By Imagine we’ve come up with a really clever Doctor Who pun to start this thing off here, because David Tennant, the former (and enduringly popular) star of the long-running BBC adventure series has signed on to lend his vocal talents to an animated adaptation of Image Comics’ Eisner Award-winning series Chew, created by John Layman and Rob Guillory. Allons-y, and whatnot!
Chew focuses on FDA agent Tony Chu (played by The Walking Dead‘s Steven Yeun). Chu has a unique ability called cibopathy – in short, he sees the entire history of every single thing he eats, a skill he puts to use as a detective investigating food-related crimes. In the comics, he also finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy related to a deadly plague and a ban on eating chicken, though it’s unclear how much of that (if any) will appear in the film. Tennant will voice Mason Savoy, Chu’s stocky partner. Tennant was not the first choice for the role – Savoy was originally to be portrayed by the late Robin Williams, an admitted fan of the series. The role was recast after Williams’ death in 2014.
Tennant and Yeun will star alongside geek icon Felicia Day, thereby rounding out Chew‘s nerdcred trifecta. Day plays Amelia, Chu’s love interest and a young woman who has the ability to make anyone who reads her food criticism experience the flavors she writes about. Day has reportedly already finished recording her part in the film.