'Doctor Who' Welcomes Lenny Rush For Series 14
Could the long-running British sci-fi series have its first child companion in the revival era?
More casting was announced for Doctor Who on Thursday, and there’s possibility afoot. Lenny Rush has been cast in the new series as Morris.
Rush is a 14-year-old with dwarfism who has already had several roles, including as Tiny Tim in a 2019 A Christmas Carol adaptation and a recurring role in the British series Dodger. The best chance casual American audiences would know him is from a small role as a paperboy in Enola Holmes 2. Lately, he has gained acclaim for starring as Ollie in the dramedy series Am I Being Unreasonable? which won him the BAFTA for Best Male Performance in a Comedy Series last month.
On joining Doctor Who, Rush says: “It’s an absolute honour to be part of Doctor Who, one of the most iconic shows on television and wow what a dream come true!” Meanwhile returning showrunner Russell T. Davies said: “This is what Doctor Who's all about, brand new talent from the next generation, and no one’s more talented than Lenny! He joins the TARDIS team just in time for the Doctor’s greatest nightmare, so hold on tight!” This statement, along with “Now Lenny is about to join the team travelling time and space” in the posting has led a publication as reputable as Deadline to say that he’s going to be Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor’s late-in-season second companion alongside Ruby Sunday, played by Millie Gibson. Variety just calls it “mysterious”. There’s no mention of it being a key role, as similar reports for this season’s other castings, but if it’s true, Rush would be the youngest actor to play a companion in the series’ history, let alone one of his stature.
In addition to Gatwa and Gibson, whose first adventure together will be the 2023 Christmas special, those set to appear in spring 2024’s series 14 include Jemma Redgrave returning as Kate Stewart, Bonnie Langford returning as classic companion Melanie “Mel” Bush, and currently-undisclosed roles for Jonathan Groff, Aneurin Bernard, Indira Varma, Anita Dobson, Michelle Greenidge, and Jinkx Monsoon. Murray Gold returns as the composer. Series 14 will be the first full to air internationally on Disney+, including the United States, while the series continues on its BBC home domestically.
Source: Doctor Who