27 Movie Actors For Doctor Who

Johnny Depp (2/1)

Timey-Why Me? The instant favourte (all odds from Paddy Power), Depp's an A-lister with the charisma to play eccentric and the acting chops to convince as a 900+ year old Time Lord.

Ideal Companion: Potentially, an unknown youngster. Depp has that innocent, otherwordly quality that child actors seem to respond to.

Who costume: Depp could wear anything and look cool, so let's be vague and say, scruffily elegant.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Regenerate. Depp's freewheeling Captain Jack Sparrow - a mischievous, accidental hero, and British to boot - provides an instant point of comparison.

One caveat: here's an actor who might actually need to tone down the eccentricity.

Matt Smith (9/4)

Timey-Why Me? The TARDIS' 11th official incumbent has been a hit with fans and the public, thanks to his combination of youthful vigour and professorial nuttiness.

Ideal Companion: It'd be hard to argue against the prospect of seeing current partner-in-crime Amy Pond's (Karen Gillan) long legs on the big screen.

Who costume: Smith's already rocking a suitably Doctorish look with his punk'd up tutor's image, but keep the fez from the recent series finale. Fezes are cool.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Neither: keep him in the television Pandorica until his stock has risen.

Smith sadly doesn't have the global recognition needed to greenlight a major movie. His most notable film role to date, playing the young Ralph Fiennes in In Bruges , ended up on the cutting-room floor.

David Tennant (8/1)

Timey-Why Me? The longest-serving Doctor since Tom Baker, and possibly the only actor to become a genuine celebrity on the back of his tenure.

Tennant is now looking Stateside for film work, notably the forthcoming Fright Night remake, so is well placed for a Time Lord comeback.

Ideal Companion: Tennant played best against older-than-the-norm co-horts (Catherine Tate, Bernard Cribbins) so let's opt for the ultimate choice: Meryl Streep.

Who costume: The 10th Doctor's Converse-and-suit combo remains the high watermark of the Doctor's sartorial cool. No need to change it.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? No second chances; Tennant's done his time.

The film risks the prospect of being a 'period piece' (if such a thing is possible in a story about time travel), hidebound by the pesky continuity of established Who lore.

Hugh Grant (10/1)

Timey-Why Me? Long-listed (by the media, anyway) when the TV series was brought out of mothballs, Grant's foppish, English gent act is almost a caricature of how the Doctor used to be perceived by the public at large.

Little known fact: Grant has form, having played the Doctor in 1999 Comic Relief parody The Curse of Fatal Death .

Ideal Companion: Grant has had hit-and-miss chemistry with his leading ladies over the years, but Renee Zellweger gave him the spikiest of repartee. But as a new character, please. This isn't a Bridget Jones spin-off.

Who costume: Toff casual - slacks, open shirt, blazer. He's never going to go punk, is he?

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Since his comic Doc aired, Grant has widened his dramatic palette (notably About A Boy ) so this one's not beyond the realms of possibility. Especially as Richard Curtis made a decent stab of writing Doctor Who this year.

Orlando Bloom (12/1)

Timey-Why Me? The only star to date to appear in two $1 billion movies at the global box-office, Bloom's clearly doing something right. Maybe that's why he's the highest-placed Brit who hasn't already played the part.

Ideal Companion: Based on his Fellowship experience, Bloom works well with dwarves. Maybe he could travel with a Zoccii, the diminutive, spiky-faced alien race first seen chatting up Kylie in Christmas special Voyage of the Damned .

Who costume: Hip priest. Monkish robes, hiding more practical attire underneath.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Bloom's never had a hit in his own right; the evidence suggests that he excels in supporting roles. Companion material, anyone?

Colin Firth (14/1)

Timey-Why Me? Firth's stock has never been higher after A Single Man , and would offer a suitably English Doctor without the baggage that, say, Hugh Grant would bring to the role.

Ideal Companion: Chances are that Firth would be more of a hands-off Doctor, so he'll need a fighter to do the physical stuff. Chloe Moretz as a Victorian street urchin, perhaps?

