Outlander star Caitriona Balfe is the heart and soul (well, one of them) of the beloved STARZ series, and has some reassuring news for fans. While speaking with Digital Spy, she touched on the comparisons between Outlander and Game of Thrones, and assured fans that Outlander was in no danger of running out of source material to adapt, as happening with the HBO show towards the the end of its run.
Around seasons 5 and 6 of Game of Thrones, the series caught up with the plot of author George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books, and eventually surpassed them. A lot of day-one fans were annoyed over this because it seemed like the series lost some of its sure footing when there was no longer source material to draw from. Balfe claims this won’t be the issue with Outlander:
"Well, it is very different because Game of Thrones, I believe, past the books quite early on. We’ve no chance to do that. Diana is about to release her ninth book. We’re only finishing season 5 so I don’t think we’re going to surpass Diana."
Season 5, for the record, is adapting the fifth book in the series, The Fiery Cross. So Balfe is right that Starz has a while to go before catching up to Gabaldon. Meanwhile, Martin — rather famously — hasn’t put out a new book since 2011, the year Game of Thrones first went on the air. We’re still waiting on The Winds of Winter. Fans have all kinds of ideas about what’s taking so long, but that’s a story for another day.
Incidentally, you can already pre-order the ninth book in the Outlander series, Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone.
Outlander is set to premiere its fifth season this Sunday, and already snagged a season 6 renewal last year. I think it’s safe to say, the series and the books are unlikely to disappoint any time soon.
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.
Watch Game of Thrones for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels