‘Doctor Who’ season 10: ‘Game of Thrones’ star Maisie Williams rejects return of Ashildr

“Doctor Who” will not feature the immortal Ashildr anymore when it returns in 2017. “Game of Thrones” star Maisie Williams has confirmed she will not appear in the UK series again, dashing hopes of Whovians who wish for an Ashildr/Me adventure with Clara (Jenna Coleman).

The 18-year-old actress appeared on the recently concluded season 10 of the show as Ashildr in the episode “The Girl Who Died.” When Ashildr died, the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) intervened and made her immortal. As an immortal human, her memory has limited capacity, and therefore she has forgotten her previous lives as she grows older. The next time she met the Doctor, she was over 800 years old and called herself simply “Me.”

In the last episode of the season, Ashildr/Me has departed with Clara in a stolen TARDIS in an attempt to embark on adventures of their own.

Ashilr’s pairing with Clara has given fans hope that Wiliams will appear in the series once more, probably as a returning guest star. Or perhaps Williams and Coleman would have a “Doctor Who” spinoff series of their own. Some also thought she could return as the Doctor’s next companion, seeing that Clara is already technically dead.

However, Williams was quick to disappoint Whovians, saying she wouldn’t be able to return to the show.

“I’m not going to be working on ‘Doctor Who’ again,” she told Bang Showbiz (via Digital Spy). “Everyone’s hyping about it, which is very exciting, but I guess that’s more of a publicity thing. But no, I’m not going to return. I have a lot of other really exciting projects lined up instead.”

One of those exciting projects is his stint on the super successful “Game of Thrones,” wherein she plays fan favourite Arya Stark. The new season of the fantasy series will debut in April.

As for “Doctor Who,” Capaldi is reportedly leaving the show after the 10^th season, which will premiere next year. Showrunner Steven Moffat is passing the torch to “Broadchurch” creator Chris Chibnall after the next season, and hence the rumours about Capaldi also leaving have become rampant. Apparently, to give Chibnall a fresh start, like what Moffat had when Russell T Davies left, the show will need a new Gallifreyan Time Lord.