'Outlander' Still Hasn't Been Renewed for Seasons 5 and 6—but Don't Freak Out Yet

Although we already knew that season four of Outlander was coming in 2018, the new year has finally arrived, and we still don't an exact date for when we should expect the new episodes. Even worse, we don't entirely know if this is the end of Jamie and Claire: No official renewals have been announced for the show, leaving us wondering if season four will really be the last we see of them (say it's not so!). But on Friday, we got some news that's making us feel a tiny bit better.

At the Television Critics Association Press Tour, the Starz CEO himself, Chris Albrecht, dropped a little hint about the future of the show, and it's having us feel all sorts of optimistic. (Of course, keep in mind that Starz hasn't confirmed the future seasons just yet, so nothing's official until it's, well, official.)

"I wouldn’t worry too much about that," he said when asked about why renewals for seasons five and six haven't been officially announced. "There are 10 books, and we are having very productive conversations about the future of the show."

Each season so far has loosely lined up with the plot of its matching installment in author Diana Gabaldon's book series, which means that if we're on season-four-book-four, and there are 10 books—well, it's safe to say there could be a lot more of the duo and their adventures ahead.

Albrecht says his main concern is with how much they're asking of Outlander stars Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan.

“We have joined the legions of fans of Outlander around the world. Our biggest concern is making sure that we don’t kill Caitriona and Sam along the way,” he said, referring to how hard both actors work, not the million brushes with death their characters experience each season. “The two of them are fantastic and deserve every bit of the accolades they have received.” (Like, say, Balfe's Golden Globe nomination for her work on season 3.)

Those who just cannot wait for the fourth season to start will want to clear their calendars Sunday evening (January 14), when Starz airs an exclusive scene from it at 10 P.M. ET. (So...that'll hold us over for maybe a week or so?) Until the new season's actual premiere, we'll be rereading Outlander recaps and possibly definitely revisiting the best sex scenes from the last three seasons.

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