Latest news with #Outlander
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2 hours ago
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Outlander: Blood Of My Blood Boss Reveals What Got Author Diana Gabaldon 'On Board 100%' Despite A Specific Story Change
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The epic saga of Outlander on Starz is set to wrap the love story of Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) in the eighth and final season. Their devotion has spanned centuries, wars, and tragedies, and questions still remain for the long-awaited last batch of episodes. Fans can get a fix of that Outlander world of time travel romance soon in the 2025 TV schedule, with the premiere of the prequel spinoff called Outlander: Blood of My Blood. Showrunner Matthew B. Roberts opened up about expanding the story of Claire's parents, and why author Diana Gabaldon was "on board" with the changes from her books. Matthew B. Roberts was an executive producer on Outlander going back to the very beginning, but the future is now bright for Blood of My Blood after the drama's early Season 2 renewal. Speaking with SFX Magazine on CinemaBlend, Roberts explained the origin of Blood of My Blood as the story of Claire and Jamie's respective parents, with a time travel twist that even Claire herself didn't know about. As far as Claire knew, her parents had died in a car crash when she was very young. The trailer makes it quite clear that she was actually very wrong. Roberts said: Then I just posed the question, 'What if they didn't die in the car crash?' That's where the prequel really took off in everybody's mind. A magical thing about Outlander is time travel, as that's the thing that is weaved throughout all the episodes and all the books. Even when Claire comes back in the books and she stays [in the past], there's still much more time travel with the other family members. Technically, Blood of My Blood isn't rewriting Claire's history from Starz's Outlander or Diana Gabaldon's books. Fans may have believed that Claire's parents died in a car crash based on her narration, but the reveal works as long as the leading lady just never knew the whole story about Julia Moriston (Hermione Corfield) and Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine) to narrate it. Normal narrative rules don't have to apply when time travel is involved, and Outlander lore states that time traveling is hereditary. Claire had to get it from somewhere! Of course, leaning into an unreliable narrator to spin a whole new origin story is one thing, but what about the author? Diana Gabaldon has spent nine books (and counting) establishing one canon across more than thirty years of her life. Matthew B. Roberts shared how she reacted to his idea for the prequel: I knew all the places I wanted to go, so it was easy to pitch Diana where I wanted to go with the characters. When I first pitched her Henry and Julia, she was on board 100% right off the bat. Just like how Diana Gabaldon penned several episodes of the original series, she wrote the penultimate episode of Blood of My Blood's first season and co-wrote the finale with Matthew B. Roberts. The showrunner consulted with the author about the story, but she wasn't looking over his shoulder from start to finish. Roberts explained the extent to which she was involved, which included writing the penultimate episode of Season 1. He said: She was well aware of where we were going the whole time. It wasn't like I was checking in with her to go, 'Can I go this way, or can I go that way?' She knew where I wanted to go from the beginning, and she was fine because in her mind, the books and the show are two different things. I know a lot of the audience sometimes doesn't think that, but she does, and we do too. Diana Gabaldon has gotten candid about Outlander making changes from page to screen in the past, so I for one am interested in watching her episodes that are not actually adapting from a book that she wrote. Blood of My Blood also stars Harriet Slater as Ellen MacKenzie and Jamie Roy as Brian Fraser, bringing Jamie's parents to life on the small screen. While fans will have to wait for the premiere to see just how this story will unfold across two timelines, I think it's at least safe to say without any spoilers that the Outlander prequel nailed it when it came to casting actors who look like they could be related to Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe. Outlander: Blood of My Blood premieres on Friday, August 8 at 8 p.m. ET on Starz. In a fun twist, that premiere is almost exactly eleven years to the date from when Outlander premiered in 2014 and introduced the world to Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan's versions of Diana Gabaldon's already beloved book characters. Solve the daily Crossword
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2 hours ago
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Outlander Raises Frustrating New Questions About Jamie's Fate In New Season 8 Footage, But I'm Just Hyped By Starz's Surprise Treat For Fans
