MONDO EXTRAS

TWoP: It's sort of the equivalent of being on American Idol here?
Smith: Yeah, it is. Which is gonna change, isn't it? To X-Factor?

TWoP: Yes. I'm looking forward to it.
Smith: It's better! You'll like it.

TWoP: Did you get any sort of advice from David as he handed the reins off to you?
Smith: Not really. I mean, we talked, and he's a lovely man, David. He was very graceful, as he always is. But no, I think it has to be your own version of it. And I don't think you can talk about the part too much, creatively. But he just said, "Look, dude, enjoy your ride," and what a great ride it is. And he was right. I'm sure it'll be the hardest thing [I'll ever do]. It is the hardest thing I've ever done, to date. Just because the amount we shoot, and the time we shoot it in. And basically, in Doctor Who, each episode has the ambition of a little mini feature film, but we shoot in twelve days. With a lot less money. We do 30 pages a week, and a movie might do ten!

TWoP: Well, you are young, so you should have all this extra energy.
Smith: [Laughs] I guess so!

TWoP: Since you are so young, does that mean you'll be sticking around for a lot of seasons?
Smith: [Laughs] For ten years?

TWoP: Ten years? 15 years?
Smith: I don't know about that. I'd certainly like to do it for a couple more, because I love playing the part. I've not had a better part. He's extraordinary, you know, the Doctor, and what a treat it is to get to play him. But we'll see, and I'm just now focused on making this year as brilliant as it can be and thinking about next year, which I'm really excited for. Steven was running me through a few of his ideas, and we start shooting in July, and it sounds amazing.

TWoP: Great! More sleepless nights!
Smith: [Laughs] I'm afraid so!

TWoP: If those little kids with the gas masks come back, it's all over.
Smith: Yeah, yeah, the "Empty Child." That's great.

TWoP: Do you have a favorite doctor you looked to for inspiration?
Smith: Not creatively, I didn't look to anyone, because I wasn't that familiar with the show. It wasn't really on TV when I was a kid in England. But I really like Patrick Troughton. Have you ever seen him? "The Tomb of the Cybermen," it was a great episode.