'Outlander' Executive Producer on Creating New Mythology with 'Blood of My Blood'

In early 2026, Starz’s series adaptation of author Diana Gabaldon’s beloved Outlander novels will wrap up with an eighth season and 101 episodes that chart the time-traveling love affair of Highlander Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and former World War II nurse, Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser (Caitríona Balfe). But the world that possesses standing stones which allow a select few to traverse time will go on, in the past. 

Confusing? Maybe a little but that’s always been a formula feature in Gabaldon’s evolving mythology that has slowly unfurled across tomes, and now series, the mechanics of how time travel works for the Frasers, their MacKenzie kin and select others. All you really need to know is that Starz wasn’t ready to leave their Scottish hit in the past so they ordered an original prequel series, Outlander: Blood of My Blood, conceived and developed by current Outlander showrunner/writer Matthew B. Roberts. 

For those unaware, the Outlander television series was initially developed by Ron D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica) and his producing partner Maril Davis with the blessings of Gabaldon, and debuted on Starz in 2014. Over its run, the series primarily followed the major plot points and real history in Gabaldon’s hefty novels, with some welcome surprises here and there along the way. The series will end on its own creative note, as Gabaldon is still writing the 10th and final Outlander book (giving us deja vu to George R.R. Martin). 

Outlander: Blood of My Blood is also forging its own creative path as it takes place a generation before the main series, broadly expanding upon Gabaldon’s brief book mentions of how Jamie’s parents, the fiery Ellen MacKenzie (Harriet Slater) and humble Brian Fraser (Jamie Roy), came to be together. Where the prequel really veers off in a new direction is in the telling of Claire’s parents’ love affair. In the books, Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine) and Julia Moriston (Hermione Corfield) died in a car accident, leaving Claire to be raised by her uncle. In the series, the Beauchamps were actually cast back in time to 18th-century Scotland, where they interacted with the Frasers and MacKenzies of the day. 

It’s a doozy of a series hook that even floored Maril Davis when she first heard it from Robert’s mouth. Telly Visions got Davis to tell us that story, along with Gabaldon’s thoughts on the prequel and what it means to Davis that the Outlander universe will continue to live on for years to come. 

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

Telly Visions: As you were coming into the final seasons of production on Outlander, were you actively thinking of ways to keep the franchise going? Or, was Matt Robert’s prequel idea really the keeper of the franchise flame?

Maril Davis: I think it's a combo, actually. Obviously, the first couple seasons, you're just hoping you're getting picked up for multiple seasons. We did try the Lord John series, and that hasn't gone anywhere yet but I still have hope. Then Matt came to me with this idea about the prequel. What was amazing about it was that he was like, "I have an idea…it's not just about Jamie's parents. What if Claire's parents didn't die in that car accident?" And I was like, "Head explode emoji.” I said, "Oh, my God, of course, what if they were time travelers?" I love it because it really expands the story. It's not just one [love] story because in the books, Diana laid out some breadcrumbs for Brian and Ellen's story. But we really don't know exactly how it connected and what happened in between the breadcrumbs that she dropped. So, to add in a whole new couple, it just opens up our stories in such an amazing way. This series has kind of exceeded all expectations.

TV: Over the last decade, you’ve engendered an incredible relationship with Diana. At this point in your creative relationship, did you imagine pitching the prequel series would be an easy one, or a challenge to sell?

Davis: No, it was pretty easy. Matt and I got on the phone with her, and Matt pitched out Claire’s parents. I think we once talked to Diana about keeping “Black Jack” Randall [Tobias Menzies] alive, and she was like, "Absolutely not," and we didn't. 

We love Diana, and we want her to be happy. She knows the books are the books and the show is the show and she said, "You know, I've never had any interest in doing Claire's parents' story. To me, they died in that car crash.” But she was like, "I love that idea. It's not something I have an interest in doing but that's amazing. Go for it." She's always been incredibly supportive. I mean, that relationship with Diana is so important to us. She's not gonna always be happy, and we know that. But she's always said the books are the books; they're hers. And she understands we have to do things differently in the show. She actually ended up writing Episode 9, "Braemar,” this season. And she and Matt wrote Episode 10, "Something Borrowed.” I think it was important for Matt to bring her in and have her as a part of this new show, as well.

TV: As she dug into those episodes, did Diana add anything to this show’s lore, like offering, “Could you use this?”

Davis: I think she gave some research materials early on to Matt. Actually, I think what she's going to do in her prequel [books] is very different from what we're doing which is actually great. I wish she had added a little more. I had said, "Diana, go for it!" because what we do is, the writers break out [episode] beats on the white board, then we give it to Diana. We want her to be able to take those beats and make it her own, and she always does. But I don't think she added anything to the lore, specifically. But once again, it's always such a pleasure having her write an episode and be involved in that way. And once again, having her stamp of approval is important. 

TV: In making Outlander, you and your production team essentially helped establish a production hub in Glasgow, Scotland. And now there are a lot of familiar crew names in the Blood of My Blood credits. Did their depth of experience help you start more ambitiously with this series?

Davis: It did. But honestly, I'm so used to our crew in Scotland pulling off amazing things. We throw things at them like, "Hey, we're gonna do a WWI scene...get to work!" They always surprise us with going above and beyond what we even expect. And those WWI scenes in Episode 2 look like we had $20 million dollars. We have such artists on our staff. Once again, we've been so lucky. One of the things that made it so easy to transition for me from Outlander Season 8 to this new show was the fact that I knew our crew was still going to be there. If I didn't see all the familiar actor faces, at least I could see our crew, and that continuation is so important to us. As you said, we've created a hub there. We've created a home, a family, and that's continued. And it's also been so nice to get back to [shooting] Scotland for Scotland. Since Season 2 in Outlander, we've been set somewhere else [in the world], except for a few times. To come back to that and have Scotland be the number one on our call sheet again, and show the lady off, has been really special.

TV: You were a huge champion of Ron D. Moore pursuing the rights to Diana’s Outlander books. As someone who knows the books inside and out, is there something you were most excited to realize in this series?

Davis: It's hard because there's not a ton in the books about Brian and Ellen. We literally just know that they met at the Gathering and they eloped, and that's pretty much it. I've actually been amazed how that story has filled out. It's going to be a little different. 

The breadcrumbs in Diana's books, those could be a season. I do like the fact that we've talked about how stories through time evolve. It's kind of like a game of telephone, so the main facts are still there, but how long it took for these things to happen, and how they happened is something that's going to be fun to play with. Just seeing [their love affair] up on its feet and in a different way than Jamie and Claire, it's once again that thunder clap moment, seeing them at the stables and it’s a great launch into the series.

Outlander: Blood of My Blood will premiere on Friday, August 8, 2025, with two episodes, with one episode to follow each week through the end of September on Starz. Outlander Season 8 (at least part of it) is expected to debut in early 2026.