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The long wait for Outlander's eighth and final season will officially extend beyond the end of the 2025 TV schedule, but that doesn't mean Starz will leave fans of the original series hanging for the rest of the year while Blood of My Blood delves into the lead duo's parents. San Diego Comic-Con's 2025 panel not only dropped the first footage for the last season (complete with nostalgic nods to the past), but also ended on a major surprise treat for fans that guaranteed that I'm not going to be too troubled by the questions about Jamie's fate just yet. That is, a major treat if you're as much of a fan of the show's opening theme as I am! But let's start with the first glimpses of Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan in their last season as Claire and Jamie Fraser. After all, 'frustrating' isn't a bad thing when it comes to teaser trailers – we're never going to get all the answers ahead of time, and half the fun of speculating and the frustrating lack of answers! Outlander Revisits The Past In The First Look At Season 8 The teaser (seen above) admittedly features more footage of the first seven seasons than glimpses of the eighth, but I actually loved the nostalgia. Not only was it a blast to the past that hooked me into the saga of Claire and Jamie, but it really reminded me of how well the show's makeup team managed ageing up Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan. Sure, the actors wouldn't look as young as they did when they filmed the 2014 pilot by Season 8 anyway, but Sam Heughan during the SDCC panel clearly wasn't as old as his fictional counterpart by Season 8's point in the timeline. (Caitriona Balfe was unable to attend.) And Season 8's point in the timeline might not be great for Jamie. While the cliffhanger of Faith's possible survival and time travel status isn't addressed in the trailer, it does suggest that perhaps Outlander will address its longest-standing mystery before the final credits roll: the spectral image of Jamie that Claire saw before she traveled back to the 18th century for the first time. The mention of Frank's book combined with those flashes to the earliest days of the show (including Tobias Menzies as both Frank Randall and Black Jack Randall) already had me thinking back to when he was Claire's beloved 20th century husband, as he was when Ghost Jamie first appeared. Throw in the question of whether this truly will be the season when James Fraser meets his doom, and there's a lot to ponder ahead of the 2026 return. The stakes are sky-high in a final season when a show doesn't actually have to prevent its main characters from being killed off for good, and Outlander foreshadowed Jamie's ghost (sort of) way back in the beginning. Alas, we just have more questions than answers at this point, and I'm left frustrated that the Season 1 scene of Claire spotting Jamie in the 1940s wasn't one of the nostalgic flashes. But my frustration and need for more answers didn't last as I sat in San Diego Comic-Con's Outlander panel. Raya Yarbrough's Surprise Performance If the name 'Raya Yarborough' doesn't ring a bell for you, you must not have spent as much time as I have listening to the Outlander soundtracks. Yarborough performed the iconic 'Skye Boat Song' that has been featured in every Outlander episode to date, with different variations for the first six seasons before Sinéad O'Connor's version was used for Season 7. There were variations to the tune throughout the seasons with different arrangements, and one of my favorites was the Jacobite version from Season 2, which includes the drums of war and tied perfectly to the Battle of Culloden. The duet version with Griogair kept the lyrics but changed the tone by adding a male voice to go along with Yarborough's, and was a fun surprise back in 2018. But the fun surprise from SDCC this year? Raya Yarborough herself took the stage to perform 'The Skye Boat Song' on the Hall H stage between the end of the Outlander panel and beginning of the Outlander: Blood of My Blood panel. As if that wasn't enough of a treat for fans like me who would never dream of skipping ahead through the opening credits of an Outlander episode and missing the credits, a four-man concert of bagpipers turned up to play 'Scotland the Brave.' And if you've never heard a bagpipe played in person before… well, it's loud, thrilling, and a pretty great way to hype the end of one show and start of another! While the wait is still on for Outlander to get a more specific release date than the news that Season 8 will arrive in 2026, the wait for Blood of My Blood won't last too much longer. The spinoff premieres on Friday, August 8th at 8 p.m. ET on Starz, with the fun coincidence that the date is almost exactly eleven years to the date from Outlander's series premiere. The series has also already been renewed for Season 2, so there's no need to worry if the stories of Claire's parents and Jamie's parents will be cut short.
