The Starz premium cable network already provides plenty of bang for the buck with 50 Cent’s Power Universe, but another long-lived source of bread and butter exists in their historical dramas. Outlander has been cranking out seasons since 2014 when it began adapting Diana Gabaldon’s same-named book series. The show turned out to be more enjoyable than it had any right to be, and as a result, the show’s audience has remained sticky.
The genre-straddling romance series recently entered production for an eighth and final season, but before that arrives, the show is still catching up on airing the last half of the seventh installment. Those Hollywood strikes are largely to blame for the scheduling traffic jam of sorts, and a prequel series, Blood of My Blood, is also in the works (filming began in February) — perhaps the shows will overlap a bit? It’s hard to imagine that Outlander‘s final season will finish production and air before the prequel surfaces, but of course, we are here to talk about the series proper.
The good news is that, finally, there’s light at the end of the time-travel tunnel, even though you don’t have to look too far across the Internet to see frustration after fans found out exactly how long the wait will be for more episodes. Let’s talk about that release date and what to expect:
Plot
Claire Randall (Caitríona Balfe) and Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan, who recently joked about his own “Love Story” with Taylor Swift) will not be having the most fantastic time when the period drama returns. You would think that these characters could catch a break after Claire endured being taken a prisoner of the Revolutionary War, among other tribulations, but unfortunately, that isn’t in the cards. The official Starz synopsis suggests that a return to Scotland is afoot, and in the colonies, Revolutionary War has continued to test the bonds of family, love, and the meaning of “home,” via Variety:
Coming off of the first half of ‘Outlander’ season seven, viewers find Claire, Jamie and Young Ian leaving the colonies and arriving in their beloved homeland: Scotland. The perils of the Revolutionary War force them to choose between standing by those they love and fighting for the land they have made their new home. Meanwhile, Roger (Richard Rankin) and Brianna (Sophie Skelton) face new enemies across time, and must battle the forces that threaten to pull their family apart.
And as executive producer Maril Davis recently told Entertainment Weekly, “You know that saying, ‘You can never go home again?’ That’s definitely true.” She continued:
“Home is never the home you knew. It’s never going to be the same. That’s true when we come back — there’s troubling things on the horizon and some painful stuff. It’s bittersweet. It’s a homecoming, but things happen that are more of a sad note.”
As already mentioned, these episodes will lead into the show’s final season, but viewers can take comfort in knowing that the prequel, Blood of My Blood, will exist and will revolve around two love stories, those of Claire and Jamie’s parents, respectively.
Cast
As mentioned above, Outlander currently stars Sam Heughan, Caitríona Balfe, Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin, and John Bell. They are joined by David Berry, Charles Vandervaart, Izzy Meikle-Small, and Joey Phillips.
Release Date
The Starz series will return on November 22 with another eight weekly episodes (for sixteen total episodes in the season). That return date will be over a year since the show last aired a new episode in August 2023. It’s no wonder that fans are getting antsy and wouldn’t mind a time-travel machine of their own.
Trailer
Surely, Starz will soon provide a full trailer, but for now, this teaser will barely keep fans afloat.