Outlander’s Final Season Will Bow in Early 2026: Everything We Know So Far

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We now know (roughly) when the final #Droughtlander will come to an end.

The upcoming eighth season of Starz’s time-travel drama Outlander also will be the series’ swan song, a 10-episode run that will bring the ballad of Jamie and Claire to its resting place. Which storylines from Diana Gabaldon’s books will make the cut? Which characters (aside from Himself and Herself) will be back? And when the heck will we be able to watch it?!

When is Outlander returning for Season 8?

Outlander‘s final season will premiere in early 2026, Starz announced at the show’s San Diego Comic-Con panel in July. Some context: The bulk of Season 8 filming wrapped in September 2024, though several cast members filmed reshoots shortly after. And in March 2025, series star Sam Heughan announced via Instagram that he’d just finished “the last ADR” (aka re-recording dialogue that wasn’t captured clearly during filming) on the series finale.

Is Season 8 Outlander‘s final season?

Yes, Season 8 will be the time-travel drama’s final run of episodes. Starz announced the series’ ending in January 2023. “It’s been an incredible journey,” Heughan said in a video released at the time of the announcement. “Thank you so much for being with us since Day 1,” series star Caitríona Balfe added.

What will Outlander Season 8 be about?

Since its start, Outlander has covered roughly one book in Diana Gabaldon’s novel series per season. So it reasons that Season 8 would follow the events of Book 8, Written in My Own Heart’s Blood. However, given that Gabladon has published Book 9 (Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone) and is working on Book 10, there’s a good chance Season 8 will include storylines from all of the above.

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Co-showrunner Matthew B. Roberts says the guidelines for Season 8 were “Nothing that doesn’t affect Jamie and Claire gets in. It’s gotta affect Jamie and Claire. All the main characters do — they’re a part of it — but that’s the drive. There’s so many aspects. I mean, they’re all big books. There’s things where you kind of go over here, and you go over here —that’s what makes the books so readable and fun. But when you have 10 episodes, you have to stay literally on track.”

One plot that is not in the novels but will be addressed at the top of the final season: The Season 7 finale cliffhanger of whether Claire and Jamie’s daughter, Faith, somehow survived what we thought was her stillbirth in Season 2. Roberts promises that fans will have that point cleared up “visually” in the upcoming season.

Also: A trailer Starz released in July hints that Jamie might meet his ultimate fate (!) in the show’s last season (if Frank’s history book is to be believed).

On the MacKenzie side of things, might Brianna and Roger have another baby in Season 8, like they do in Go Tell the Bees? “As you know, we sometimes stick to the books, and we sometimes don’t,” Skelton told TVLine coyly in February. “But I think it would be great if they had another child. And wearing the fake pregnancy bumps is super fun, so sign me up.”

Which actors are returning for Outlander Season 8?

Though Starz has not yet released an official cast list, we have it on good authority that Heughan, Balfe, Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin, John Bell, Charles Vandervaart and David Berry will be back for the final season.

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Someone who won’t return for the series’ swan song is Kristen Atherton, who played Jamie’s sister, Jenny, in Season 7. Though Jenny eventually joins her brother and his family in America in the novels, Roberts said time constraints meant making some tough cuts for Season 8. “With 10 episodes,” he explained, “there’s a lot less you can do.”

Along those lines, Tobias Menzies —who played Claire’s husband, Frank, and his villainous forebear Jonathan “Black Jack” Randall —also will not return, TVLine reported exclusively in March 2024. “They’re going to bring it home magnificently, I’m sure,” Menzies added.

Where can I watch Outlander Season 8?

You’ll be able to watch Outlander Season 8 on Starz and the Starz app.

Is there a trailer for Outlander Season 8?

Yes! At San Diego Comic-Con 2025, Starz released a video containing some footage from the upcoming season. Press PLAY on the video above to watch it, and later, entertain yourself with this behind-the-scenes video from our Season 7 TVLine x SheKnows cover shoot with Balfe, Heughan, Bell, Rankin and Skelton.

Where can I watch past seasons of Outlander?

You can find past seasons of Outlander on the Starz app and on-demand.

Will Outlander have a spinoff?

Yes! The prequel Outlander: Blood of My Blood will premiere on Starz later this summer. For all the details on that series, which follows Jamie’s and Claire’s parents, make sure to check out our up-to-the-minute Everything We Know post.

How many episodes will Outlander’s final season have?

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Outlander Season 8 will consist of 10 episodes.

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