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2 hours ago
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Outlander: Blood Of My Blood Stars Talk That Time Paparazzi Almost Spoiled The Show's Biggest Twist And Starting Season 2 Early
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The world of Outlander is returning to the small screen soon in the 2025 TV schedule with the premiere of Blood of My Blood. The prequel spinoff centers on the respective love stories of Julia Moriston (Hermione Corfield) and Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine) as Claire's (Caitriona Balfe) parents as well as Brian Fraser (Jamie Roy) and Ellen MacKenzie (Harriet Slater) as Jamie's (Sam Heughan) future parents. It seemed like a straightforward premise... until the trailer blew up any straightforward assumptions by revealing that Julia and Henry will travel back in time and possibly meet Brian and Ellen. I was fortunate enough to speak with the cast of Outlander: Blood of My Blood, including actors who will be playing the younger versions of some key Outlander characters, at San Diego Comic-Con 2025. They opened up about the big twist getting spotted by the paps and the early renewal for Season 2. Papparazzi Caught Photos Of Time-Traveling Julia The big twist that got Outlander fans talking was revealed in the trailer, with the shocker that we won't be watching one love story unfolding in the 18th century while the other was in the 20th. Julia evidently will go through the same standing stones that changed Claire's story forever, to encounter Jamie's future parents. When I spoke with Hermione Corfield at SDCC, I had to ask: was it a challenge keeping secrets about Blood of My Blood will filming the first season? She responded: There's a point where I couldn't say I time traveled, People would ask, they'd be like, 'Talk about your character,' and I'm like, 'She works in the reduction office,' word for word. I can't say anything else. There's nothing else to say. As somebody who had noticed that there were plenty of press photos released ahead of time with the 18th-century Scottish characters and not nearly as many of Julia and Henry in the 20th century, the time travel twist immediately made sense. The show did a pretty excellent job of keeping a lid on spoilers, considering that the time travel seems to be about as central to Blood of My Blood as time travel in the original Outlander. Hermione Corfield went on to explain what happened when she filmed outside for 18th century scenes with some paparazzi in the mix: The first time outside... they were like, 'You have to have umbrellas over you when you walk around, in case you get papped.' So we were walking around with umbrellas, and we've been walking around all morning. We take the umbrellas down, and there's just three paparazzi in like perfect view. [laughs] Set up and ready to go. And they just watched the whole shooting of the scene, because they get perfectly placed. Well, if those pap pics circulated online after they were snapped, they didn't get to everybody! I hadn't seen them, and based on social media chatter after the trailer release, plenty of Outlander fans were as surprised as I was to see Claire's mom going through the same stones that would claim her daughter a couple decades later. The big time travel twist seems to have been at least mostly preserved. The Cast Is Already Working On Season 2 Starz wasted no time in renewing Blood of My Blood for at least one more round, with an order for Season 2 announced more than a month before Season 1 arrives. Production kicked off in late June, using the same sets that Outlander used for years before filming wrapped for Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe in 2024. So, when I had the chance to speak with Sam Retford (playing Dougal MacKenzie), Seamus McLean Ross (playing Colum MacKenzie), and Rory Alexander (playing Murtagh), I had to ask what it's been like for them to get started on Season 2 when Season 1 won't premiere until August 8. Retford responded: We spent so much time preparing for Season 1 with the boot camp. I mean, we started sort of floating around the project in 2023 and then to be at this position now, and looking all the way back to then seeing how long we spent working and developing these characters, put so much effort in there, and then to see that pay off, and the anticipation be taken away, and go, 'No, actually, it does work, we've done it.' Going from the "floating" stage in 2023 to