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Outlander’s Time Travel Tweaks: On-Set Adjustments Revealed
Behind the scenes of the acclaimed drama Outlander, creative adaptations were necessary due to plot intricacies related to time travel. The popular Starz series, celebrated for its blend of historical fiction and fantasy, operates with established rules governing its central time travel mechanism, based on the novels by Diana Gabaldon.
The Rules of Time Travel in Outlander
Within the Outlander narrative, the ability to traverse through time is depicted as an inherited trait, exclusive to certain bloodlines. Furthermore, specific calendar dates, such as Samhain and the equinoxes, are identified as crucial junctures facilitating these extraordinary voyages across different time periods.
Objects like gemstones are also presented as essential catalysts for temporal shifts. The narrative also reveals a darker method involving blood sacrifice, exemplified by the character Gillian Edgars/Geillis Duncan, portrayed by Lotte Verbeek. As reported, she resorts to murdering her spouse in Inverness to power her time-travel attempt.
Improvisation on Set: Claire’s Ring
Navigating the complexities of time travel also requires travellers to concentrate on strong emotional connections linked to their intended destination time. In one notable instance during the show’s second season, production adjustments were required post-production to refine a scene focusing on Claire Fraser’s (Caitríona Balfe) rings.
Executive producer Ronald D. Moore explained on the Outlander podcast: “At the very beginning – way back at Craigh na Dun, her discovering that she lost the ring and trying to find the ring, and then realising the stone of the ring was gone – that was something we added much later in the process, well after the show was done for various story reasons of time travel that we needed to establish – that you will discover later.”
Gemstones and Portal Traversal
Moore’s remarks suggest the critical importance of gemstones for safe passage through portals, a detail Claire Fraser only fully grasped later, after examining Geillis Duncan’s records. The show’s creators seemingly realised retroactively that Claire needed to lose the gemstone from the ring given to her by Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan), itself a family heirloom.
Season 7 and Time Travel Developments
The seventh season of Outlander extensively features time travel. Roger MacKenzie (Richard Rankin) journeys to 1739 in pursuit of his son, suspecting abduction by Rob Cameron (Chris Fulton).
Roger MacKenzie’s Journey and Family History
During his time in the past, Roger encounters his father, Jerry MacKenzie (Nicholas Ralph), who had previously been transported to that era following a plane crash. Roger attempts to assist his father in returning to his own time, hoping to retroactively ensure his parents’ survival and prevent his own orphanhood.
However, consistent with the established narrative that Outlander characters cannot alter past occurrences, Roger is unable to change his father’s fate.
Unresolved Mysteries in the Final Season
The concluding season of Outlander is anticipated to further explore the intricacies of time travel within this fictional world. Notably, Master Raymond (Dominique Pinon) previously transported Claire Fraser’s stillborn child to another point in time, saving her life—an event ripe for further exploration.
Moreover, enduring questions regarding Jamie Fraser and the enigma of his spectral presence in 1940s Inverness are expected to be addressed as the series reaches its finale.
Outlander Season 7 is now available for Digital purchase and streaming on MGM+ via Prime Video.