Outlander is already greenlit for season 4, and now it’s looking ahead to seasons 5 and 6.
Starz CEO, Chris Albrecht, is looking forward to more of the acclaimed series. Season 3 broke the previous broadcast records of the series, so extending its deal to further seasons is a logical progression.
According to EW, Albrecht said that he’s having “productive discussions about the future of the show” with Sony TV.
On January 14, 2018 Starz will be airing an Outlander marathon of season 3, immediately followed by an exclusive scene from season 4 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. As book fans know, the series from the fourth book/season onwards is predominately centered on the lives of Jamie (Sam Heughan), Claire (Caitriona Balfe), and their family in America.
New cast members joining season 4 include Moira Kennedy Doyle of Orphan Black fame, who will be playing Jamie’s wealthy, ex-pat Aunt Jocasta, and Colin McFarlane of Batman Begins and Dark Knight, who will play her right-hand-man and slave, Ulysses.
Outlander author Diana Gabaldon has eight Outlander novels in her trove and counting. She is currently working on the next book entitled Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone. She’s posted excerpts from the book, which she refers to as Daily Lines, fairly regularly on her blog and social media platforms. The most recent tidbit came out this week.
Although there is no official release date for Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone, it’s likely it will be out sooner rather than later. As a generality, Gabaldon has published the most recent Outlander novels that focus on Jamie and Claire every four to five years. Gabaldon has been posting Daily Lines from Bees since 2014.
The book series will have at least another volume after Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone is published. Gabaladon has indicated several times that that there is more to Jamie and Claire’s story that can’t be wrapped up in Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone.
That being said, Outlander book 9 may be the last in the Outlander series.
Unless Gabaldon changes her mind, the books are only going to span Jamie and Claire’s lifetimes. When we last left them in Outlander book 8, Written in My Own Heart’s Blood, they are in their late 50s and early 60s at a time where life expectancy in their era was considerably younger. Claire may be a doctor, but she’s not a miracle worker in a time without the luxuries of modern medicine.
If the Starz series keeps up with its current pace of production, they will catch up with the currently published material in 2022. It will be cutting it close for the series not to incur a Game of Thrones situation where the show jumps ahead of the novels.