Outlander Trailer for Second Half of Season 7 Ushers in Death, Loss, Redemption

Starz released a new teaser for the second part of Outlander’s seventh season on Thursday and the cast discussed their more than decade-long tenure with the series at the New York Comic Con event. 

In a 45-minute Q&A session, stars Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan, Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin and John Bell were joined by executive producer Maril Davis and author Diana Gabaldon to reveal what fans can look forward to for the Frasers throughout out time when the new episodes return November 22. 

Booted off to start the panel, Davis said to attendees “It’s such an emotional roller coaster season seven — death, loss, redemption. It is all in the second half. The follow-up is supposedly even better than the first work.” Gabaldon backed Davis’ account stating to the convention, It is such an amazing second half. I’m looking forward to people to see it.”

The episodes will show many of the characters back in Scotland and during the interview, Heughan told Balfe that it was “really special” to get back to the place in which their characters started. “Bring your whiskey, your Kleenex.” It’s pretty intense. That is I think that would be discussed in many forms,” said Davis. 

Speaking of the show s 10 TH year anniversary Heughan said he used to feel quite inexperienced when he was shooting the series. “We were naive” he said to his fans. It had all seemed that both of you assumed that it would not go past a season, or, at most, two. Eight seasons, one hundred and one episodes later, we are so thankful – 11 years later.”

Balfe talked about developing chemistry with the characters during the past ten years and repeating the agreement that she and Heughan made at the beginning of their cooperation saying that they are going to always support each other during shooting. ‘I think we have done that but it has been such an honour to be able to be playing characters and see them grow and have a life. Each time you perform a scene it is creating a memory. Each time it is written, you are putting back into that memory, and once that is done, the character simply evolves within the actor.

During the audition, both Rankin and Skelton mentioned how Rankin had once seen sides for Jaime and was literally isolated from the rest of the cast for quite sometime because of the time differences. “I remember when we arrived on the show, it was like it was kind of a film on a different TV show, because we were completely segregated for the rest of the cast,” Rankin said. 

Bell also thanked Jurnee for the opportunity to, throughout his character’s journey, give focus to an indigenous community. “To be able to be a part of the Mohawk Nation and tell their stories and be a part of that story was the biggest privilege of my life,” he said. 

Speaking of her first-time directing this season, Balfe commented that she preferred acting to directing, but still, she urged other women to try their hand in filmmaking. “I anticipated to receive a lot of flak over it but I think it was great.” And the first shot was Sophie and Richard, and I saw you guys were fantastic and so kind,” she said. ‘It’s kind of nerve wracking, as stated, to stand before the crew and take this new position but getting to do it with these guys – I’ve acted alongside them – and to be like telling them this or that.’ Like I told someone else, it was honestly just such an incredible experience.” 

At one point, Davis elaborated on comments he recently made at PaleyFest where he mentioned not all the actors have seen the finale due to risk that the ending would leak. “[Producer] Matt Rogers didn’t want everyone to get our normal distribution, and so we did not put out the full script to everyone. He’s not going to know the end and, overall, we’re not telling people the end,” she said, before revealing that, in fact, Gabaldon is privy to the series’ finale. We did consult with Diane about it. We were very careful. We didn’t want to back her up into a corner or get in her way, because that would just leave her to drown in sorrow somewhere else. If there is another book, then we must be ending this one the way we are.

When asked what they might be able to tease about what’s coming, Davis got somewhat emotional saying that the show is getting closer to the final series. The eighth season has been stated as the final season while a prequel show is still being developed.

“They won 75 games so technically it wasn’t their worst, but it was such a tough season in so many ways,” she said. And I think this season is just about our characters and attempting to get to some of those places and just kind of end on a hopefully happy/cinating/Hopefully people will be okay with it. But I feel like it’s impossible to satisfy everyone because the show’s not going to go on, and I think there’s a sadness with that. So I don’t know this. This season was unique in a way.”

Bell joined Heughan and other castmembers asking each other questions about saying goodbye and shooting the conclusion of the series. It added both how emotional the many goodbyes on the set have been but at the same time remained that there has been ‘satisfaction’ and ‘pride’ about all of the work. “It’s been an incredible journey and even coming here to Comic Con and that’s always such a joy for us to be here. That was nice to see, and much appreciated, we all thought It’s so fun to share with you guys,” Heughan said. “So coming this time, there is this slightly sweet-sour cycle of shooting and then going and promoting and doing press as the shooting is ending.”

When asked how they saw their lives after the series, most wanted to get more sleep and regain time to travel and be with their families and work on other projects. But all could express thankfulness about the show’s course. “This show has created such legacy, and it has continued on, and so we’ll be discussing it for a while,” Bell further said.