The Gasp He Gasped Was Just Insane

Warning: SPOILERS for Doctor Who season 15, episode 4 – “Lucky Day”!After Doctor Who season 15, episode 14 revealed Conrad’s true intentions, even Ncuti Gatwa was stunned by the betrayal. Led by showrunner Russell T Davies, who brought the show back to life after a 16-year hiatus, this is the second season with Gatwa at the show’s head. After recently meeting Belinda Chandra (Varada Sethu), the Doctor returned to his former companion Ruby Sunday (Mellie Gibson), who officially began a relationship with Conrad Clark (Jonah Hauer-King). Though the two appeared to be a loving couple, Hauer-King was quickly revealed to be a villainous conspiracy theorist.

In an interview with ScreenRant‘s Tatiana Hullender, Gibson shared her response to the Conrad twist. She described herself as “heartbroken” and “perfect“, while heaping praise on Hauer-King. Gibson also detailed Gatwa’s initial reaction, especially when it came to his gasp as he read the script. She hopes that every viewer has the same reaction, after watching Ruby’s “Prince Eric” reveal himself as an outright villain. Check out her quote below:

In this household, we hate Conrad. Can you walk me through what Ruby feels over the big reveal that her first big relationship since the Doctor is a lie?

Millie Gibson: Sad! Oh, my gosh. When I read that script, it was like, “Okay, just rip my heart out of my chest.” I’m so excited for the viewers to see that twist, though.

Even when we did the read-through, I remember Ncuti being like, “I don’t think I’ve had a chance to read this episode…” And we were just turning the pages until I heard Ncuti’s reaction. Oh, my gosh, I’ll never forget it. The gasp he gasped was just insane. I was obsessed! I hope everyone else has the reaction that Ncuti had.

But I was as heartbroken as Ruby was. I remember when we did that scene, that switch was great! Jonah [Hauer-King] plays Conrad so goofy that you never see it coming. “He’s Prince Eric! He will never betray us.” That’s what you think. Jonah just plays it beautifully. That speech where he is like, “I’ve had to listen to your tedious piano solos!” Ugh, it’s perfect.

What Gatwa’s Reaction Means For The Conrad Twist

Even The Cast Was Stunned By The Revelation

The Conrad twist took Doctor Who season 15’s entire cast by surprise, largely because Conrad initially appeared to be a friendly face. The Doctor met him when he was just a child, which seemingly ignited a lifelong love for the whimsical world, just as it did for Amy Pond (Karen Gillan, Caitlin Blackwood) when the Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) met her. Instead, Conrad proved that the Doctor is not always a positive force in the lives of others, as he proved to be a malevolent podcast host, simply attempting to prove that aliens are nothing but lies.

The most exciting element of this twist is that it recontextualizes Conrad’s entire character. Just as Gatwa struggled with the revelation that Conrad is nothing but a liar who manipulated Ruby relentlessly, the average viewer is forced to reconsider what they have been watching since meeting him. As Conrad is now embroiled in the Mrs. Flood mystery, he will likely appear again, though viewers will be forced to judge his every decision, even if he eventually seeks redemption. It was a calculated risk, but Gatwa’s initial reaction likely proved to the cast and crew that it was a worthy one.

Our Take On Doctor Who’s Conrad Twist

The Story Could Have Ended Here

While the Conrad twist was certainly interesting, it should have been seeded earlier. If hints about Conrad’s existence began in previous episodes, viewers could have had the opportunity to speculate for weeks about his greater role in the story. Simply including his entire backstory in one episode was too jarring when long-form TV allows for a more gradual revelation. Gatwa may have been shocked, but he would have been even more surprised if Doctor Who took advantage of its medium to better explore Conrad’s story.

New episodes of Doctor Who air Sundays on BBC and are available to stream at 12pm PT/3am ET on Disney+ the same day.

Doctor Who

Release Date

2005 – 2022-00-00

Directors

Graeme Harper, Euros Lyn, Douglas Mackinnon, Jamie Magnus Stone, Charles Palmer, Rachel Talalay, Joe Ahearne, James Strong, Jamie Childs, Saul Metzstein, Toby Haynes, Wayne Che Yip, Nick Hurran, Richard Clark, James Hawes, Daniel Nettheim, Colin Teague, Keith Boak, Azhur Saleem, Adam Smith, Andrew Gunn, Nida Manzoor, Lawrence Gough, Paul Murphy

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  Jodie Whittaker

  The Doctor

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