Why and how Outlander is ending with season 8 when the Diana Gabaldon books haven't finished yet

When the news that Outlander was to end with its eighth and final season was announced, there were plenty of fans who were left in a state of mourning over their favourite series.

It's never nice to bid farewell to one of your most beloved shows but nevertheless, Outlander's eighth season is set to be its last.

When asked why they thought ending Outlander with season 8 was a good idea at a set visit, Outlander showrunner Matthew B Roberts and executive producer Maril Davis actually admitted to Radio Times and other press in unison: “We don’t!”

Davis continued: "I mean, we would’ve gone on. I think there was – or I would say, I would’ve gone on, I don’t want to speak for you. I just think, you’d have to talk to Caitríona [Balfe] and Sam [Heughan], see how they felt but I do think that after 10/12 years of doing this, people probably want to move on and do something else for a change, spread their wings.

"But I mean, I would like to finish out Diana’s books. We don’t have book 10 out yet so I mean, there’s an opportunity to come back, depends on how we leave this season 8.”

Of course, throughout the tenure of the Outlander TV series, the team have always worked and consulted with original novel author Diana Gabaldon. But due to the fact that Gabaldon's 10th Outlander book is still not out, how does the team behind the show ensure that they're somehow honouring it?

Roberts said: “We talked to her quite a bit about it. But what she’s gonna do, what we’re gonna do are gonna be – just like the show and the books – they’re two separate things. They have the same DNA, obviously but she’s gonna do what she’s gonna do and we’re gonna do what we’re gonna do. But she knows about it.”

Davis continued: “We’re just trying to be respectful because obviously, it’s weird to be doing the last season of the TV show where she still has a book left. So, it’s kind of hard because we don’t know where she’s taking the characters. So, we have to figure out a way to conclude it in a way that’s satisfying to everyone but also, doesn’t step on her toes.”

Roberts added: “And we don’t want to – if we end and the book’s not out, the damage is … I would think it’d damage the books so we don’t want to do that.”

Davis then joked: “Maybe she’ll steal something from us!”

But could there be a future opportunity to line up the ending of the show and the ending of the book at a later point?

Davis revealed: “I would – I mean, never say never. Who knows, five years from now, three years from now, what we’re all doing. The door would be open for me, I think, if the timing was right, people wanted to, there was interest. So, who knows.”

Seeing as the books haven't finished yet, there will be plenty of fans who will be waiting to see how both the TV series and novels conclude. With one complete and the other still waiting to be released (the book doesn't yet have a publication date), how does one craft an ending when there isn't actually one?

When posed that question on a set visit for the series, Roberts said: “Well, there is one. The story for the TV series doesn’t [continue]. Again, the books and the TV series are – it’s like a parent and a child. The parent’s life is the parent’s life and they contribute a lot to the children but the children’s life has its own span and story to tell.

"So, that’s us – we’re the TV show. So, we do have an ending and we’re going to end unfortunately for, I know, the fans and for Maril.”

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Davis then continued: “I think it’s really stressful in terms of the – we’ve talked about this before but when you look at your favourite shows like Seinfield, The Sopranos. There’s a lot of pressure. Some people stick the landing and some people don’t. That’s also very polarising. The Sopranos, I know some people love it and some people were like ‘Oh this sucks’. Or in Game of Thrones.

"You don’t want your whole eight years or eight seasons to come down to that one episode but it is kind of the one episode that people remember and that’s the last thing you have."

She added: "So I think it’s really … I think it’s a little stressful because you want to please everyone but you can never include everyone. We’re just trying to figure out a very satisfying ending in a time when nobody’s going to be satisfied because they all want it to continue. I think that’s difficult.”

Outlander season 8 will start airing on MGM+ in the UK from Saturday 7 March 2026, and on Starz in the US from Friday 6th March. You can buy Diana Gabaldon's books on Amazon.

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