taking Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con directly after Outlander's panel debuted the first Season 8 footage on stage is certainly an epic way to see how high anticipation is for the payoff! Fans still have some time to wait before the two-episode premiere, but the cast has already seen some of the first season. Sam Retford went on: We've watched episodes in it, and it looks fantastic. As a fan of these stories, it is going to be extremely satiating to open that universe up. And so then approaching Season 2 just feels like we can sort of take the pressure off ourselves and think, 'Okay, let's just play with these characters. Let's have fun with them. Let's enjoy.' A perk for the actors playing Dougal, Colum, and Murtagh has to be that even if they aren't wrapped up in the main time travel drama like the two couples, their characters also can't be killed off. Outlander guarantees their survival, and Season 2 can expand their stories. As Seamus McLean Ross said: There's a deeper dive into their kind of inner worlds. In Season 2, you'll get the kind of more intricate understanding of their kind of inner psychology more. Not the kind of like given circumstances of the show, but the more kind of deeper dive into their psychology. For now, the days are counting down until Season 1 kicks off on Starz on Friday, August 8 at 8 p.m. ET. That will be almost exactly eleven years to the day that Outlander premiered back in 2014, which strikes me as a good sign for the show. As for the original series, Claire and Jamie will return for their final season at some point in 2026. Be sure to check back with CinemaBlend for more from the cast of Outlander: Blood of My Blood soon! Solve the daily Crossword
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11 hours ago
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August 2025 TV preview: Alien: Earth, Peacemaker's return, and Long Story Short
August is shaping up to be a pretty big month in television for period dramas thanks to Apple TV+'s Chief Of War and a Starz's Outlander prequel. Meanwhile, Prime Video drops a spin-off of The Terminal List's and a new spy series starring Lost's Daniel Dae-Kim. And as far as big franchises, John Cena dons his Peacemaker helmet for the show's long-anticipated return, while, in MCU land, the world of Black Panther widens with a new animated saga. Plus, Netflix welcomes another original series from BoJack Horseman's Raphael Bob-Waksberg, and—in the biggest TV news of August—Noah Hawley presents Alien: Earth. Here is The A.V. Club's guide to what to watch on TV next month. Eyes Of Wakanda (Disney+, August 1) Created by Marvel storyboard artist Todd Harris, the animated series Eyes Of Wakanda expands the lore of Black Panther. Specifically, it focuses on Wakandan warriors called the Hatut Zarare, who carry out dangerous missions to retrieve vibranium artifacts. Not only do they travel the world for this, but they also move through various historical periods via the Sacred Timeline (including alternate realities and dimensions), as established in Doctor Strange: The Multiverse Of Madness. EOW is shown through the POV of Noni (Winnie Harlow), a disgraced Dora Milaje fighter, and the show's voice cast also includes Cress Williams and Steve Toussaint. [Saloni Gajjar] Chief Of War (Apple TV+, August 1) Jason Momoa and his Chief Of War co-creator, Thomas Pa'a Sibbett (Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom), cannot resist a major underwater moment, as evidenced by footage of the actor riding a shark in this show's trailer. The 19th-century set series, inspired by the rebellion against Hawai'i's unification, centers on a warrior's fight to stop Western colonization of the islands. Momoa and Sibbett, who also worked together on The Last Manhunt, wrote all nine episodes, and the Game Of Thrones alum directed the finale. Told mostly from the perspective of Indigenous characters, Chief Of War has an ensemble that features Temuera Morrison, Kaina Makua, and Te Ao o Hinepehinga. [Saloni Gajjar] King Of The Hill season 14 (Hulu, August 4) After rumors swirled in 2017 that Fox was interested in bringing back Mike Judge and Greg Daniels' animated favorite, the revival of the show is finally coming to Hulu. And you can definitely expect the titular Arlen, Texas, denizen to be thoroughly confused by all-gender restrooms, Uber ratings, and modern life in general: 'I don't know how to kick someone's ass over Zoom,' he proclaims in the trailer, 'but I'll figure