Who costume: Classic casual with designer embellishments, courtesy of Firth's new mate Tom Ford.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Can Firth do eccentric? Chances are the Daleks would take one look at his 'eternally repressed' schtick and zap him.

Robert Pattinson (14/1)

Timey-Why Me? As the Twilight series nears its...umm...twilight, R-Pattz is going to need a new high-profile gig. The mysterious, asexual Time Lord would keep his legion of admirers in a permanent swoon.

Ideal Companion: Somebody who can bite back this time. How about Sarah Silverman?

Who costume: Anything paler than midnight is likely to disenfranchise the fanbase, so in this case the new black is...black.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Doctor Who isn't ready for the sulky, sullen emo Doctor. Time to see how immortal he really is.

Christopher Eccleston (16/1)

Timey-Why Me? A superb Doctor on-screen, with an audience-intriguing balance of rugged normality and alien intensity. His too-short era could happily accommodate another two hours of screen time.

Ideal Companion: None. Eccleston's TV arc with Billie Piper runs right up to his regeneration, so the sensible thing to do would be to set the film before their meeting.

Fan logic would demand that this paves the way to see the mythical, never-broadcast Time War, which is a suitably epic canvas for a movie.

Who costume: A symbolic journey from stereotypical Doctor's garb into the bovver-boy survivor seen on telly.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Wouldn't bother sending in a Dalek kill squad, to be honest. There's no way Eccleston would even consider a return.

Ralph Fiennes (18/1)

Timey-Why Me? A somewhat bold choice, considering that Fiennes has domineered the market in super-scary villains in recent years. But Fiennes' ambiguity would certain recapture the Doctor's alien authority.

Ideal Companion: Fiennes' frostiness needs radiance to compensate. It would take Reese Witherspoon at her perkiest.

Who costume: Despite his upper-class image, Fiennes was arguably at his most Doctorish as a mental patient in David Cronenberg's Spider , so a crumpled mad prophet look would play admirably against type.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? On the evidence of The Avengers , he doesn't really get whimsy. He'd look awkward as hell, so let's put him out of his misery

Hugh Laurie (18/1)

Timey-Why Me? His revelatory, whirlwind performance in House hints at a mercurial range, but deep down he's still the Oxbridge nincompoop who made Edmund Blackadder's life hell.

Ideal Companion: Laurie would demand brains as well as beauty. Seems tailor-made for Rachel Weisz.

Who costume: Globetroting gadabout. We're picturing a panama hat.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Regenerate. In our dreams, the ideal Doctor lies at the exact midpoint between Bertie Wooster and Gregory House.

Daniel Radcliffe (20/1)

Timey-Why Me? Now that Radcliffe is pottering on from the role that made his name, he could do with an appropriately epic vehicle to showcase his acting credentials. The Doctor - at once ancient and youthful - makes the ideal stepping-stone.

Ideal Companion: Too young, and you risk ghettoising the film as strictly for the kids; too old, and we're in Mrs Robinson territory. Any of 4.3.2.1 .'s leading ladies would suit admirably.

Who costume: A ban on robes and glasses would be a start.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Matt Smith might have blown apart the "too young" argument but - at six-and-a-half years' Smith's junior - Radcliffe really is too young.

Jude Law (25/1)

Timey-Why Me? Bankable again after Sherlock Holmes , Law has replaced the hint of self-satisfaction in his younger days with a newfound maturity and likeability that could well translate into Time Lordliness.

Ideal Companion: Assuming Law would play the Doctor as a dreamer, he needs a hard-as-nails, practical sidekick in the vein of Olivia Wilde.

Who costume: Watson's Victorian detective's garb suits Law, although maybe lose the hat.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? It's his success as Doctor Watson that counts against him. Wouldn't you rather have RDJ's more mercurial Holmes in the role?

Christoph Waltz (33/1)

Timey-Why Me? The Doctor should always surprise us. And Waltz's portrayal of multi-lingual, mult-faceted 'funny Nazi' Hans Landa is the most surprising performance in recent years.

