A brief TV series update



As many of you know, the first season of the OUTLANDER TV series will consist of 16 episodes. Many of us had assumed that would mean 16 consecutive weeks (starting August 9th on STARZ in the US, August 24th on Showcase in Canada), but it turns out that may not actually be the case.

Diana Gabaldon was asked about this yesterday on Compuserve, and here's what she said:
They'd talked about showing the first eight episodes and then having "a brief hiatus" before showing the second eight, but that's the sum total of the information I have.
I have no further details, but I'll post here as more information becomes available.

Also, check out the latest STARZ newsletter, all about Sam Heughan and his transformation into James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser!(Thanks to OUTLANDER TV News for posting it.)

For more about the OUTLANDER TV series, see my FAQ page here.

10 comments

Anonymous said...

What the what? How brief the hiatus? We wait yet again... :( sniff sniff

Unknown said...

I quite honestly HATE these "mid-season breaks." A friend speculated recently that they started when there was that writer's strike a few years back, and networks just continued the practice.

Adeer1 said...

Who decides this? Starz? Sony? Maybe we can let them know we hate this idea before it is decided???

Robin G said...

With the holidays and lots of parties, etc, from late Nov-early Jan, a LOT of TV shows choose to take hiatus and/or air repeats rather than have low viewership during that time. Just one possible scenario. And probably Starz will make the decision (vs Sony). It could also be that they are running behind on their production schedule, and need some extra time to wrap up the final episodes. Lots of reasons . . . those are just 2 . . . .

Candy McAuliffe said...

We are so lucky to have 16 episodes. Most Cable series only have 8 or 10. A hiatus during the Holiday Season may not be too bad and our wait through next summer for Season 2 will be shorter!

Terri Cauto said...

OMG Starz tweets and letters will be blowing up their twitter site and mailboxes. No "brief" hiatus!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Don't they remember that people have DVRs and can record and watch at their leisue?...On the other hand if they need more time to finish up and do it right, rest and enjoy the holidays with their loved ones, we can all understand that.

Anonymous said...

Well, over on another site I speculated that it would run straight through with the last episode airing on December 6, with one week breaks for Labor Day and Thanksgiving.

If the hiatus happens, I hope it really is "brief", as in the first eight starting in August and the second eight in January. I definitely do not want to wait until August 2015 for the second eight. No AMC scheduling, please!

Anonymous said...

Although I'd love to view the entire first book in the first season I kind of thought 16 episodes for a single season was a bit much. The only Starz Original Series with a season longer than 8 episodes so far is The White Queen - it ran for 10 - only because it was a single season series. The truth is that Starz can do whatever it wants with regard to the number of episodes it runs. It doesn't surprise me that they are leaking little bits of information alluding to that so that fans will be prepared if that decision is ultimately made.

Anonymous said...

Not sure but are you the person who called the premiere date as well? If so, your reasoning there was spot on, as it is here. Hope they follow it!

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