Matt Smith 'Doctor Who' casting was "easiest decision ever"

Matt Smith has described the moment that he was cast in Doctor Who as "life-changing".

The 28-year-old inherited the role of The Doctor from David Tennant in 2009, in what was described at the show's Comic-Con panel as "the easiest casting decision" ever made.

Recalling the audition process to play The Doctor, Smith said: "Everything's top-secret. You get the script a day before. You go in and do your thing. Weirdly, when David was leaving, my mum texted me and said, 'You should be the next Doctor'.

"I'll never forget when I got the call. I was in Aldgate, coming back from an audition on a cold street, and it's a life-changing moment. It was remarkable."

Doctor Who executive producer Piers Wenger added: "It's the easiest casting decision I've ever been involved in, because it was so bleeding obvious from the moment he walked in the room.

"I remember the day after we'd met for the second time, I got an email from Steven [Moffat] that just said, 'It's him. Let's face it, it's always been him'."

"For Piers and I, we've been with Matt the whole time," his co-exec Beth Willis stated. "So Matt is our Doctor. I can't imagine anyone else doing it."

Doctor Who was confirmed at Comic-Con to return on August 27 in both the UK and US.

Digital Spy is bringing you exclusive videos, pictures and live panel blogs from Comic-Con all weekend - view our full coverage of the event here.