Ncuti Gatwa Almost Grabbed a Major Role in Jesse Eisenberg’s New Film
Ncuti Gatwa nearly joined Jesse Eisenberg’s ‘A Real Pain,’ but ‘Doctor Who’ filming forced a recast and schedule shakeup.
Rwandan-Scottish actor Ncuti Gatwa, best known for his role as the Fifteenth Doctor in Doctor Who, could have starred in Jesse Eisenberg’s 2024 buddy comedy-drama A Real Pain!
Eisenberg—who wrote, directed, and starred in the film—recently spoke about it at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. He revealed that the role of Eloge, played by Kurt Egyiawan, was initially intended for Gatwa. Unfortunately, the busy schedule of filming Doctor Who caused Gatwa to lose the role.
Eisenberg, who based Eloge on his real-life Rwandan friend, consulted him about the decision to cast Egyiawan (who is Cameroonian) to ensure it was respectful of their culture, as revealed by Collider.
A Real Pain was led by Eisenberg, who starred alongside Kieran Culkin, Will Sharpe, Jennifer Grey, Kurt Egyiawan, Liza Sadovy, and Daniel Oreskes. The film was praised and, so far, has garnered a total of 115 nominations and 50 awards, including a Golden Globe for Culkin for Best Supporting Actor.
It was also a box-office success, earning $9.5 million against a $3 million budget. The story follows two mismatched Jewish American cousins who travel to Poland on a Holocaust tour to honor their late grandmother.
Besides Doctor Who, Gatwa appeared last year in Masters of the Air as 2nd Lt. Robert Daniels and reprised his role as the Fifteenth Doctor in an episode of Tales of the TARDIS, as well as at BBC Proms.
He is currently busy filming the satirical black comedy-drama The Roses, alongside Benedict Cumberbatch, Olivia Colman, Kate McKinnon, and Andy Samberg. This month, he is about to end his stint as Algernon Moncrieff in The Importance of Being Earnest at the Lyttelton Theatre, which began in November 2024.
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