Outlander‘s prequel spinoff Outlander: Blood of My Blood is getting underway as Starz unveils the cast and start of production on the project which will follow the romances of Jamie’s (Sam Heughan) parents as well as Claire’s (Caitriona Balfe) parents.
That’s right, the show will be set in two times focusing on two different couples as production on the 10-episode season kicks off in Scotland. Joining the show’s key roles are Harriet Slater as Ellen MacKenzie, Jamie Roy and Brian Fraser, Hermione Corfield as Julia Moriston, and Jeremy Irvine as Henry Beauchamp.
As previously revealed, Blood of My Blood explores the lives and relationship of Jamie’s parents, Ellen and Brian, but the addition of Claire’s parents Julia and Henry is all new. The show will center on these two parallel love stories set in vastly different time periods with Jamie’s parents in the early 18th century Scottish Highlands and Claire’s parents in World War I England.
(Credit: Courtesy of Starz)
“We’re thrilled to be telling the stories of these two couples. The origins of their relationships explore universal themes that transcend time periods and we’re so excited for fans to discover and fall in love with these characters and their love stories the way they have with Claire and Jamie,” says Matthew B. Roberts, showrunner, executive producer and writer on both series.
Outlander celebrates its 10th anniversary this summer having debuted on August 9, 2014. While no definitive premiere date has been set for Season 7’s second half, Starz reports fans can anticipate the arrival of those remaining eight episodes “later this year.” As previously announced, the eighth and final season will include 10 episodes which are set to begin production shortly in Scotland.
(Credit: Starz)
As fans of the original flagship series know, the time-traversing love story of Claire and Jamie Fraser is plucked from Diana Gabaldon’s popular book series. So, will this show be based on a bit of her writing? When she spoke to TV Guide Magazine in June 2023, she stated at the time, “That depends a little bit on timing. I am in fact writing the first bit of the prequel volume at the moment, along with parts of [Outlander] Book 10, and parts of a Lord John book [the series based on Outlander character Lord John Grey].”
When and if the corresponding story will be released is yet to be revealed, but the television series is no doubt still sprung from the mind of Gabaldon who is serving as a consulting producer on Blood of My Blood. In addition to Roberts serving as showrunner, he’ll be joined as executive producer by Ronald D. Moore and Maril Davis.
In addition to sharing the casting news and production update, Starz also released its first behind-the-scenes production image of Blood of My Blood‘s clapperboard, teasing fans with the impending prequel. As for the stars behind the spinoff’s main roles, Slater previously appeared in Pennyworth, Roy featured in Condor’s Nest, Corfield appeared in The Road Dance, and Irvine memorably led Steven Spielberg‘s War Horse and featured as a young Sam (Pierce Brosnan) in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
Stay tuned for more news on Outlander and Outlander: Blood of My Blood as both shows continue to make progress at Starz, and let us know what you’re looking forward to in the comments section.
Outlander, Season 7, Part 2, Coming 2024, Starz
This story originally appeared on TV Insider
