Outlander is based on the books of the same name by Diana Gabaldon. The exploits of its lead characters, Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitríona Balfe), have entertained the masses for over ten years in the series adaptation. Books and television are vastly different mediums, and whatever’s possible in a book might not be as easy to portray in a show.
Heughan talked to The Hollywood Reporter about one such instance in Season 7, where an attempt to film Jamie’s message on the back of a young soldier proved harder than anticipated.
“It’s a book moment, and even in discussing the practicality of that [moment], we were talking about ‘What is the way to write on this guy’s back?’ and we realized it’s actually very difficult,” the actor said. However, the message had to be delivered. “But I think it’s just sheer desperation; it’s a moment where he’s completely at a loss. I think he can’t work out how to get his message through to these people, and he just goes for the nearest thing. It’s a really dark idea,” Heughan added. Heughan revealed there had been several of these moments throughout the seasons, saying,
“It’s amazing that after eight seasons — well, seven at this point — that these characters still surprised us as actors, and there’s so many times we’ve had these book moments where I’m like, ‘Jamie wouldn’t do that. Jamie knows better.’ And then, I’m like, ‘OK, let’s see what happens.’ And actually, you get this really dramatic moment which is shocking, and I think that’s what makes Outlander perhaps still resonate.”
‘Outlander’ Ends After 8 Seasons
With Season 8, Jamie and Claire’s story reaches an end. The Season 7 finale teased an explosive eighth season as the duo discovered some shocking things about their past. The season has already been filmed, but there is no premiere date yet. A prequel, Outlander: Blood of My Blood, focusing on Claire and Jamie’s parents is set to premiere this summer, and tells their love stories in different times and places. Read the logline below.
“The series will center on these two parallel love stories set in two different time periods, with Jamie’s parents in the early 18th-century Scottish Highlands and Claire’s parents in WWI England.”
Outlander: Blood of My Blood enlists Gabaldon, who revealed she was involved in the scriptwriting process. “It’s so much easier than writing novels. It takes me three weeks tops to write a scene. I will be writing a script for the prequel [Blood of My Blood] and one for Season 8 [of Outlander],” the author told TV Insider.
Stay tuned to Collider for further updates on Season 8. You can now watch all past seasons on Starz.