Outlander season 3 finale to launch preview for new show Counterpart; what this means

What can we read into the new Outlander season 3 finale being paired with a preview for the new show Counterpart? More than you’d think.

Let’s start things off by explaining the news of the day. Per a report from Deadline, Starz is going to air a special preview for their upcoming J.K. Simmons-led drama series Counterpart, (which technically premieres next year) after the Outlander finale on Sunday, December 10. There is no specific time for the preview given at the time of this writing, so don’t just assume that it’s going to air at 9:00 p.m. Eastern. Much of that depends on how long the Outlander finale runs for, and Starz has yet to verify this information.

You can view the official Counterpart trailer over here and what you should know about this show is that it features parallel universes and has a sci-fi twists that you don’t see with a lot of hour-long dramas on the network.

The reason why CarterMatt feels that this news matters for both Outlander fans and potential Counterpart viewers is two-fold:

1. It puts Outlander on more of a pedestal – If Starz has so much faith in you as a quality series that they are using you as a launching pad to preview other shows, that proves that you’re not going anywhere in the near future. Consider this full validation that the network is certain to renew the show for a fifth season. Outlander is not only a series generating big ratings for them, but the network is using it to launch some other products at the same time.

2. Counterpart needs the platform – You want to find a way to convince people to watch a new show, and for Starz it goes beyond that — they need to find a way to keep some of their subscribers. While the network doesn’t release all of their subscriber metrics publicly, you have to assume that there are many out there who buy the subscription just for the sake of seeing the Caitriona Balfe – Sam Heughan series. Starz wants to keep some of those viewers all  year-round. While there may not be too much that Outlander and Counterpart have in common in terms of their premise, both do revolve heavily on a central construct. For Outlander, it’s time-travel; here, it’s experiencing a version of yourself from a parallel universe.

For those looking for more news on the Outlander season 3 finale, we’ll have more news coming in the days ahead, so stay tuned!

What do you think about this move for Counterpart, and what do you think it says about Starz’s own faith in Outlander? Share in the comments below!

Meanwhile, check out the link here in the event you want to see the latest Outlander photo preview for Sunday night’s episode “The Bakra,” the last before the finale.

For more news regarding Outlander plus some other shows we cover, be sure to like CarterMatt on Facebook right now. (Photo: Starz.)