Caitriona Balfe is finally ready to direct an episode of Outlander — even if it scares her more than the looming Revolutionary War.
The actress confirmed on Wednesday’s episode of Live With Kelly & Mark that season 7 of the Starz epic will pick up where season 6 left off, with her character, Claire, “in jail, which is always a good place to be,” she joked.
“It’s such an epic season. The Revolutionary War has started. Our characters, Claire and Jamie, are caught up right in the middle of it, and I think this season is the most action, jam-packed, and sort of epic that we’ve done since season 1,” she promised, adding that she’s a bit apprehensive to step behind the camera to direct an episode of the time-hopping romantic saga.
“I’ve been asking for a while — it’s something I’ve been interested in,” she said. “Our crew have been so supportive. We’ve been there 10 years, so they’re like a proper family. It’s just been amazing. I started doing some second unit already, and I’m going to do a full episode.”
Though she’s “terrified” to helm an episode — and teased that she told her costar Sam Heughan that she’d direct all his scenes in one take — she said “it’ll be good” for everyone involved.
Balfe also stressed that season 8 will be the show’s last, but said season 7’s 16-episode run will satisfy viewers who’ve stuck with Claire and Jamie since the beginning.
“Her future is very precarious,” Balfe previously told EW of season 7. “We don’t really know what’s going to happen. All we know is that the normal systems of law have broken down.”
Outlander season 7 premieres Friday, June 16 on Starz.