Starz is keeping its Outlander franchise alive for another season.
The newly independent cable and streaming outlet has ordered a second season of Outlander: Blood of My Blood, a prequel to its long-running drama. The renewal for the Sony Pictures TV-produced series comes about six weeks before Blood of My Blood’s Aug. 8 series premiere; production on season two began Monday.
Blood of My Blood, which Starz ordered in conjunction with the final season of Outlander in early 2023, is a prequel — in both of its fictional world’s timelines — that follows the parents of the main series’ lead characters, Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) and Claire Randall/Fraser (Caitríona Balfe). Ellen MacKenzie (Harriet Slater) and Brian Fraser (Jamie Roy) will become Jamie’s parents in 18th century Scotland, while in World War I-era Britain, Julia Moriston (Hermione Corfield) and Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine) are destined to be Claire’s mother and father.
“The passion and talent our cast and crew have poured into Outlander: Blood of my Blood has been extraordinary, and we’re thrilled to continue these epic love stories in season two,” showrunner and executive producer Matthew B. Roberts said in a statement. “Just as audiences fell in love with Jamie and Claire, we hope viewers will be enamored by these new couples when they meet them this summer.”
Said Starz programming chief Kathryn Busby, “The world of Outlander has captivated audiences with its sweeping storytelling and unforgettable characters. With Blood of my Blood, we’ve expanded the universe in a way that honors the original, while charting bold new territory. Fans — longtime and new — will be drawn to the powerful love stories at the heart of this next chapter, and we’re proud to continue building on the franchise’s legacy with Matt and our longtime-partners at Sony who have worked tirelessly to make Outlander the global phenomenon it has become.”
Blood of My Blood also stars Tony Curran, Rory Alexander, Séamus McLean Ross, Sam Retford and Conor MacNeill. Roberts executive produces with Ronald D. Moore, Maril Davis and Jim Kohlberg.
As for the eighth and final season of Outlander, which is based on Diana Gabaldon’s series of novels, Starz has yet to announce a premiere date.
