The End Of ‘Outlander’? Author Diana Gabaldon Confirms When The Series Will End

Outlander author Diana Gabaldon has finally revealed when Jamie and Claire’s journey will end. During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Gabaldon announced that the Outlander novels will end with the 10th book.

Does this mean the TV series will also wrap up in 10 seasons?

Gabaldon made the surprising announcement when a fan asked her about one of the book’s biggest mysteries to date. At the start of the series, Frank notices Jamie looking at Claire outside of an inn. The odd meeting has never been explained and prompted one fan to ask Gabaldon when she will solve the mystery.

“It’ll be the very last thing in the last book, which I think is probably book 10,” Gabaldon revealed.

Gabaldon is currently working on the ninth book in the series, titled Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone.

According to Entertainment Weekly, the title of the forthcoming book is a reference to Celtic folklore.

“Bees are very social insects, and they’re very interested in the comings and goings of the community,” Gabaldon shared. “You want to always keep your bees informed.”

Unfortunately, Gabaldon did not reveal whether or not the TV show would end in 10 seasons or if it would go beyond the books.

Even if Outlander wraps in Season 10, fans still have plenty to look forward to. After all, production for Season 3 just got underway. The new season of Outlander is based on Gabaldon’s third book, Voyager.

International Business Times reports that the season will pick up right after the events at the Battle of Culloden and will eventually show Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire’s (Caitriona Balfe) highly anticipated reunion.

But before the lovers meet up again, fans will watch Jamie and Claire struggle to live separate lives for 20 years.

“I mean, I’m probably not allowed to say much, but I think we all know that the books do span a great amount of time,” Heughan shared. “Season 3, in particular, year, I mean, there was an aging process. There was definitely a different look to the characters, but you’ll have to tune in to find out, I guess.”

Of course, this isn’t the first time that Heughan has worn prosthetic makeup. The actor has been wearing makeup in some form or another since back in Season 1. This includes scenes that showed Jamie’s back scars and whenever he got injured.

In addition to the aging process, Carter Matt reports that Heughan touched on the difficulty of shooting scenes without Balfe.

“Honestly, it’s like having a death in the family,” he admitted. “Well, I don’t know, I mean, it’s just like a different show. It’s hard to separate yourself from the character. Jamie’s present, living in his world, and Claire’s present living in her world, and they both believe the other is dead.”

Heughan might not be filming with Balfe at the moment, but the characters will get back together at some point in the season.

What does Heughan think about the epic reunion between Jamie and Claire this season on Outlander?

“It’s always hard when we’re apart, actually, because she’s a great person, great to come to work with, and a very good actress,” he shared. “But I think it all adds to the reunion—if there’s a reunion, or when there’s a reunion—well you know there’s one in the books. It should be very special.”

Apart from Jamie and Claire’s reunion, fans will also be introduced to a pivotal character in the books, Lord John Grey. In speaking about Lord John, Gabaldon revealed why she decided to have him fall in love with Jamie.

“I said, ‘okay, this is going to cause him a lot of conflict.’ So I was thinking, ‘what if there was a lot of conflict?'” she explained. “Not only does he hate him and want to kill him, but he’s also physically deeply attracted to him — which is also something he can’t act on.”

Gabaldon also discussed the differences between Claire in the books and Balfe’s portrayal on the show.

Fans are quick to point out how Claire is a lot funnier in the books, and Gabaldon admitted that it is hard to incorporate Claire’s humor on the show.

“Caitriona’s a great actress, but there’s only so much she can do with her face,” she stated. “You can’t film in somebody’s head… Mostly, it doesn’t bother people. For those it does, well, they can just go read the book again. No problem.”

Meanwhile, Balfe has another claim to fame that has nothing to do with Outlander. According to Cosmopolitan, the actress is a former model who once worked with Victoria Secret.

That’s right, long before she played the time-traveling nurse who fell in love with a Scotsman, Balfe walked the runway with the likes of Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum, Beyonce, Naomi Campbell, and Gisele.

Season 3 of Outlander is expected to premiere sometime in early 2017.

[Featured Image by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images]