The unlikely star tipped to be the next Doctor Who? It's Oscar-winning actress Tilda Swinton.
The Hollywood cult hero is being cited as the odds-on favourite to take over the soon-to-be vacant role from Peter Capaldi, and become the show's 13th – and, notably, first female – Time Lord.
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Who will be the next Doctor?
After three seasons, Peter Capaldi leaves Dr Who. A replacement is yet to be named.
The ever in-demand actress is currently in London doing voice-work on Wes Anderson's upcoming stop-motion animated film, Isle Of Dogs.
Swinton's name was originally suggested by Paul McGann, the show's 8th Doctor, who last month tweeted a picture of the actress with the caption, "Imagine Capaldi regenerating into...".
![Tilda Swinton is the bookies' favourite to be <i>Doctor Who's</i> 13th Time Lord.](/web/20170218083854im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/f/8/e/6/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.guf82k.png/1487335369225.jpg)
The suggestion was enthusiastically supported by the show's fans, with one kid even launching a Change.org petition to lobby BBC on the potential pick.
"Making Tilda Swinton the next Doctor would be the first time a woman plays the part, which alone is great, but social ideologies aside, she is a terrific actress, and in my personal opinion, has the ethereal and classy aura that fits perfectly for a 20-something centuries alien who travels all of time and space," the petition's author wrote.
Can't argue with that.
Capaldi, previously famed for his foul-mouthed tirades as spin doctor Malcolm Tucker in the BBC comedy The Thick Of It, announced in January that the current season of Doctor Who, his third in the titular role, will be his last.
In an interview with The Mirror, he revealed his hope that the role would finally be taken over by a woman, citing Tony award-winning actress and Harry Potter regular Frances de la Tour as his personal preference.
While de la Tour's name doesn't feature in bookies' tips online (yes, you can bet on anything these days), their lists include other intriguing female potentials, such as Peep Show's Olivia Colman, The Village's Maxine Peake and Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge.
Love Actually star Kris Marshall, Ben Wishaw and Richard Ayoade lead the field among the male possibilities.
Imagine Capaldi regenerating into.. pic.twitter.com/m0OP6bYlEO
— Paul McGann (@pauljmcgann) January 31, 2017
The show's next season promises to be a major reshuffle for the long-running cult hit, with veteran showrunner Steven Moffat also set to walk away, replaced by Broadchurch writer Chris Chibnall.