Andrew Garfield isn’t the only Hollywood heavyweight unrecognisable in Doctor Who before fame-Danni Scott-Entertainment – Metro

There have been some famous faces in Doctor Who over the years (Picture: BBC)

Doctor Who is back and fans are overjoyed as Ncuti Gatwa steps into the Time Lord’s shoes as the new Doctor with Millie Gibson as his companion.

All eyes are on Glee alum Jonathan Groff for his mystery character in the brand new series but he’s hardly the first celebrity to appear on the show.

With over 60 years worth of episodes to dive into, there’s been plenty of famous faces who have cropped up across time and space.

Who could forget Kylie Minogue’s Christmas cameo or the iconic John Hurt’s turn as the War Doctor or even James Corden as hopeless romantic Craig.

Even more impressive is the series ability to spot talent before their big breaks, with some very big names playing some very minor roles over the years.

From Marvel’s Andrew Garfield to Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey, these are the biggest stars who appeared in Doctor Who before they found fame.

The biggest Hollywood stars we’ve seen in Doctor Who

Andrew Garfield

Baby faced Andrew Garfield can be seen in an early episode (Picture: BBC/Getty)

A baby-faced Andrew couldn’t imagine the dizzying heights his career would reach as he faced off against pig men in David Tennant’s era of Doctor Who.

At 24, the Tony Award winner appeared in Daleks in Manhattan which sees Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) and the 10th Doctor in 1930s New York.

In quite a dark story, viewers are introduced to the Cult of Skaro, a Dalek groups who use half-human, half-pig slaves to kidnap homeless humans for use in their experiments.

Andrew, now 40, stars as Frank, a down on his luck construction worker who becomes swept up in this alien adventure.

Doctor Who is returning with Ncuti Gatwa as our leading man (Picture: James Pardon/Bad Wolf/BBC Studios)

This also happens to be the first episode written by a woman in the revived series and was a two-parter which saw the Daleks attempt to evolve.

His cameo came three years before his breakout role in The Social Network, which catapulted him to fame.

After this he starred in The Amazing Spider-man series, Hacksaw Ridge, Tick, Tick… Boom!, and new series Under the Banner of Heaven.

Andrew has since earned numerous accolades, including two Oscar nods, a Bafta win, a Golden Globe win and his Tony.

Olivia Colman

A literal and figurative queen, Olivia Coleman appeared in Doctor Who too (Picture: BBC/Getty)

Icon, legend, literal queen, Olivia Colman was hardly an unknown name when she appeared in Matt Smith’s first episode The Eleventh Hour.

The Oscar winning actress had been in a host of British comedies such as Peep Show, The Office, Green Wing, and of course Hot Fuzz.

Olivia, 50, played a coma patient duplicated by monster Prisoner Zero who had taken up residence in the home of Amy Pond (Karen Gillan).

She ominously holds hands with her on-screen daughters as she goes toe-to-toe with the newly regenerated bow-tie wearing Doctor.

It was two years later her star began to rise with Accused, before landing larger projects like Broadchurch, Murder on the Orient Express, Heartstopper, and Fleabag.

It wasn’t until 2018’s The Favourite that she would become the globally renowned actress she is today with The Crown following shortly after.

Gemma Chan

Gemma Chan was totally unknown when she appeared in Doctor Who (Picture: BBC/Getty)

Another future Marvel star had a forgotten cameo in the 10th Doctor’s era as Mia Bennett a resident of humanity’s first colony on Mars, Bowie Base One, in 2059.

Gemma Chan, 41, was fresh off a stint on Project Runway when she appeared as one of the few survivors of the Flood, an intelligent virus wiping out the crew.

The dark episode sees the Doctor grappling with a fixed event in time where all the crew die — but still attempts to save them anyway.

It would be almost another decade before her breakout Hollywood role in Crazy Rich Asians as the enormously wealthy Astrid Leong-Teo.

In that time she climbed the acting hierarchy, going from recurring characters in Fresh Meat and Bedlam to the leading role in popular Channel 4 series Humans.