it out.' [Tim Lowery] Outlander: Blood Of My Blood (Starz, August 8) It wouldn't be an Outlander spin-off if time travel weren't involved. This prequel tracks how Jamie Fraser's parents (portrayed by Harriet Slater and Jamie Roy) fell in love in 18th-century Scotland. It also charts the romance between Claire Beauchamp's mom and dad (played by Hermione Corfield and Jeremy Irvine) during World War I in England. And, thanks to the ancient stone circles in the Highlands (the same ones that transported Claire back in time in the original's premiere), everyone's paths cross when the Beauchamps land up in 1714 Scotland. As a bonus, fans can look forward to seeing younger versions of Outlander faves like Murtagh Fraser (Rory Alexander) and Jocasta Mackenzie (Sadhbh Malin). [Saloni Gajjar] Alien: Earth (FX, August 12) Fargo's Noah Hawley takes over the Alien franchise with a cool-looking and -sounding prequel set two years before the events of Ridley Scott's original film. In 2120, the planet is being ruled by five mega corporations, with synths and Cyborgs co-existing. Enter the CEO of a tech company, who develops a hybrid: a synthetic robot with human consciousness named Wendy (Sydney Chandler). When a Weyland-Yutani spacecraft crash-lands in a crowded city with different alien species—not just the Xenomorphs!—onboard, Wendy and her newly formed team investigate and try to stop these creatures. Timothy Olyphant, Alex Lawther, Essie Davis, Adarsh Gourav, and David Rysdahl round out the cast. [Saloni Gajjar] Butterfly (Prime Video, August 13) At the heart of Butterfly, an action-packed spy thriller, lies a family secret. The six episodes, based on the graphic novel of the same name, center on David Jung (Daniel Dae Kim), a skilled U.S. agent who has been presumed dead for the past couple of decades. Except he's very much alive—and reunites with his now-adult kid, Rebecca (Reina Hardesty), who trained to become a covert operative just like him. Father and daughter team up to bring down the agency that recruited them because Rebecca is being framed by them for a crime. And along the way, the duo attempts to repair their fractured relationship. [Saloni Gajjar] The Twisted Tale Of Amanda Knox (Hulu, August 20) Hulu reenacts another headline-grabbing case in this eight-episode limited series, which tells the tale—a very twisted one, some might say—of the American-exchange student who was locked up for murdering her roommate in Italy back in 2007. This Is Us scribe K.J. Steinberg created the show, which stars streamer regular Grace Van Patten, the great Sharon Horgan, John Hoogenakker, Francesco Acquaroli, and Giuseppe De Domenico. [Tim Lowery] Peacemaker season two (HBO Max, August 21) More than three years after its premiere, Peacemaker punches its way onto our screens again. In season two, mercenary vigilante Chris Smith (John Cena) and his A.R.G.U.S. pals—including Leota (Danielle Brooks) and Harcourt (Jennifer Holland)—battle a revenge-seeking Rick Flag Sr. (Frank Grillo). A big storyline features the pocket dimension introduced in James Gunn's Superman earlier this summer, which likely explains why Peacemaker meets his doppelgänger in the trailer (and could potentially bring Chukwudi Iwuji's Clemson Murn back into the fold). Expect appearances from Nathan Fillion and Isabela Merced, who play Justice Gang members Guy Gardner and Hawkgirl, as well as Sean Gunn reprising his brief movie role as DCU villain Maxwell Lord. Gunn wrote all eight installments and directed a couple of them as well. [Saloni Gajjar] Long Story Short (Netflix, August 22) Raphael Bob-Waksberg is back with his first Netflix show since the fantastic BoJack Horseman. The animated comedy Long Story Short chronicles the Schwooper siblings from (like Bob-Waksberg) Northern California, with the series bouncing between years and portraying their ups and downs as kids and adults. Paul Reiser, Lisa Edelstein, Max Greenfield, Michaela Dietz, and Ben Feldman lead the voice cast. This one can't arrive soon enough. [Tim Lowery] The Terminal List: Dark Wolf (Prime Video, August 27) Seven months after American Primeval, Taylor Kitsch returns to the small screen to star as CIA operative Ben Edwards in this prequel to The Terminal List. The new action drama delves into Edwards' backstory and reveals a dark past from his time as a Navy SEAL and special-intelligence agent. Co-created by David DiGilio and TTL author Jack Carr, this show also sees Chris Pratt reprising his role as Commander James Reece