Outlander’s fifth season, which concluded last May, watched Claire and Jamie settled in Fraser’s Ridge with the inevitability of this Revolutionary War looming in the distance. And now that production has started, we’ve got a fairly good idea about what to expect–in part as a result of Diana Gabaldon’s book collection. Here’s what we understand about Season 6, and keep in mind there are some mild spoilers ahead.
Season 6 of Outlander doesn’t even start filming until January 2021, thus there isn’t any information on its release date. The best-case scenario would be sometime in late fall 2021, but there is also the possibility that Starz could hold it on until early 2022.
Starz jointly announced seasons 6 and 5 way back in May 2018, and we’ve yet to hear about a season 7 confirmation. TVLine reports that at the January 2020 Television Critics Association (TCA) Winter Press Tour series, executive producer Maril Davis said “There are still a lot more books to go. We are willing if the actors are ready.”
Heughan has said that he is. “I hope we continue for many years,” he tweeted through a March enthusiast Q&A. “There were talks. Just hope you all keep watching!”
“As long as the fans continue to crave the story, we’ll continue to possess Outlander on the atmosphere,” Deadline quoted Jeffrey Hirsch, president and CEO of Starz, as stating. Can Christina Davis, the new president of original programming in Starz, adore Outlander enough to give us a season 7 and possibly 8? And will pandemic-influenced budget problems impact programming plans? That remains to be seen.
Outlander Season 6 will be predicated on Gabaldon’s sixth book A Breath of Snow and Ashes. A part of the narrative from A Breath of Snow and Ashes was coated in Season 5 of Outlander, but it’s a large book, so there’s a lot more story to come.
As it opens, the Frasers are overcoming the traumas from last year: Claire’s kidnap and sexual assault, Brianna’s abduction by Stephen Bonnet, Roger’s being hung and almost dying, Jamie’s brush with death after being bitten by a poisonous snake and the death of his godfather Murtagh (Duncan Lacroix) in the Battle of Alamance.
“After we left Season 5, the entire family is fractured,” Heughan said throughout the Outlander End of Summer series. “They’re together but Claire still has some healing to do.”
And Balfe agreed, “One of the things I am looking forward to seeing is the way she copes with all that and the consequences of it. How the family as a complete unit heals collectively or helps her to heal. I believe that is going to be an extremely lovely part of the story.”