Michelle Gomez drops hints to how Missy will return to Doctor Who – “Pay attention!”
The actress gives clues to what Missy’s been up to since we last saw her – and it isn’t good
Michelle Gomez returns to BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who this week as longtime villain Missy (formerly known as The Master), and it’s safe to say that this particular (and more-or-less final) reappearance for the Doctor’s nemesis has people even more excited than usual.
You see, this year it’s been revealed that Gomez’ incarnation of the face-changing Time Lord will team up with her predecessor, played by John Simm, who was last seen in 2009 episode The End of Time part 2 and has inspired huge speculation ever since his involvement was announced last month.
Accordingly, it’s not too much of a surprise to find Gomez cagey at how and why her character appears in the new series, with the Scottish actress loth to acknowledge that she even appears in this Saturday’s sixth episode and the two-part series finale in June/July despite her involvement in all three already being announced.
“I don’t know, that depends on how they cut it,” Gomez told RadioTimes.com when asked about her appearances in this series.
Michelle Gomez as Missy in this Saturday's Doctor Who
“They might have cut all my bits – I never take anything for granted. Last thing I know I think I was in episode 6, I think I made it through to that. But all the other stuff might be on the cutting-room floor.”
Still, the actress did shed some light on her role in this week’s instalment, suggesting that she wasn’t a major part of the episode’s main zombie-monk-deadly-religious-text storyline and instead popping up for a brief appearance only.
“Yeah, you’re just gonna have to pay attention,” she said when asked if it was only a brief appearance for Missy this week. “That’s all I want to say. When you watch episode 6.”
And Gomez went on to offer other clues to how Missy returns to the world of Doctor Who, following on from her last appearance in 2015’s The Witch’s Familiar. In that episode, as fans may recall, Missy was left surrounded by Daleks only to announce that she had a “very clever idea” to get herself out of trouble – and now apparently we’ll find out what that idea actually was.
“We do, and it was a clever idea because I didn’t see that coming,” Gomez told us. “It’s quite exciting.”
And then the star added something that may or may not be a clue for exactly what the idea was, hinting that the line’s delivery (in the style of Michael Caine in the original Italian Job film after he finds himself in a similarly dire predicament) could offer some insight into Missy’s return.
“And can you tell me what accent I was using when I announced ‘I’ve just had a very clever idea?’” the actress asked us.
“I think that needs to go down as some kind of Missy quiz question. ‘What accent did Missy use during that sentence?’
“It’s a big movie star – I’ll give you some clues. It’s a man, a big movie star in the 70s and 80s, and he’s still out there now, doing good work. And there was a robbery, there was a big big robbery – a heist, actually, in the movie where I am using that accent.
“And I’m not just talking unrelatable tangents here. That was a clue.”
Interesting…and if you STILL want more information about what Missy’s been up to since we last saw her, Gomez suggested that times haven’t been kind to this particular Time Lady, as evidenced by her new, slightly messier hairstyle (above).
“She’s definitely changed in the sense that she looks like she’s been dragged through a hedge backwards,” Gomez told us.
“She has had a bit of a time of it, and that is revealed or illustrated by the fact that she’s a bit messed up. She’s not quite as smooth and poised as she was once before. Basically she needs a good wash – she needs a good wash and blow dry.”
Missy on the back foot, having to improvise an escape plan? We’d say THAT kind of return would be well worth the wait.
Doctor Who continues on BBC1 this Saturday 20th May at 7.25pm
