‘Outlander’: Why Sam Heughan Says Season 6 Has Been Tough to Film
Outlander has finally, truly, at long last begun filming the much-anticipated sixth season. The show was set to hit the ground running after the premiere of season 5 last February but became one of the first major shows forced to delay production because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking with O Magazine during the press rounds for his new travel show on Starz, Men in Kilts, star Sam Heughan weighed in on how the series has adapted to shooting under a pandemic. He also dished about one of the most difficult aspects of the shoot for season 6 so far, and it’s not what you might expect.
Where is ‘Outlander’ season 6 being filmed?
Heughan and Graham McTavish produced Men in Kilts prior to pandemic lockdowns, allowing it to fill the Outlander-shaped void in the Starz February release schedule and fans’ hearts.
Speaking with O Magazine, Heughan was eventually asked about how production on Season 6 is going. After the expected assurances that crew safety is being treated with the utmost concern, the actor talked about one thing that has made the season tough to film, and it has nothing to do with COVID-19.
“Obviously, with all the COVID protocols, we’re making sure everyone is kept safe,” Heughan began. “It’s kinda tough with the weather in Scotland right now, as it’s winter!”
Makes sense that in the midst of a major pandemic, having to deal with the bitter cold would feel like adding insult to injury. Not only does Outlander have to completely reimagine how it shoots epic-scale action scenes and intimate romance, but it also has to do so while trying to keep everyone warm.
The series could return in early 2022
Outlander Season 6 commenced filming a few weeks ago now, with the crew behind the scenes focused on recalibrating their methods to ensure safety. What this means for the show’s famously intimate love scenes and huge battles remains to be seen.
The forthcoming season will adapt author Diana Gabaldon‘s sixth novel in the series, A Breath of Snow and Ashes. With a title like that, it seems like snowy weather will be entirely appropriate, though it isn’t clear if filming was delayed further to wait for the arrival of winter in Scotland.
In that book, the Fraser family must contend with the outbreak of the American Revolution, a conflict that was hinted at as brewing political unrest last season. Based on the trajectory of the seventh and eighth books, it appears that the war will continue to dominate the show’s narrative if further seasons are ordered.
Alongside Heughan as Jamie Fraser, Season 6 will also see the returns of Caitriona Balfe as Claire Fraser, Sophie Skelton as Brianna Randall, and Richard Rankin as Roger Wakefield.
