Jodie Whittaker says she is 'too old to care' about trolls as Frauds trailer debuts

Jodie Whittaker has said she is "too old to care" about online trolls who criticized her casting as Doctor Who's first female lead. The English actress, 43, made history in 2017 when she was announced as the Time Lord, taking over from Peter Capaldi. The decision sparked vocal backlash from some fans who argued the role should stay with a white man.

Whittaker told The Times on Friday that the backlash was loud but not definitive: "The hateful are always the loudest. If they're angry and loud, it doesn't mean you have to listen — also it's exhausting, and I'm too old to care." The interview also touched on her pride in being the first woman to play the Doctor and on the stamina required to weather online attacks.

The same week, ITV released a first-look trailer for Frauds, a new heist drama starring Whittaker opposite Suranne Jones. The six-part series follows two conwomen who attempt to pull off the art heist of the century. In the teaser, Bert (Jones) has just been released from prison on compassionate grounds with a terminal diagnosis and tracks down her former partner Sam (Whittaker) to pull off one last job. The synopsis emphasizes a power struggle between Bert and Sam that could derail their plans, set against sweeping vistas of southern Spain and its shadowy criminal underworld.

Frauds is described as a complex, addictive story of friendship, deception and survival, with Jones co-creating the project with Hellraisers writer Anne-Marie O'Connor. The show features an all-star supporting cast, including Horacio Colomé, Christian Cooke, Talisa Garcia, Elizabeth Berrington and Lee Boardman, and has finished filming. Jones has called the project a wild ride and said it turns the toxic female-friendship dynamic on its head while giving the heist genre an emotional heartbeat. She added, "I have always wanted to work with Jodie, and now I am. I hope you love Bert and Sam and all they get up to as much as we do."

Alongside Frauds, Jones is also starring as the fictional British prime minister in Netflix's drama Hostage, underscoring the duo's rising profile in television projects. Frauds is produced by Monumental for ITV.

The pairing of Whittaker's remarks about online vitriol with Frauds' trailer drop illustrates the ongoing navigation between public reception and ambitious new roles for the actors involved.