Outlander star John Bell talks Ian's big mistake
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Warning: This article contain's spoilers about Outlander season 7, episode 3, "Death Be Not Proud."
Ian (John Bell) has once again found himself in hot water.
In the third episode of Outlander's seventh season, Jamie's brave (but sometimes reckless) nephew makes a grave error. After discovering that the Bugs were responsible for stealing the missing Jacobite gold off Jocasta's property, Jamie (Sam Heughan) banishes the couple from the Ridge.
But as Jamie and Ian watch who they believe is Arch Bug (Hugh Ross) dig up the buried gold under the burnt-out house, they decide to confront him. In the confusion of the dark and the moment, Ian kills who he believes is Arch, but is actually Murdina Bug (Sarah Collier).
Ian instantly regrets his actions. He's previously been known to carry the weight of his own guilt around quite heavily, as we saw in season 6 when he lost his wife and child. "He loved Murdina," Bell tells EW. "He is going to be wrestling with a lot of emotions that I think he probably thought were behind him. It's all coming up again, this idea of 'Am I a good person if I kill so easily? If I murder so easily, is there something wrong with me?' Maybe there is a little bit, but he did it to protect Jamie. That's at the core of it — it's protecting his family. It's protecting his loved ones by any means possible."
Robert Wilson/Starz John Bell in 'Outlander'
Ian's mistake comes with far greater consequences than his guilt, however. When the Frasers bury Mrs. Bug, Arch attends. Ian attempts to offer his life in exchange for Murdina's, but that's not good enough for Arch. He makes a pledge to Ian, "When you have something worth taking, you'll see me again."
Bell promises that Arch's threat will haunt Ian the remainder of season 7. Executive producer Maril Davis adds that Arch's promise will up the stakes for Ian's journey. "It's going to hang over Ian's head," she tells EW. "For Ian, that's a weight he carries, and we are going to see the ramifications of that relationship as we move forward."
"At first, it's about the potential of harm to Jamie and Claire," Bell says. "But, as somebody else appears, that changes everything. That threat is going to loom large over Ian. He's going to have to get the hatchet out."
Sounds like, in Ian's case, violence might be the answer yet again...
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