Catriona Balfe emotional ahead of Outlander finale as she issues 8-word statement

Catriona Balfe, who has played the pb relation of Claire Fraser successful Outlander for a decade, says the ending is "bittersweet" arsenic she is "sad but besides excited for the future."

It’s been a decennary since humanities phantasy bid Outlander first deed our screens, telling the communicative of Second World War caregiver Claire who travelled backmost successful clip to 18th-century Scotland and met hunky Highlander Jamie. Over six seasons, the mates person endured galore trials, from being arrested for execution to a adjacent drowning astatine sea. And it’s been stressful for fans, too, who’ve endured “Droughtlander” – immense gaps betwixt seasons and adjacent 2 parts of the aforesaid one. The episodes starting this week are the second fractional of play seven – the archetypal shown mode backmost successful June 2023. Then, there’s lone 1 much play earlier Outlander ends for good.

Stars Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan person conscionable finished filming the last-ever episodes. “It’s been a 4th of our lives, 101 episodes,” says Caitriona, 45, who plays Claire. “It felt affectional wrapping it up. There’s a batch of pridefulness and gratitude. That’s the bittersweet happening – being bittersweet but besides excited for the future.” Sam, 44, who plays Jamie, agrees. “It’s bittersweet. Season 7 portion 2 is astir to travel out, which is exciting. It’s really 1 of my favourite parts of a season. Then we person play eight. So contempt it being implicit for us, it’s not implicit for fans. There’s plentifulness to look guardant to.”

The bid is based connected a postulation of novels by Diana Gabaldon, and there’s inactive plentifulness of communicative to get through. The archetypal fractional of bid 7 ended with large cliffhangers that request resolving, starting with Jamie and Claire sailing from their caller lives successful America backmost to their location successful Scotland arsenic the Revolutionary War breaks out.

Meanwhile, their girl Brianna, her hubby Roger and their 2 children, who tin each clip question similar Claire, are surviving successful Scotland, but successful the 1980s. But, their lad Jemmy has been kidnapped and taken backmost to the 18th century, and it’s up to Roger to rescue him successful the past portion Brianna stays down to support their girl safe.

Sam knows fans are excited that Jamie and Claire are backmost successful Scotland, and visiting the iconic household location of Lallybroch. “This play is going to beryllium a instrumentality favourite,” helium says. “There’s tons of shocking moments and goodbyes.”

“Events volition abstracted our heroes and, arsenic we know, erstwhile determination is separation, things don’t spell well,” teases Caitriona. “One of the themes is location – what [is] your thought of home, and wherever is that, anyway?”

Over the seasons, and with much crippled twists to come, Sam and Caitriona hint that Jamie and Claire are antithetic from the young lovers they were. “Jamie feels fragile,” says Sam. “He reacts successful ways that are surprising. And helium stands to suffer much this season.”

“Things hap that accent trial our characters and propulsion them to bash things we aren’t expecting,” adds Caitriona. “This play is nary different.”