Outlander season 5: The first (possible) casting notice surfaces

We know that there’s an eagerness to learn about some of the first Outlander casting news for season 5. Rest assured, we’re just as interested! Think of the cast as a puzzle right now that is missing a few pieces; there are spots that need to be filled in to make the image complete. We don’t think there’s as many spots missing as there were entering season 4, largely because the idea there was moving the Frasers to a totally different landscape (which would of course include a whole new cast of characters). Now, the landscape is largely the same but there will be some additional players thrown into the mix.

For the Fraser family in particular, one of the key players that is coming on the show is baby Jeremiah a.k.a. Jemmy, who seems to also be the subject of the first casting notice of the season! According to a Scottish casting agency’s Facebook page, there are currently twins being sought out for a Highland-set international television show (sound familiar? How many other options are there?) in two different age groups. First, you have babies around three months old — they don’t have to be of any particular gender. (Odds are, they are so young that they will just be held for the majority of their scenes.)

Meanwhile, the second set is meant to be around a year old, and the agency is looking for two boys. What this means is that (like many other past seasons of the series) Outlander is looking to jump time forward at some point during the upcoming episodes. That’s no real shock, given the way that time passes in some past seasons. You’ll see the early days of Brianna and Roger’s son, but also him learning to take his first steps and the like. Filming for these infants will take place in April in and around Cumbernauld — otherwise known as the show’s production home base.

So why cast two babies to play one part? It’s all about options, mostly. It’s a common practice to cast twins for a single role — hence why Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen became famous in the first place on Full House. Several other TV shows have done this over the years, as well, largely as an insurance policy. You don’t know whether or not a baby is going to co-operate on a particular day, so you can always swap them out– it keeps the job from being a strain on either the young performers or on the cast and crew. Of course, trying to find two twins capable of playing the part is also not the easiest thing in the world — you also need to find two who bear at least some resemblance to Sophie Skelton; they probably shouldn’t look too much like either Ed Speleers or Richard Rankin, mostly to preserve that ambiguity as to who the father truly is.

If you want to see a recent our Outlander video discussion… We have our latest video for you below all about what’s coming up next for Roger! On the other side of watching this remember to subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube — you don’t want to miss any other video discussion (we have new Outlander videos every Sunday!). We also have a show playlist if you want to check out some videos that you may have missed.

We’ll likely see bits and pieces of Jemmy throughout season 5; there’s not a pressing need to include the baby in every single scene. For starters, that’d be a production nightmare. Beyond that, what sort of substantial role are they going to have in the story? They are someone who Roger and Bree love and care for, but they won’t be the apex (most likely) of any conflict. Think of them as a puzzle piece that fills in an important part of the picture.

Outlander season 5 does not have an official premiere date on Starz; judging from where we are in pre-production, let’s just hope you are the patient type.

When will Outlander season 5 start filming?

Soon. How soon? We go through that over at the link here; all signs suggest that cameras will be rolling (and fans will be rejoicing) before too long.

How much do you think we need to see Jemmy throughout Outlander season 5? Be sure to share in the comments! (Photo: Starz.)