“Outlander” Season 7, Part 2 Trailer heralds death, loss, redemption

Starz has released a new trailer for the second half of OutlanderThe seventh season of The Series premiered on Thursday as cast members shared their thoughts on their more than decade-long journey with the show at New York Comic Con.

During a 45-minute panel discussion, stars Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan, Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin and John Bell appeared alongside executive producer Maril Davis and author Diana Gabaldon to reveal what fans have learned from the series over time Fraisers can expect when the new episodes arrive on November 13th. 22.

Davis opened the panel by telling attendees, “It’s such an emotional rollercoaster of season seven – death, loss, redemption.” It’s all in the second half. It’s even better than the first.” Gabaldon reiterated Davis’ description, telling the congregation, “It’s such an amazing second half. I can’t wait for people to see it.”

The episodes will see many of the characters return to Scotland, and Heughan reflected with Balfe on the “really special” return to the place where their characters began their stories. “Bring your whiskey and tissues. It’s pretty intense. So I think there’s going to be a lot of talk about that,” Davis added.

While reflecting on the show’s 10th anniversary, Heughan recalled feeling “really green” going into the show. “We were naive,” he told fans. “I think we both thought it would only last a season or two. Eleven years later, eight seasons, 101 episodes, we are so grateful.”

Balfe reflected on how she’s grown with the characters over the last decade and reiterated the plan she and Heughan put together early on to always have each other’s backs during filming. “I think we stuck with it, but it was a great honor to be able to play characters, watch them grow and build a life with them. Every time you shoot a scene, it’s a memory. Every time you play it, you refill that memory and then the character just grows inside you.”

Rankin and Skelton both spoke about their audition processes, with Rankin recalling once seeing pages for Jaime and being separated from the rest of the cast for so long given the time difference. “I remember when we got on the show it was like it was some kind of movie on another TV show because we were completely separate from the rest of the cast,” Rankin said.

Bell expressed his appreciation for being able to focus on an Indigenous community throughout his character’s story. “Having the opportunity to be part of the Mohawk Nation, to tell their stories and be a part of that history has been the greatest privilege of my life,” he said.

Balfe’s first directing effort this season was also discussed, with the actress noting that directing was more difficult for her than acting, but she encouraged other women to pursue filmmaking. “I expected to slack off a lot, but I think it’s great. My first day was Sophie and Richard, and you were so amazing and so generous,” said the actress and director. “It’s a nerve-wracking thing to stand in front of the crew and take on this new role, but to go into it with these guys – I know them so well as co-stars – and say, ‘Hey, try it or try it it.’“ This.’ It was honestly just an incredible experience.”

At one point, Davis addressed comments made recently at PaleyFest that not everyone in the cast had seen the finale in order to prevent the ending from leaking. “[Producer] Matt Rogers didn’t want everyone to get our normal distribution, so we didn’t provide everyone with the full script. We don’t tell people the ending,” she said, adding that Gabaldon knows how the series ends. “We talked to Diane about it. We were very careful. We didn’t want to step on her toes. There’s another book, so let’s finish it the way we do.”

When asked what they could say about what’s to come, Davis got a little emotional as he talked about the show getting closer to its series finale. Season eight was announced as the final season, but a prequel is currently in production.

“It’s been a tough season in a lot of ways,” she said. “I think this season is a homage to our characters and trying to reach some of the high points and end on a note that hopefully people will be happy with. But I feel like it’s impossible to please everyone because the show doesn’t go on, and I think there’s something sad about that. So I don’t know that. This season had a special atmosphere.”

Other cast members, including Bell and Heughan, considered bowing out and filming the end of the season. Both noted how emotional the many farewells on set were, even though they felt “satisfaction” and “pride” in all of their work. “It’s been an incredible journey and even attending Comic Con, which is always a great joy for us. It’s so much fun to share it with you,” Heughan said. “This time there’s this bittersweet schedule of filming, publicity and press that’s coming to a close.”

As they look ahead to their lives after the series, many are looking forward to being able to sleep again and having time to travel, be with family and work on other projects. But everyone was grateful for the show’s journey. “That show created such a legacy that continues to this day, so we’ll be talking about it for a while,” Bell added.