Like other TV series, the cast and crew of Outlander are also facing uncertainty because of the coronavirus pandemic. Lead stars Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe have confirmed that the production of Outlander Season 6 has been delayed because of the virus. This begs the question, will this be the longest Droughtlander ever?
As early as May 2018, Starz confirmed two additional seasons for the TV adaptation of Diana Galadon's book series, Outlander. Season 5 is set to end this weekend while production for the sixth installment has yet to start.
The Outlander writers' room has been very busy since September 2019. Writer and executive producer Matthew B. Roberts have posted several tweets around that time about the progress of the script for Season 6.
In February 2020, Roberts revealed he had been traveling between the writers' room in Los Angeles and preparing for the production in the U.K. Then last month, he confirmed that their writers are working "at a distance" on Season 6 since the lockdown has been implemented.
Heughan (Jamie Fraser) recently revealed that the production for Outlander Season 6 was originally scheduled to commence on May 4. However, it has been delayed and they were told to wait for further notice on when they could start filming.
"We were supposed to start this week. We have scheduled for Fall. Will just have to see...," Heughan commented on a fan question along with a cross-finger emoji at the end.
Balfe stated the same in her essay for Refinery29. The Irish actress appeared to be in Glasglow since last month in preparation for their filming.
With the delay in Season 6 production, its release date could be pushed back as well. At this moment, the best-case scenario is should Outlander start filming in fall, the earliest that it can premiere is in fall 2021.
It could be noted that Outlander 5 started filming in April 2019. The fifth season of the Starz series was filmed in several locations across Scotland.
Season 5 wrapped production in November 2019 and premiered in February 2020. This means the filming took seven months and post-production for about three more months.
It is also worthy to note that when Outlander Season 4 had a fall premiere in 2018, its production started in October 2017 that ended in April 2018. The season was also shot at various locations across Scotland.
Meanwhile, Outlander Season 6 will be based on Gabaldon's book, A Breath of Snow and Ashes. It will consist of 12 episodes.
