Warning: Spoilers ahead for Doctor Who season 14, episode 6, “Rogue.”

Doctor Who season 14, episode 6, “Rogue,” brings a new version of the Doctor into the show’s main canon, but it also creates a strong connection to the MCU. While Doctor Who‘s lore is incredibly expansive, it still falls short of the amount of canonical information contained within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, a brief moment in “Rogue” bridges the gap between the two franchises in an incredibly meta way by serving as a reunion for two figures. As a result, Doctor Who‘s Disney era becomes ever more intertwined with the multimedia conglomerate.

“Rogue” doesn’t necessarily add the new version of the Time Lord to the Doctor Who season 14 cast, but a quick glimpse of a holographic Richard E. Grant strongly suggests the animated version of the character he voiced in 2003 has just been established as part of the main Doctor Who canon. Grant also appeared in an MCU property back in 2021, making his cameo in Doctor Who season 14, episode 6, even more meaningful than it already is.

Doctor Who’s “Rogue” Co-Writer Was Also The Loki Season 1 Showrunner

Kate Herron was in charge of the MCU show’s inaugural run

“Rogue” was co-written by Kate Herron and Briony Redman, and the former of the two women was in charge of Loki season 1 during its production. However, her career writing credits have been few and far between, with Doctor Who serving as her most high-profile script to date. Richard E. Grant, whose face slides across the screen in “Rogue,” made a much more substantial appearance in two episodes of Loki season 1, playing a variant of the God of Mischief known as “Classic Loki.”

Grant’s presence in both Doctor Who and Loki means it’s the second project where the actor has collaborated with Kate Herron – even if the team-up is rather indirect this time around. This hidden reunion is easy to miss, as not only is Grant’s “Rogue” cameo over in the blink of an eye, but Russell T Davies is the biggest name among the writing staff for Doctor Who season 14. “Rogue” is one of the two episodes in Gatwa’s first season not penned by the returning showrunner – with the other being Steven Moffat’s “Boom.”

Kate Herron Has Now Introduced Exciting New Variants To Both The MCU & Doctor Who

Grant has played versions of Loki & the Doctor

Loki and Doctor Who share very similar themes, with the main protagonists from both shows being capable of popping up at various points in the timeline. However, the time-travel trope now isn’t the only sci-fi hallmark shared by both projects. While Doctor Who has toyed with the concept of a multiverse in the past, it’s rarely the main focus. Inversely, Loki is an entirely multiversal story that constantly introduces alternate versions of its characters – especially Loki. Now that Herron has written Grant’s version of the Doctor into Doctor Who, she’s repeated a trend she established in Loki season 1.

Some of the Loki variants look identical to Tom Hiddleston’s main character, whereas others are played by completely different actors, and some aren’t even humanoid. Almost every version of the Doctor, David Tennant’s trio aside, is played by a new actor, so while Herron never had the opportunity to introduce a second Ncuti Gatwa, she still managed to recreate one of the most exciting facets of Loki without overshadowing the story of “Rogue.”

How Richard E. Grant Can Appear As The Doctor In Doctor Who’s Future

It’s now possible for Grant’s Shalka Doctor to make a live-action appearance

Grant was the voice of a version of the Doctor who was slated to become the next canonical iteration of the character after Paul McGann’s Eighth. 2003’s Doctor Who: Scream of the Shalka was animated, and ultimately became non-canon when the 2005 show of the main show was announced. So, instead of being the Ninth Doctor, Grant’s version of the Time Lord is now referred to as the Shalka Doctor. Interestingly, the Toymaker has already admitted to meddling with the Doctor’s timeline in “The Giggle,” so he may have reinstalled the Shalka Doctor as part of the main canon.

Showrunner Russell T Davies has also commented on the fact that every previous Doctor also bi-generated as a result of the iconic scene that spawned Ncuti Gatwa’s Fifteenth. Therefore, the Shalka Doctor could have spawned from Paul McGann’s Eighth when he bi-generated, which would reestablish Grant as an alternate version of the Ninth Doctor. This opens the door for the Loki actor to return to the franchise, but this time gives him the chance to play the Shalka Doctor in live-action rather than just supplying a voice performance.

Fifteen doesn’t react to Grant’s face being among his previous regenerations, and while he just may not have noticed, it could also raise even more questions about the Doctor’s timeline. One possibility is that Gatwa’s Doctor remembers being the Shalka Doctor, with the Toymaker being responsible for the new memories that have been introduced to the Time Lord’s mind. Unfortunately, only time will tell how Davies will handle the reintegration of the MCU star’s version of Doctor Who‘s main character.