That's too bad, if that's the way it'll work out. I can certainly understand Smith wanting to expand his career. However, I think it's a bit shortsighted (in general, not just of Matt Smith).
The Doctor is such an iconic role that will be remembered for generations. On the other hand, the odds are that any of them who come to the States will get bit parts and 2nd rate roles that will quickly be forgotten.
Sure, there's the possibility that they'll hit it huge, but that's unlikely. And, given that he has already landed the role of a lifetime, well, I wouldn't be so quick to give it up!
It's probably a tough position to be in too. They don't want to be typecast. But, Tom Baker is beloved for his 7 years on Doctor Who, not his one-shot guest role in Remington Steele!
I'm not sure it's shortsighted; it depends on one's definition of expanding one's career. Smith seems like a smart guy - he knows he's always going to be remembered as the Doctor, there's no point trying to fight that. But, if he could find decent enough regular work in the States, where he seems to enjoy the style and pace of working, then he'd probably be happy. Actors don't
necessarily measure their success in terms of the level of mainstream recognition they get, or the awards they may get; provided we (yes, we) can put a roof over our head and support ourselves (and possibly our dependents), we tend to think more about job satisfaction (that is, once you've "made it" to a certain degree, of course!). Many actors tend to think of themselves as artists, and acting as being more than just a job; it can get frustrating being tied to one role and one routine for too long (most people are, of course, with most regular jobs, but actors are usually a bit flakey and childlike, and not good at sitting still for long periods of time!) and eventually the time comes when they feel the need to move on and seek other challenges. It's always a gamble, but that's the nature of the game.
As for typecasting, Tom Baker believed that the Doctor wasn't "an acting part", and freely admits that he essentially played an idealised version of himself for seven years. Perhaps inevitably, when he sought to move on he found it difficult to break out of the perception that casting directors and the general public had of him. Frankly, I think Smith, who is very different from his Doctor, has much more of a range (or at least has chosen to display it more readily) to be able to break out of the Doctor persona. The projects he's chosen outside of the show up to this point have arguably demonstrated that. Tennant's doing pretty well - Hollywood hasn't worked out spectacularly for him (although I suspect fatherhood has played a role in that being a conscious decision on his part), but he's popping up all over the place on British TV in a wide variety of roles, and I can see Smith doing the same even if he doesn't manage to crack America.
I could see things working out for Matt Smith here if he landed a sitcom. He'd have to get used to the American production schedule though, which would take some getting used to compared to the British one.
True, but his schedule on
Doctor Who is more intense than anything else on UK TV. He'd be going from being the lead in a show in which he's in at least 90% of scenes and pretty much carries the whole thing (with the amount of insanely complex lines he has to learn - an
enormous workload for one person, even by US standards) to likely an ensemble show which may have a more intense schedule on paper, but where he could share some of the stress among a larger cast.
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