'Doctor Who' writer on 'A Town Called Mercy': 'The Doctor is volatile'
September 12 2012, 11:48am EDT
By Justin Harp
Doctor Who writer Toby Whithouse
has suggested that The Doctor is "more dangerous" than usual in new
episode 'A Town Called Mercy'.
Whithouse offered a preview of
Saturday's (September 15, 2012 - 9:00 p.m.) episode to SFX, hinting that 'A
Town Called Mercy' shows a different side of the Time Lord.
"To write him as a slightly
more kind of volatile and unpredictable character was really refreshing and
exciting," Whithouse explained.
He also revealed that one scene
from the Western-themed installment sees The Doctor brandish a gun, a marked
change from his usual distaste for violence.
Whithouse said: "The sequence
where the Doctor is kind of forced to use a gun, giving the right sort of
emotional journey to that took a lot of finessing, and that was the scene that,
from draft to draft, would change the most regularly because the Doctor is a
confirmed pacifist and so putting him in that situation is a wonderful
opportunity in that it forces you to confront it, and provides you with
enormous tension and drama which, as a writer, is what you want."
The writer previously revealed
that he did not use Doctor Who's William Hartnell-era story 'The Gunfighters'
as inspiration for 'A Town Called Mercy.
"I thought about [watching]
it, and I think either Steven [Moffat] or Mark Gatiss forewarned me and said
not to bother," Whithouse revealed. "They said it's not exactly the
jewel in the crown, so probably best to steer clear!"
Doctor Who continues this Saturday
(September 15) at 7.35pm on BBC One. In the US, the series airs on BBC America.
Doctor Who: A Town Called Mercy –
English title
A 2012 British, Canadian
television production [BBC (Cardiff)]
Producer: Marcus Wilson
Director: Saul Metzstein
Story: Toby Whithouse
Screenplay: Toby Whithouse
Cinematography: Stephan Pehrsson
[color]
Music: Murray Gold
Running time: 60 minutes
Cast:
Doctor Who – Matt Smith (Matthew
Smith)
Rory – Arthur Darvill (Thomas
Darvill)
Amy Pond – Karen Gillan
The Gunslinger – Andrew Brooke
Isaac – Ben Browder (Robert Browder)
The Undertaker - Garrick Hagon
Kahler Jex - Adrian Scarborough
With: Adrian Scarborough, Sean
Benedict
Season 7 episode 3 “A Town Called
Mercy”. The Doctor gets a Stetson and a gun, and finds himself the reluctant
sheriff of a western town under siege by a relentless cyborg that goes by the
name of ‘The Gunslinger’. But who is he and what does he want?
Biltmore: A Town Called Mercy debutes on Canadian TV TONITE on Space, the Imagination Station!
ReplyDelete