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Doctor Who first look confirms House of the Dragon star as mysterious new villain

"He comes to Doctor Who with fury, venom, cunning and a beautiful set of horns. Doctor beware!"

Ncuti Gatwa and Varada Sethu in a dramatic scene from Doctor Who, dressed in elegant vintage-style outfits. Gatwa, wearing a sharp blue suit with a pink bow tie, looks tense and alert, while Sethu, in a flowing yellow dress, holds onto his arm with concern. The setting appears to be a grand, old-fashioned theater with rich red seating and Art Deco-inspired decor.

BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf/James Pardon

Published: Thursday, 6 March 2025 at 3:00 pm

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Freddie Fox will appear in the new season of Doctor Who as a "fearsome villain".

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Fox – who has recently appeared in hit series including Slow Horses and House of the Dragon – will play a figure from an alien planet who faces off against the Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) and his new companion Belinda Chandra (Varada Sethu).

"He’s the most spectacular actor, and he comes to Doctor Who with fury, venom, cunning and a beautiful set of horns," said showrunner Russell T Davies. "Doctor beware!”

In 2015, Fox appeared as Freddie Baxter in Davies’s Channel 4 drama Cucumber and its E4 sister series Banana.

"It’s been 10 years since I worked with Freddie on Cucumber, and this is a great way to celebrate the anniversary," said Davies.

Freddie Fox as a futuristic character in Doctor Who, wearing a jacket and graphic T-shirt in a neon-lit, sci-fi setting.

Freddie Fox in Doctor Who. BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf

Fox himself said: "I had the most amazing time making this show and feel honoured to have been asked to be a part of Russell's crazy, bonkers, beautiful vision.

"Added to which, sharing space with the iconic Doctor that is Ncuti Gatwa was special beyond imagining. If audiences enjoy watching it half as much as I did making it, televisions are on course to explode right across the world!"

Fox is the latest star name to be announced for the new season, which will also feature an appearance from Alan Cumming as Mr Ring-a-Ding, an animated character wreaking havoc in a 1952-set episode.

Other guest stars include Christopher Chung, Rose Ayling-Ellis, and returning faces from UNIT, such as Jemma Redgrave and Bonnie Langford.

The Fifteenth Doctor wearing an orange/brown T-shirt, checkered trousers and white trainers, floating horizontally in space and looking panicked.

Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor in Doctor Who. BBC Studios/Bad Wolf/James Pardon

The season will feature eight episodes, written by Russell T Davies alongside new contributors Pete McTighe, Juno Dawson, Inua Ellams and Sharma Angel-Walfall.

Doctor Who is produced by Bad Wolf with BBC Studios for the BBC and Disney and will air from 12th April on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK, and on Disney Plus outside of the UK.

In a recent release confirming the new season's launch date, it was revealed that the previous run of episodes "was a top 5 series on Disney Plus globally every week it aired".

Watch a trailer for the new season of Doctor Who below:

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Authors

Morgan Jeffery

Morgan Jeffery

Morgan Jeffery is as a TV and Film expert and has appeared on BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio 5 Live and Sky Atlantic.

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