Is Ed Speleers leaving Outlander, and is Stephen Bonnet dead?
Let us begin here with the obvious spoiler: Bonnet is dead. He died at the very end of this weekend’s new episode “Mercy Shall Follow Me,” and his passing happened in a rather memorable way. He was shot by Brianna right before he was about to drown to death at his execution. It’s a memorable moment that is reflective of a part of these characters’ journey from the books.
So where does the story differ somewhat from the source material? Well, that has a great deal to do with the oh-so-simple fact that this death doesn’t happen until A Breath of Snow and Ashes, which is actually Book 6 within the Diana Gabaldon series. The show chose to speed things up a little bit in order to get us to the death of Bonnet a little bit faster. So why in the world do that? Our feeling is that the creative team wanted to figure out a way in which to consolidate the story leading into season 6, and offering closure to Bonnet’s story (even if it meant a few cuts) was a way in which to do that. The irony here is that there isn’t necessarily any definite closure to Bonnet’s arc within this episode, mostly because Brianna shooting him is still a way for everything to linger. We don’t know if it will, but that is an act that will be hard for her to forget.
While it’s unclear if Speleers will ever appear on the show again (there are still flashbacks/dream sequences possible), we know that he leaves the series with a powerful performance and one that will be remembered for many years to come. He proved himself over time to be a truly despicable villain, and completely transformed himself from who he was back in the Downton Abbey days.
Will you miss Ed Speleers on Outlander moving forward, even if you hate Bonnet?
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Photo: Starz