The world of “Outlander” has always woven the past and present together. Now the franchise is pulling on even more threads for its upcoming prequel, “Outlander: Blood of My Blood.”
Starz’s new series, set to premiere on Aug. 8, expands characters’ backstories and revisits the fateful events that defined the original series. Most importantly, it follows how Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and Claire Beauchamp (Caitriona Balfe) parents met and fell in love.
The prequel begs the question: Will fans watching both “Outlander” and “Outlander: Blood of My Blood” ever get a crossover moment?
TODAY.com spoke with the shows’ executive producer and showrunner, Matthew B. Roberts, and executive producer Maril Davis to find out how, exactly, the two shows connect.
How does ‘Blood of My Blood’ connect to “Outlander”?
“Blood of My Blood” is Claire Beauchamp and Jamie Fraser’s origin story, focusing on how their sets of parents came together. Their parents’ paths collide in surprising ways, too.
“We wanted to know ‘why are Jamie and Claire so fated to be together?’ ‘What stars lined up to do that?’” Roberts says. “And that’s these two love stories, once they get going, and you start to see them, and then you see that moment when they intersect.”
The prequel series grounds itself in the same world fans know, with Scotland once again playing a starring role.
“Scotland is number one on the call sheet,” Davis explains. “You have to feel her in the show and not only the visuals, but the culture, the textures.”
By rewinding the clock, “Blood of My Blood” lets viewers explore the early lives of “Outlander’s” characters like Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser, Dougal MacKenzie, Colum MacKenzie, Rupert MacKenzie, Angus Mhor, Jamie’s aunt Jocasta Cameron and Season 7 villain Arch Bug.
Will ‘Blood of My Blood’ Connect to the Final Season of ‘Outlander’?
While “Blood of My Blood” connects to the broader “Outlander” universe, Roberts says fans won’t see a direct crossover with the original franchise’s final season.
“‘Outlander’ it’s already made, so it’s already done,” Roberts says. “I don’t want to mess with the canon of Outlander. I don’t want to unwind that. That’s not what this is about. ‘Outlander’ fans who love that show, I want them to know that it’s secure. We’re not going to get into that.”
The showrunner confirmed that the eighth and final season of “Outlander” has already been wrapped filming, making retroactive crossover scenes or “Blood of My Blood” character appearances essentially impossible.
Roberts adds that while the lens of “Outlander” kept a tight focus on Jamie and Claire, “Blood of My Blood” allows the show’s creatives to expand on and explore new characters and storylines.
“I would like to explore all these characters (in the ‘Outlander’ universe),” Roberts explains. “One of the things in ‘Outlander’ that we kept to is Jamie and Claire. Everything had to kind of run through Jamie and Claire, and you couldn’t go too far away (or) go down long story lines with any other characters, because you had to bring it back to them.
The series is already renewed for a second season, which Matthews says will explore other characters’ stories.