Ideal Companion: Waltz's persona is so erudite and cosmopolitan it's hard to resist the temptation to throw set up screwball sparks with a complete ditz. Christina Applegate, perhaps.

Who costume: Polo-necked European intellectual.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Even folk who haven't seen Inglourious Basterds will know he's won an Oscar, and he's still enough of an unknown quantity to be a gamble worth taking.

Clive Owen (33/1)

Timey-Why Me? Already the go-to guy for reluctant heroes, Owen would bring a sardonic, world-weary wit to toppling alien empires.

Ideal Companion: Owen's trademark diffidence would need counterbalancing with a go-getting personality. Time to bring back Carey Mulligan's Sally Sparrow?

Who costume: A variation on the dishevelled, gone-to-seed look of Children of Men .

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Exterminate, not that he'd care. The Doctor needs to win hearts and minds, and the public has never really clutched Owen to its collective bosom.

Tim Roth (33/1)

Timey-Why Me? Roth's reinvention as Lie To Me' s body language expert Cal Lightman gives him the gravitas to capture the Doctor's cerebral nature...but his past life as big-screen bad guy would add tantalising danger.

Ideal Companion: Roth's not a massive star, so let's throw a bone to the media, and cast Scarlett Johansson as a con woman who likes to dress up.

Who costume: Chandler-esque gumshoe.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? If Eccleston's ground-breaking interpretation proved anything, it's that a fleck of grit really helps sell The Doctor to modern audiences. Roth might be the man to repeat that success.

Kevin Spacey (40/1)

Timey-Why Me? Spacey's ethereal, steel-wrapped-in-velvet demeanour would make him a formidable Time Lord, plus he's more or less an honorary Brit these days so probably gets the show's ethos.

Ideal Companion: Spacey's sarcasm would blast most young actresses away, so it'd need the equally sharp tongue of someone like Emily Blunt.

Who costume: Lounge suit and cravat.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Deep down, you're probably thinking...wouldn't Spacey be better as The Master?

Ben Kingsley (40/1)

Timey-Why Me? Kingsley's so associated with oddballs and psychos these days, that it'd be an impressive curveball to recapture the talismanic quality of his Gandhi.

Ideal Companion: Kingsley's fussiness could do with a kook. Step forward, Zooey Deschanel.

Who costume: His pipe-smoking psychiatrist in Shutter Island provides a useful template.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Another actor who might prove too sinister for the innate warmth the Doctor needs. Best exterminate, just to be sure.

Daniel Day-Lewis (40/1)

Timey-Why Me? He would command the screen like nobody else and, on the rare occasions he's not been subsumed in character, there's always been a dandyish quality to his character that's very Doctorish.

Ideal Companion: We've not had many historical companions. Rose Byrne as an Austen-esque lady of society would complement Day-Lewis' H.G. Wellsian romanticism.

Who costume: Look no further than what he's wearing in the photo above.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Regenerate, provided Day-Lewis doesn't actually insist on regeneration as part of his preparation for the role.

Philip Seymour Hoffman (50/1)

Timey-Why Me? While not a A-lister, Hoffman has the presence and credibility to capture the Doctor's mix of avuncularity and steel.

Ideal Companion: Hoffman's heft needs a formidable actress to match him. Also, Doctor Who needs a least one Brit in the TARDIS. Anybody know Kate Winslet's phone number?

Who costume: Orson Welles circa F For Fake - a black-hatted maker of magic.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Welcome aboard. Despite the long odds, Hoffman is a surer bet than most of those being touted.

Russell Crowe (80/1)

Timey-Why Me? Presumably, the thinking is that playing wily rebel Robin Hood is a good practice run...although the better comparison is Master and Commander 's cultured naval strategist Jack Aubrey.

Ideal Companion: If Crowe's instinctive physicality is to the fore, then it's the companion who will have to bring the soulful introspection. Sounds like a job for Samantha Morton.

Who costume: The traditional effete Edwardian Doctor isn't going to work, is it? Crowe could well be the first muscle-vested Time Lord.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? It'd be worth giving Crowe the gig, in the hope he brings along best mate Ridley Scott to direct. Ridley came this close to designing the Daleks in the 1960s, and fans have wondered ever since what his visionary eye might bring to the table.

