Obviously, Capaldi didn’t get the role, but did eventually fulfill a childhood ambition to play the Doctor when he was cast inDoctor Whoin 2013. Despite this, there’s still plenty of time forStar Trekto finally put Capaldi in a Starfleet uniform in an upcoming movie or TV show.
However, Capaldi’s track record of playing terrifying screen villains like political spin doctor Malcolm Tucker inThe Thick of It, or time-traveling serial killer Gideon Shepherd inThe Devil’sHoursuggests an alternative role. The cold logic that Capaldi brings to Gideon inThe Devil’s Hourwould make him an excellentVulcan villain inStar Trek, perhaps in the upcoming origin movie, directed byDoctor Who’s Toby Haynes.
Toby Haynes and Peter Capaldi previously worked together when the former directed the first two episodes ofThe Musketeers.
3Freema Agyeman (Martha Jones)
The Doctor Who star once attended a Star Trek convention.
Since her final appearance as Martha Jones inDoctor Who’s 2010 New Year’s Day episode “The End of Time Part Two”, Freema Agyeman has had a lucrative career in Hollywood. Agyeman has starred in the Wachowski Sisters’Sense8on Netflix, and played Doctor Helen Sharpe in 79 episodes ofNew Amsterdam. However, one Hollywood ambition that Agyeman hasn’t yet fulfilled is a role in theStar Trekfranchise. In an interview withDigital Spyfrom 2007, Agyeman pickedStar Trek: The Next Generationas the one TV show other thanDoctor Whothat she’d love to appear in.
Freema Agyeman reprised the role of Martha Jones for aDoctor Whoaudio spin-offThe Year of Martha Jones, alongsideStar Trek: The Next Generationstar Marina Sirtis.
While it’s too late for Freema Agyeman to appear inStar Trek: The Next Generationor its sequel seriesStar Trek: Picard, she could still appear in the franchise. Having built up a solid career as a TV doctor inNew AmsterdamandDoctor Who, Freema Agyeman could be a great fit for a role in Starfleet Medical. This role could allow her to teach medicine inStar Trek: Starfleet Academy, or work alongside Doctor Joseph M’Benga inStar Trek: Strange New Worlds.
Star Trek’s Best Doctor Who Crossover Is Strange New Worlds
RTD and Alex Kurtzman’s panel at SDCC 2024 raises hope for a Star Trek and Doctor Who crossover. Here’s why it should happen on Strange New Worlds.
2David Tennant (Tenth and Fourteenth Doctor)
Star Trek is the one sci-fi franchise David Tennant hasn’t appeared in.
As well as being the 21st century’s most popularDoctor Who, David Tennant has appeared in Marvel’sJessica Jonesand voiced the character of Huyang inStar Wars: The Clone WarsandAhsoka. Having covered three of the most popular pop-culture franchises of all time,Star Trekis a glaring omission from David Tennant’s resume. Clearly, Tennant is keen to address this, as he revealed to aReddit AMA(viaTrekMovie) back in 2020:
Star Trek would be great. After talking to George Takei for the podcast I’ve got a bit immersed in it.
David Tennant has played both sinister villains and charismatic heroes, making him suitable for all manner ofStar Trekroles. His extensive career as a voice actor inStar Wars,DuckTalesand more even creates the possibility of a role for David Tennant in a future episode ofStar Trek: Prodigy. Season 2 ofProdigyreferencedDoctor Whowitha nod to the “timey wimey” phrase originated by Tennant and writer Steven Moffat. Perhaps it was an open invitation for Tennant to sign on for a possibleStar Trek: Prodigyseason 3.
1Karen Gillan (Amy Pond)
Gillan grew up on Star Trek.
Karen Gillan revealed her love of 1990sStar Trekin an episode of Josh Horowitz’sHappy Sad Confusedpodcast. Gillan’s mother is a hugeStar Trekfan, and so theDoctor Whostar grew up watchingStar Trek: The Next GenerationandStar Trek: Voyager. In her interview with Horowitz, Gillan confesses her love for Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway, surely making her a shoo-in for an appearance inStar Trek: Prodigy.
It seems likely that, if a role opposite Captain Janeway in aStar Trekshow was offered to Gillan, she’d snap it up. Not least because she wouldn’t want to upset her mother.
Having appeared in theGuardians of the GalaxyandJumanjimovies, Karen Gillan is obviously an actress in demand. However, her recent role in Steven Moffat’s dramaDouglas is Cancelledproves that she’s at a stage in her career where she can choose smaller-scale projects that appeal to her. It seems likely that, if a role opposite Captain Janeway in aStar Trekshow was offered to Gillan, she’d snap it up. Not least because she wouldn’t want to upset her mother. Better yet, Karen Gillan could follow in Mulgrew’s footsteps by becoming another of Starfleet’s female captains.
