Rob Cameron has become quite a problem in Outlander, but who is he really, and what has he done with Jemmy? Throughout season 7, it has become increasingly clear that Rob cannot be trusted. He quickly made an enemy of Brianna and Roger MacKenzie but somehow managed to wiggle his way into their good graces all the same. Still, there was always something off about Rob, and his villainous position was confirmed at the end of Outlander season 7, part 1 when he kidnapped Jemmy and seemingly took him through the standing stones to a different time.
Though the Outlander TV show provided a motive for Rob Cameron’s actions, a great deal of mystery is left around his character. This has led to a variety of theories about who he is, where he came from, and why he was so quick to believe in time travel or hidden Jacobite gold. Outlander season 7, episode 11 has provided a handful of answers, and the book series by author Diana Gabaldon includes further hints and clues. Overall, it seems that Rob Cameron is, more or less, a regular (albeit horrible) guy—but he’s actually profoundly crucial to the story of Outlander.
Robert Cameron Is Brianna’s Colleague In 20th Century Scotland
Rob Made Trouble For Brianna Right Off The Bat
Rob Cameron was first introduced in Outlander season 7 when Brianna was hired by the North of Scotland Hydro Electric Board as a plant inspector. Rob is a colleague who falls under Brianna’s seniority, and he, along with the other men at the plant, didn’t take too well to this. As a prank, Rob and his male coworkers locked Brianna in a tunnel that ran under Loch Errochty. Luckily, clever Brianna was able to find her way out. She bravely confronted Rob and the others, making it clear that any further behavior like that would ultimately affect their employment.
Rob seemed to gain some respect for Brianna at this point of Outlander. He joined the MacKenzie’s for dinner one night and took great interest in Roger’s Gaelic lessons. He also fostered a friendship between Jemmy and his own nephew, opening the door to future playdates. However, Rob also discovered Roger’s journals about time travel and the Jacobite gold, and his continued snooping set off alarm bells for Buck MacKenzie, Roger’s time-traveling ancestor. Unfortunately, Brianna and Roger don’t listen to Buck’s warnings, and Rob begins causing more extreme trouble.
Rob Cameron Kidnapped Jemmy After Learning About The Jacobite Gold
Jemmy Is The Only One Who Knows Where The Jacobite Gold Is Hidden
At the end of Outlander season 7, part 1, Rob Cameron orchestrated a playdate between Jemmy and his nephew. However, rather than head to his sister’s house, Rob kidnapped Jemmy. Brianna and Roger quickly deduced that Rob’s goal was to use Jemmy to find the Jacobite gold. However, things became even more alarming when little Mandy, who shares a deep psychic connection with Jemmy, said she could no longer feel her brother. When Roger and Brianna headed to the standing stones, they found Jemmy’s scarf, confirming, in their mind, that Rob had taken Jemmy through time.
It makes no sense that he would travel to 18th-century Scotland to board a boat to the Americas when transatlantic travel would be so much easier in the 20th century.
This, naturally, inspired a great many questions among Outlander fans. The implication here is that Rob is a time traveler. While it’s not uncommon for Outlander characters to happen upon more travelers, it’s still a rather rare gift. Moreover, if Rob Cameron had read Roger’s notes and Jamie’s letter, then he should know that the Jacobite gold had been hidden in the United States for 200 years. It makes no sense that he would travel to 18th-century Scotland to board a boat to the Americas when transatlantic travel would be so much easier in the 20th century. Ultimately, there is a reason none of this makes sense.
Rob Cameron Never Actually Took Jemmy Though The Stones In Outlander (He Isn’t A Time Traveler)
Roger & Buck Went Back In Time For (Almost) Nothing
Outlander season 7, episode 11 confirmed that Rob Cameron never actually took Jemmy through the stones. It’s likely that he is not a time traveler and, therefore, couldn’t have taken Jemmy to the 18th century even if he wanted to. Rob only planted the boy’s scarf at Craigh na Dun so that Roger would travel through time and remain out of the way. However, when Rob turned up at Lallybroch in Outlander season 7, episode 11, he told Brianna that he hadn’t had any luck getting Jemmy to reveal where the Jacobite gold is hidden.
Rob intended to kidnap Brianna as well and bring her to Jemmy to get the boy to cooperate. However, Brianna once again got the better of him, and the ending of Outlander season 7, episode 11, left Rob unconscious on the ground following a solid blow to the head. The bad news is, Brianna has no idea where Rob took Jemmy—though she at least knows it’s not in the past.
Rob Cameron Hid Jemmy In A Tunnel In The Outlander Books
The Ley Line Brianna Previously Discovered Has A Strange Effect
The Outlander books provide an answer regarding where Rob Cameron hid Jemmy away, and the TV show is likely to take the same route. In Written in My Own Heart’s Blood, Brianna finds Jemmy in the same tunnel Rob Cameron had locked her in previously at Loch Errochty. Jemmy’s connection with Mandy is interrupted because of the Ley Line that runs through the tunnel. Brianna had come across this during her time below, noticing that the hazy line that intersected the tunnel gave off the same buzzing sound as the standing stones.
Of course, Brianna finding Jemmy in Outlander won’t solve all her problems. Roger and Buck are still in the 18th century, though in 1739 rather than the 1770s with Claire and Jamie. Moreover, Rob Cameron could continue to be a problem, especially if the Jacobite gold remains undisturbed following this ordeal.
How Rob Cameron Unknowingly Set Big Outlander Events In Motion
Much Of Outlander’s Story Is Secretly Due To Rob Cameron
While many of the theories about Rob Cameron are proven incorrect by the fact that he isn’t a time traveler after all, he is still deeply important to the story of Outlander. His kidnapping of Jemmy didn’t come to much in the 20th century, but because of him, Roger and Buck went back in time to 1739. Outlander season 7, part 2, reveals that Geillis Duncan would never have met Dougal if Roger hadn’t gone back to look for Jemmy, which means Roger himself would never have been born if Rob hadn’t kidnapped Jemmy. It’s a mind-boggling paradox, but the Outlander books take this even further.
Geillis Duncan would never have met Dougal if Roger hadn’t gone back to look for Jemmy, which means Roger himself would never have been born if Rob hadn’t kidnapped Jemmy.
In the Outlander books, Roger traveling back in time set off multiple chain reactions. In this version of the story, Black Jack Randall was the one who found Jerry MacKenzie’s dog tags, and he dropped them off at Lallybroch knowing that people were looking for a boy with the same initials. This is when Jack Randall first met Jenny, and it’s noted that he took quite an interest in her. This implies that the only reason Randall went to Lallybroch, attempted to rape Jenny, and arrested Jamie is because of Roger’s time traveling and, therefore, Rob Cameron’s kidnapping.
Of course, Dougal MacKenzie finds Jerry’s dog tags in the Outlander TV show, so this version of the story can’t go quite the same way. Still, it’s interesting to consider the ways that characters from the past, present, and future can ensure various events that are pivotal to Outlander’s central story.