from the original. [Saloni Gajjar] More August premieres August 3 The Yogurt Shop Murders (HBO) August 6 Platonic season two (Apple TV+) Wednesday season two, part one (Netflix) August 7 Demascus (Tubi) Necaxa (FX) August 11 Irish Blood (Acorn TV) August 15 The Rainmaker (USA Network) August 21 Hostage (Netflix) August 22 Invasion season three (Apple TV+) August 25 Upload season four (Prime Video) August 26 My Life With The Walter Boys season two (Netflix) More from A.V. Club Podcast Canon: Thirst Aid Kit went deep on female desire What's on TV this week—Chief Of War and Eyes Of Wakanda Trump's Epstein flop sweat finally does Jon Stewart's job for him Solve the daily Crossword
Daily Mirror
15 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Outlander bosses hint at Blood of My Blood crossover for major character
Outlander showrunner Matthew B. Roberts teased a potential appearance from one character in the prequel Outlander and Outlander: Blood of My Blood showrunner Matthew B. Roberts has given fans a tantalising hint about the upcoming prequel series, following speculation around a "cruel theory" involving a key character, reports the Daily Record. During San Diego Comic-Con over the weekend, the boss of both Starz dramas was quizzed on whether a young Claire Fraser (portrayed by Caitríona Balfe in Outlander) might pop up in Blood of My Blood after Outlander finished filming and Balfe admitted she was emotional about it. In the sneak peek for Blood of My Blood, we see Claire's parents Julia Moriston (Hermione Corfield) and Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine) holding the Outlander darling as a newborn. Roberts intriguingly told the crowd: "Maybe. Spoiler alert." He continued: "Maybe isn't a no." Meanwhile, co-executive producer Maril Davis chimed in: "That's about all you're getting." This question arose after fans were treated to a snippet of Henry and Julia driving through the Highlands, chatting about their daughter. The clip showed Julia commenting that Claire "would love" to have joined them on their journey and her intentions to make raspberry jam together upon their return. She also noted that raspberry leaves were used during childbirth, suggesting a potential pregnancy storyline in the show at some point. Henry confessed he was a "little concerned" about Claire while they were in Scotland, with Julia attempting to comfort him. While Roberts and Davis remained tight-lipped about any further appearances from Claire, they did hint that Blood of My Blood would be packed with treats and Easter eggs for Outlander devotees. Roberts expressed: "What's great about the show, for people who have never seen Outlander, it's there all for you and a fresh take on Scotland. We dive into the culture of Scotland. "But if you're an Outlander fan, and you've seen every episode, there's nuggets all the way through that you will be surprised about who you might see, what you might see, and how Jamie and Claire kind of became Jamie and Claire." Davis admitted: "It's very hard to follow Outlander and I was very nervous. And I think the idea that [Roberts] had about including Claire's parents and the fact that they're integral in Jamie and Claire eventually coming together was such a key moment. "But I think this show does such an amazing job of being tied to Outlander, being part of that Outlander universe and having those little Easter eggs." The panel also disclosed there would be significant interaction between Claire's parents and Jamie's mother and father, Ellen MacKenzie (Harriet Slater) and Brian Fraser (Jamie Roy). Julia would serve as a confidant to Ellen and play a crucial role in uniting Jamie's parents. In fact, Roberts hinted that both sets of parents would "form relationships" with each other. He added: "I love to call it the love stories that tell the love story." Davis further piqued interest when she speculated: "This idea that the two couples crossed, and also that Claire's parents were back in a time when - who knows what's going to happen with the series - but could Claire have met her parents at some point? It's so intriguing. "But also the fact that this love story, Jamie and Claire were always meant to be together and this show is a perfect example of that, this fated love. And if love is true, it will find a way." Her comments suggest that Claire might encounter her parents when she ultimately travels back in time. Outlander: Blood of My Blood premieres on Starz on August 8 and on Prime Video via MGM+ on August 9
