The very same week I wrote the last Nikola Tesla Spotting blog post something remarkable happened.
He turned up again!
"Where?" you may ask. Why none other than in the trailer for the next season (series 12) of Doctor Who!
Sadly, our cable does not carry the channel Doctor Who is on so I am woefully behind on the show's story but I am incredibly excited that Nikola Tesla is going to be in an episode! Up until now he's only shown up in an old Doctor Who radio drama or web serial or something, I think. Again, I am not the biggest of Doctor Who buffs, but I have enjoyed what I've seen of the show in the past.
The actor they've got to play Nikola Tesla in the new season of Doctor Who is Goran Višnjić. You may recognize him from the time travel television show Timeless where he played a morally obtuse villain named Garcia Flynn. Despite Timeless being a time travel science fiction fantasy show Nikola Tesla didn't show up in it and I suspect that is because Goran Višnjić would have been perfect for the role and it would have been a little weird for him to play Tesla and a villain. I mean, it would have been cool, they could have done some running jokes with it or something. BUT I digress.
Višnjić was interviewed about being in Doctor Who and said he was excited to play a historical figure he liked which is super cool. I hope it means he will pour that love into playing the role as authentically as he can. With a mustache and hair parted down the middle he's a dead ringer for Nikola Tesla in the Series 12 trailer.
In the Doctor Who Series 12 trailer Višnjić uses an American accent while speaking to the Doctor. This is big, in my opinion, as many newspaper articles and interviews of the time regarding Nikola Tesla stated that he "didn't have a noticeable accent" which likely means he was purposefully using an American accent while in New York. Tesla was a polyglot, so it makes sense he would also pick up accents as well. It may also be one reason Thomas Edison mistook Tesla for someone from France when they initially met in Paris. Having been working in Paris for some time Tesla could have affected a French accent even when speaking English. You can watch the Doctor Who Series 12 trailer on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/vkEB0ysv7sM
I hope you have enjoyed this brief bit of Nikola Tesla Spotting! There will be more posts in the future along these lines because, thankfully, he just keeps popping up in things! Or, maybe for me, it's like when you get to ride in or drive a new car you've never been in before then you can't help but spot those same cars on the road?
Take care of yourselves, everyone!
Happy Holidays and have a Happy New Year!
-Sarah "Neila" Elkins