Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa's life from homelessness to powerful sexuality statement
Despite Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa's seemingly meteoric rise, his life has been far from smooth sailing.
The Rwandan-Scottish actor shot to fame after landing a leading role on Netflix's Sex Education and has since been cast as the 14th Time Lord on the iconic BBC series. Ncuti will be taking over from Jodie Whittaker to portray the iconic role of Doctor Who, joining the likes of David Tennant and Matt Smith.
But his pathway to success hasn't been easy, having struggled with depression and homelessness whilst pursuing a career in acting. Over the years, the 31-year-old star has spoken candidly about his experience of living without a permanent roof over his head and fearing he was a 'burden' to his friends.
Ncuti Gatwa has taken over the historic role of Dr Who (BBC Studios)Born in Rwanda, Ncuti's family moved to Scotland during the 1994 genocide and said they were one of "like three Black families in the whole of Edinburgh". "I was quite an easy target in a state Scottish high school. I grew up in a working-class area, and I stood out – for my voice, my appearance, I did dance and things like that," he told The Independent. He would go to church on weekends, where his dad was a minister, and still has faith but is "not the biggest fan of organised religion".
Ncuti left Edinburgh to move to London to pursue his acting career but says his accent has been questioned, leaving some people baffled and even sparking anger. "The amount of times I've almost been beaten up for saying I'm Scottish. It's given me an identity crisis," he told the publication, explaining that people "really cannot understand the concept of a Black boy in a tracksuit in London being from Scotland."
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In 2014, Ncuti began his career as an extra on the 2014 sitcom Bob Servant. In 2016, he played Demetrius in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Shakespeare's Globe. Then his big break came when he was cast in Sex Education as Eric Effiong, a young gay British-Nigerian who is best friends with Otis, the show's lead character.
Writing in The Big Issue in May 2020, he said he ended up homeless after running out of savings in the months before he landed his role as Eric. "Being a 25-year-old man with no money or job affected my sense of self-worth," he wrote. "Rejection became unbearable. Auditions weren't just acting jobs, they were lifelines."
He explained that one friend offered to let him move into his spare room rent-free, but on move-in day, he changed his mind. "As I was standing on the street with my suitcases, one thought came into my head: 'I'm homeless'," he said. While everything appeared fine to the outside world, Ncuti was losing weight because he could not afford to eat properly - but people would compliment how "lean and healthy" he looked.
In reality, Ncuti was suffering from depression, though he kept it from his friends out of fear of being a 'burden'. Then his life completely changed when he landed a role in Sex Education. The actor has since earned three BAFTA nominations for Best Male Comedy Performance and was announced as the 14th Doctor in 2022.
In a statement last year, Ncuti said: "There aren't quite the words to describe how I'm feeling. This role and show means so much to so many around the world, including myself, and each one of my incredibly talented predecessors has handled that unique responsibility and privilege with the utmost care. I will endeavour my upmost to do the same."
However, the transition from Sex Education to Doctor Who hasn't been completely smooth for Ncuti. During an interview with Radio Times, the actor revealed it was his bad language that got him in hot water with head writer Russell T Davies. "The only time I've ever gotten in trouble for anything was when I swore [while wearing] a Doctor Who costume," he recalled.
Asa Butterfield as Otis Milburn and Ncuti Gatwa as Eric Effiong in Sex Education (Thomas Wood/Netflix)"I got called into Russell's office. Woo! And he let me know that that's not acceptable. He said, 'Do what you want when you're out of costume, but when you're in costume, do not let us catch you swearing.' I was like, fair enough. And I guess that was a lesson," he said, adding: "For the last four years, I've been co-leading an X-rated show, and so I'm on a constant journey of learning what it is to be a PG role model and the lead of a family show."
Earlier this year, Ncuti appeared in British Vogue's Pride issue and spoke about fighting for his privacy following a lot of public speculation about his own sexuality - which he chose for a long time not to discuss. "It's a safety and mental health thing," he said. "In setting my boundaries, I knew I wanted to separate the private and public, and that I never wanted my personal life to overshadow my work."
He later told British GQ: "I'm aware of the confusion it caused but I kind of thought that my participation in [the Pride issue] was a statement. Not to come for anyone, but I was like, you know, two plus two equals four." Ncuti went on to explain that, while expressing your sexuality in the UK is no longer deemed a taboo, it is still difficult for those figuring out how they identify when they're met with constant questions. He also discussed how hard it is seeing other queer people in his home country, Rwanda - where same-sex relationships are not legally recognised - "succumbing to a reality that's been forced on them".
Then in August, Ncuti opened up about his sexuality candidly for the first time in an Elle UK interview. "I remember being at Manchester Pride, going through the streets with all my boys, shaking my cha-chas, living it up when I saw this woman who looked exactly like my auntie," he shared, adding: "I had never met another queer Rwandan person before. I thought I was the only one in the world."
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- Doctor Who airs on BBC One at 5.55pm tonight on Monday, December 25.
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