2016’s Fantastic Beasts marked her shift into film, followed by Crazy Rich Asians, then Don’t Worry Darling, Eternals, and The Creator.

She’s set to star in The Actor alongside Moonlight’s André Holland in the central role of Paul Cole, an actor who lost his memory after a traumatic incident.

Daniel Kaluuya

The Skins to Oscar pipeline is real and Daniel Kaluuya is proof (Picture: BBC/Getty )

Studies need to be done on the trajectory of the Skins cast, from Dev Patel to Kaya Scodelario to Daniel Kaluuya.

The Get Out actor astounded everyone as he flexed his horror muscles in the Jordan Peele Oscar winning film in 2017.

Flying under the radar, the 35-year-old actor can be seen in Planet of the Dead – a 2009 episode where a bus flies through a wormhole to another planet.

His role is very minor but Daniel does manage to land a few interactions with the Doctor as a panicked bus passenger who’s journey home has been seriously disrupted.

Two years after this he began to become more well known after a starring role in Black Mirror and an appearance in Johnny English: Reborn.

In 2013, Daniel joined the superhero team in Kick-Ass 2 as Black Death before finally gaining the accolades he so deeply deserves in Get Out.

From here’s he’s starred in another Jordan Peele horror — Nope — and been initiated into Marvel’s Cinematic Universe in the best way through the animated Spider-verse films.

Carey Mulligan

Carey Mulligan is so young in Blink (Picture: BBC/Getty)

Two years after her understated debut as Kitty Bennett in 2005’s Pride & Prejudice, a fresh faced Carey Mulligan appeared in an iconic Doctor Who episode.

The 38-year-old star played Sally Sparrow in Blink, the first episode to introduce reoccurring and horrific villain, the weeping angels.

Her major acclaim came in 2009 with An Education, for which she won the Bafta for Best Actress as well as a nomination for the Academy Award for the same category.

From here, Carey has become somewhat of a household name with her turn as the enigmatic Daisy in The Great Gatsby as well as Far from the Madding Crowd.

Promising Young Woman, Maestro, and Saltburn are just a handful of her more recent successes with more to come from the Whoniverse alum.

Letitia Wright 

Letitia Wright has become a staple of the Marvel universe (Picture: BBC/Getty)

Success can sometimes happen overnight and although her stint on Doctor Who was only years ago, Letitia Wright has become a Hollywood heavyweight already.

The 30-year-old Marvel star appeared in Face the Raven, an episode that aired in 2015, almost a decade ago (feel old yet?).

In the episode, Peter Capaldi’s 12th Doctor faces off against villainous Me, played by an already famous Maisie Williams.

Letitia stars as Anahson, the psychic daughter of the murdered Anah, who gives the Doctor and companion Clara some crucial information.

It was three years later she was catapulted to super stardom as Shuri in the Black Panther films, alongside the late Chadwick Boseman.

From here she has reappeared in four Marvel films plus Death on the Nile, Ready Player One, and even the animated Sing 2.

Jonathan Bailey

We couldn’t imagine Doctor Who’s Jonathan Bailey as our 1800s heartthrob (Picture: BBC/Getty)

Bridgerton’s charming Viscount looked far less dreamy with his shaved head and Jedward inspired hair when he cameoed in Doctor Who.

In Time Heist, the then 26-year-old actor portrays augmented human Psi who is attempting to break into a vault with the 12th Doctor.

The whole confusing saga sees the team attempt to pull off a time travel heist, as the name suggests, and eventually they all live happily ever after.

A decade on Jonathan has found incredible fame as Anthony Bridgerton, having been the leading man for last season’s period drama.

He had appeared in Broadchurch, Crashing, and Disney Channel’s Groove High before landing the esteemed role.

Since this Jonathan has landed another leading man role as Fyerio in the Wicked movie adaptation alongside Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.

The man of the moment will be returning for the new Bridgerton series as well as joining the Heartstopper cast next season.

Doctor Who returns on May 11 on BBC One and is available to stream on iPlayer now.

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