How Jinkx Monsoon brought her musical “Doctor Who ”villain to life

The "Drag Race" alum talks facing off against Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor (and how "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" inspired her performance).

Warning: This story contains spoilers for the Doctor Who episode “The Devil’s Chord.”

Throughout its 61-year history, Doctor Who has introduced its fair share of iconic villains, from the Daleks and the Cybermen to the Weeping Angels and the Master. Now, a new villain is joining the Who pantheon: RuPaul’s Drag Race alum Jinkx Monsoon has officially joined the series, making her debut as the music-manipulating baddie Maestro.

Monsoon stars in the second episode of Ncuti Gatwa’s first full season, which premiered May 10 on Disney+. “The Devil’s Chord” follows the Doctor (Gatwa) and companion Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson) as they travel back in time to 1963, hoping to see the Beatles record their first album. Upon arriving, they discover that a malevolent force is sucking music out of the world, and before long, the culprit reveals themselves to be Maestro, an all-powerful being who can exploit the very fabric of space and time. ("The Devil's Chord" is also the first musical episode in Who's history, ending with a show-stopping, fourth-wall-breaking musical number.)

The 36-year-old Monsoon is a two-time Drag Race winner, and she’s currently starring as Audrey in an off-Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors. Here, Monsoon explains how she brought the fabulous Maestro to life. (Mild spoilers for the episode ahead.)

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Were you a fan of Doctor Who before joining the show? What’s your Who history?

JINKX MONSOON: I had seen at least the first four or five seasons of the reboot of Doctor Who. Life got a little busy after All Stars, so I haven’t watched a lot of TV! [Laughs] I like to say that I’ve seen all the episodes that [returning showrunner Russell T Davies]  wrote. But while I’m not caught up, I do keep up with what’s happening in the Doctor Who universe as a fan of the show. I’m really excited because I know that the new series is going to be very welcoming to new viewers. But I hope that extends to returning viewers as well because I have a lot of catching up to do!

I wanted to specifically ask about the look of Maestro: You wear so many fabulous costumes and wigs, and this is a character that doesn’t really look like any Who villains we’ve met before. How did you want to approach Maestro’s style?

So, that was all the designers. They are all incredible: the whole hair and makeup team, the costume team. These are full departments of people working on these things. It was like being backstage at an opera, just a warehouse of people creating these giant, beautiful costumes.

There was so much thought put into the makeup and the hair. They worked with some of my people. They worked with my wig designer because they wanted my hair to be the same hair color, which I loved. It’s almost like, “This is just Jinkx’s hair! This is the hair that grows out of my head now!” Every makeup look, there was so much thought put into it and long conversations. But mostly, it was just me giving affirmation and little suggestions here and there. The designers came with incredible stuff, and I just said, “Yes!”

Were there any influences you were thinking about or roles that inspired your performance?

I hope I’m not misquoting it, but I believe in the script it said: “Maestro: Think Joker, think the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and think Jinkx Monsoon.” I was in the character description, so I knew I could rely on some of my own affectations and personality traits. [Laughs] But really, for any character I create, usually there’s a female performer in mind. For Doctor Who, I wanted to look at past Doctor Who villains to kind of match that level of over the top. There’s a heightened element, especially to the more powerful villains. It’s kind of like Shakespeare, where you’ve got to make it feel natural even though it’s larger than life.

So, I went to [Missy actress] Michelle Gomez, who’s one of my favorite actors, both living and of all time. She’s incredible at playing these sinister characters who are so nuanced and so complex. You see what’s going on inside the character, even though there’s this veneer of unfazed evil. So yeah, Michelle Gomez, big shoutout to her.

Related: A new (re)generation: Inside Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor Who

I specifically wanted to ask about the big musical battle at the end of the episode, where you face off against the Doctor. What do you remember most about filming that sequence?

Well, I love it because it’s like Looney Tunes all of a sudden. It’s like a Bugs Bunny cartoon or Merry Melodies. I think my favorite moment was playing the double bass because I played the bass for a couple years in middle school. So, I was actually playing the bass. Ben [Chessell], the director, also plays the double bass, so he reminded me how to play the jazz riff.

Then, there was a moment where they wanted to film me at the fiddle, while Ncuti and Millie were at the piano. I was like, “What if I did this!” and started spinning. They were like, “We’re keeping it!” So, we did take after take of me just doing chaîné turns while pretending to play violin rapidly. It was exhausting, but it was incredible. It’s fun to get to make such big decisions and have the team be like, “Yeah, we’re filming it! It’s part of the character now!”

You also get to show off a phenomenal villain laugh. What’s the secret to a really great villainous cackle?

I love flexing the fact that now I get to say I’m a Disney villain. [Laughs] But my evil laugh comes from all my favorites. I have to say, it started with Ursula in The Little Mermaid. My aunt used to do a great impression of Ursula’s laugh, and it would scare the s--- out of me as a kid. But the secret is that it has to come from truth, right? All good acting has to come from a place of truth, so you have to really be thinking about something. It’s also about going loose with it. It’s about not holding back. I feel like laughing is one of those things that we try to curate the experience for those around us. I grew up in a family of people who just laughed the way they laughed, and that’s all I’ve ever known.

Related: Doctor Who star Millie Gibson teases Ruby Sunday’s multi-season arc

You’ve said that you’re a longtime fan of Russell T Davies’ writing, and I know he’s talked a lot about wanting to specifically spotlight queer and trans performers on Doctor Who. What does it mean to you to see trans representation on a 61-year-old sci-fi franchise like this?

It’s very exciting. Russell is such an amazing writer. I say all the time: Anyone who hasn’t seen It’s a Sin needs to stop what they’re doing and watch, especially young queer people. It’s so important to know and remember where we were just 40 years ago because so many people want to try to push us back. And I don’t believe we will be pushed back. I believe the kind of representation we’re seeing in mainstream media means that it’s too late. Sorry, conservatives: Your numbers are shrinking.

So, this is really exciting. It’s one thing when queer representation is out there for other queer people, but you have to acknowledge the impact when mainstream media starts embracing queer characters and queer storylines — and letting queer performers be the ones to perform it. To be in a production that is so beloved and such a part of multiple cultures and is so beloved by its fanbase, it’s embracing authentic representation, and that is so cool.

And if any feathers are ruffled by it, first of all, Russell is queer. So your beloved program has always been influenced by a queer creator. And second of all, I’ve been saying that for every transphobic fan Doctor Who loses, there’s going to be three new fans who are coming because they see the representation. So honestly, don’t let the door hit you on the way out!

New episodes of Doctor Who hit Disney+ on Fridays.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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