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Hello, Outlander fans! We are all in the Droughtlander as the hit STARZ series heads towards the premiere of the second half of its penultimate season. Once the series returns on Friday, November 22, fans of the show will then turn their attention to the historical romance’s eighth and final season, which is currently in production. The storyline for the beloved series is based on the bestselling novels by Diana Gabaldon. While the television series is set to end its run, a move pushed for by series star Sam Heughan, the novel series is yet to conclude. As fans prepare to say goodbye to Heughan’s handsome Scotsman, Jaime Fraser, and CaitrÃona Balfe‘s brilliant and equally elegant Claire Fraser, Gabaldon has warned fans that the ending of the series will not match that of the novel series.
Since Claire and Jamie first met many seasons and centuries ago, the couple have experienced equally beautiful and challenging times, mostly inspired by Gabaldon’s work. However, as the final chapter of the pair is brought to life on screen, there will be a distinction between the written version which is yet to arrive. Responding to a fan online, Gabaldon wrote, “There’s only so much I can say about the show, but what I can say is that it really won’t resemble the end of the book series.” The author goes on to add:
“Coming into Season 8, the show-runners have/had only ten episodes (rather than the sixteen, say, in Season One)–and material from THREE WHOLE BOOKS to fit into that. Season 7 ends (roughly) with AN ECHO IN THE BONE, leaving WRITTEN IN MY OWN HEART’S BLOOD, GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE, and BOOK TEN almost untouched.”
Per Gabaldon’s comments, the currently in-production Season 8 will have a copious amount of lore to fit into one season, suggesting only key plots will be examined. The decision to end the show after the upcoming season has, in Gabaldon’s words, reduced the wiggle room required to properly tackle the remaining books. “Now, in normal circumstances – one book per season – they can fit roughly 10% of the book’s content into the show. How much of the (VERY roughly speaking) 1,200,000 words of those three books do you think they can get into ten hours of television?” the author added. “Obviously, they’re going to have to cherry-pick some prime scenes/threads to film, and try to fit them into a framework that makes sense for one season, and that they can bring to a reasonably satisfactory conclusion.”
‘Blood of My Blood’ Is Coming
Exactly how STARZ brings Outlander to an end remains to be seen, however, given how well the show has progressed, it is safe to assume that it would be satisfactory. Series star, Balfe, had previously suggested that details were being kept “top secret” while recognizing that you can’t please everyone. However, as Outlander comes to a close, the franchise is set to expand with a new prequel series, Outlander: Blood of My Blood, which is set to premiere in 2025.
Outlander Season 7 Part 2 premieres in November 2024. You can watch the first seven seasons of Outlander on Starz.
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