Caitríona Balfe, Sam Heughan & Cast Have Begun Filming the Final Season of Outlander

Hot on the news that the second half of Outlander’s penultimate season 7 would premiere in November 2024, the good news keeps on coming, signaling an end to what fans no doubt are feeling as the longest “Droughtlander” they’ve experienced. But worry not, cameras began rolling kicking off Season 8, the final season, of Outlander, which marks its 10-year anniversary this summer. Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan return as Claire and Jamie Fraser, along with Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin, John Bell, Caitlin O’Ryan, Paul Gorman and more. Outlander even dropped video proof that all the actors are back on set. And what they are filming is being directed by Balfe herself, as she and executive producer Maril Davis revealed last June at ATX Festival. This will be Balfe’s first time as a director, and she and Heughan talked about how it will be her first time directing not only their show, but her first time directing Heughan himself.

As exciting as it is to hear the Scotland drama is back on set filming, this news is bittersweet, as this will be the last first day of filming for this epic, long-running show based on Diana Gabaldon’s popular Outlander book series. But before you grab a box of tissues, just know that there are still 18 episodes of Outlander left, ten of which haven’t been made yet. So, cry later.

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Now let’s breakdown the first (and last, okay not crying is hard) behind the scenes video from season 8. Balfe, Heughan, Skelton, Rankin and Bell walk through the Outlander set taking a trip down memory lane on the show they have been on now for 10 years! Balfe puts it best when she says to Heughan, “Couldn’t have picked a better person to be dragged through time with.” Then the two of them wade through each other’s wardrobe, Heughan puts his tricorn hat on Balfe and then gives her a necessary piggy back. Ah, supportive co-stars. Rankin and Skelton look at old photos, and Rankin looks at a scene with Balfe and Skelton from season 3 saying it was probably his favorite scene he filmed. Is Rankin a Claire fan, like Roger? Bell says he’s getting emotional and we are all John Bell. All of us.

Executive producer Matt Roberts says, “A decade ago, this is where we all started, we’ve created a family, and our legacy is going to carry on for years and years.”

Balfe and Davis talked a lot about season 8 and Balfe directing in their chat in Austin, Texas. Balfe also revealed that when she was directing, there was one person who could not stop laughing on set. And it wasn’t her for the first time, but someone you’d least suspect.

There is quite a bit of time to go until Outlander returns on screen to Starz, but due to the actors’ and writers’ strikes, many shows’ production timelines have been deeply impacted, including Outlander. But the great news is, 8 new episodes will be coming this year, and the show’s cast and crew is excited to be back on set filming their final season. Tears, again. Where’s your emotional support Jamie Fraser cardboard cutout when you need it? (Admit it, some of you own that flat Fraser cardboard). More time until Outlander returns, means you time to catch up on all the seasons, and maybe even read all the books. Be sure to watch our interviews with Maril Davis, David Berry, Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin, John Bell, Caitlin O’Ryan, Paul Gorman, and Balfe and Heughan.

Before you go, check out the all-time best ‘Outlander’ episodes you need to watch.

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