Should Starz renew Outlander through season 7, and soon?

As reporters within the world of TV, we often specialize within the field of looking ahead. With that in mind, this is what this particular CarterMatt Outlander article is about — pondering as to whether or not the Starz period drama could be renewed through a season 7, and sooner than you would expect.

Is the idea of getting a three-season renewal completely beyond the realm of possibility? It’s not something that should be expected, given that such renewals are a rarity in the TV industry. We have seen The Big Bang Theory receive it here in America, but typically in order to get a renewal for this many seasons your show has to be defined in some way as a cultural institution. A network has to feel so confident in your success that you will stand the test of time years down the road even when television viewing habits likely change. The TV world in 2015 was very different than the TV world in 2018. With that, we presume that the same could be said for 2021.

Here’s what we know about why a renewal through season 7 would make some sense. For starters, it could bring Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe to the end of their deals, provided the reports of them signing on for seven years are accurate. Many actors often sign for seven years upon joining a show and it is after season 7 that negotiations start to become a little more challenging. Keeping shows together for a long period of time is rather difficult; the one asset that Outlander likely has with that more than some others is that it is reaching towards a specific endgame. There are ten books in this series planned by author Diana Gabaldon, and those could be divided up really however the Outlander producers choose. Maybe it goes for ten seasons, or maybe the material is condensed down into nine or fewer.

Beyond just convenience for actor negotiations, renewing up through season 7 offers tremendous flexibility for the writers to tell their story and figure out how they want to divide things up. For example, if things are being remixed somewhat from the source material this gives them an opportunity to place certain storylines within certain seasons long in advance. It makes things easier to plan in terms of story, and the same thing goes for everyone from the location scouts and the production designers. Life is often so much easier on the production side when you can plan ahead making it an even better end product for the viewers.

Related – Outlander and the calm before the storm.

For now, our sentiment is that when Outlander is renewed later this year (hopefully soon), it will be for a season 5 and season 6. The two-season renewal is one of the reasons why it’s taking so long. Adding another season atop that would be the icing atop the cake, though to be honest there’s going to be so much icing on the two-season renewal that we’re likely going to be hopped up on sugar for weeks anyway. Three seasons likely won’t happen, but it’s still a cause worth believing in.

If you missed it…

Check out our video below about Tobias Menzies joining The Crown and also how this could be a boost to Outlander in the future. If you enjoy this video, be sure to subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube!

Do you think a three-season Outlander renewal could happen?

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