Liam Neeson (80/1)

Timey-Why Me? Neeson's already played Zeus, Aslan, Hannibal Smith and a Jedi master. He may as well complete the set.

Ideal Companion: Being mentored on-screen by Neeson is something of a rite-of-passage for rising male stars (McGregor, DiCaprio, Bale). Could well be the turn of Aaron Johnson.

Who costume: Neeson's always seemed pretty rugged, but as this shot shows, he does the 'boho university don' vibe with a certain panache.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? He'd certainly provide a safe pair of hands, but there's a danger his portrayal might be undifferentiated from all of those other icons.

Ryan Gosling (80/1)

Timey-Why Me? Gosling has been threatening a mainstream breakthrough for years but seems unimpressed with the formulaic choices on offer. The Doctor's versatility should keep him more than happy.

Ideal Companion: Gosling's a thinker, not a doer. Zoe Saldana would bring in some much-needed kick-ass attitude.

Who costume: Thrift-store fusion. Plus a beard. He should definitely keep the beard.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? A surprising if canny choice by the bookies. Do they know something we don't?

Jeff Bridges (80/1)

Timey-Why Me? Now that he's finally bagged that elusive Oscar, Bridges is probably out to have fun - and he'd certainly have fun with this role.

Ideal Companion: Sienna Miller's dainty English rose would be an intriguing match with Bridges' slothful, slovenly persona.

Who costume: Admit it. You want The Dude's cardigan to make a comeback, don't you?

Regenerate Or Exterminate? It's a tempting thought, isn't it? The Doctor's often hidden his intelligence behind seemingly harmless bumbling. Despite the amiable facade, Bridges has often shown killer instinct.

Brad Pitt (100/1)

Timey-Why Me? Pitt would offer an interpretation unlike any we've seen before, bar Tennant at his most dashing - the handsome Doctor who could melt villains' hearts with just a smile.

Ideal Companion: Since the bookies are veering into the realm of fantasy casting, let's make this TARDIS really, really ridiculously good-looking by bringing in Penelope Cruz.

Who costume: Push those boundaries. Pitt's so good-looking he'd probably get away with Colin Baker's 1980s clown-coat.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? He's probably too laidback to step out of the Daleks' path, unless a strong director like David Fincher was on hand to give him a push.

Tom Cruise (100/1)

Timey-Why Me? For the first time in his career, Cruise is an underdog. That vulnerability might make him a surprisingly convincing choice for the unlikely one-man-army that is The Doctor.

Ideal Companion: It's often said that each actor reinterprets The Doctor in their own image. And Cruise is very much his own man. No room aboard his TARDIS for a companion.

Who costume: Generic Tom Cruise.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Never mind the Daleks, Who fandom would go postal at the Cruiseification of the TV show. It's not worth the hassle, frankly.

Sean Penn (100/1)

Timey-Why Me? A few years ago, there's no way grumpy Penn would be let anywhere near a blockbuster. But his effervescent performance as Harvey Milk suggests he has a lighter side.

Ideal Companion: Penn's default setting remains ultra-serious, so let's have Tina Fey as a safety measure.

Who costume: As flamboyant as possible. Penn is likely to need reminding to keep smiling.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? Stay of execution - keep a Dalek around for the eventuality that he can't make the transition to family-friendly fare.

George Clooney (100/1)

Timey-Why Me? Probably Hollywood's most consistent chooser of interesting, leftfield movies, he'd be a badge of quality the Doctor Who film would need to go global.

Ideal Companion: Suave, handsome Clooney's as far as away from original Doctor William Hartnell as it's possible to get. The none-more-English Romola Garai would at least keep the film in touch with its roots.

Who costume: When was the last time Clooney wasn't wearing a suit? Of course, he could always come full circle and dress as an actual doctor, a la E.R.

Regenerate Or Exterminate? The Doctor works best when his opponents underestimate him. Clooney couldn't switch off that dazzling self-confidence if he tried.