Sam Heughan in ‘Outlander’ (Sony Pictures Television/Starz)
In the days since “Outlander” concluded its Season 1 run on Starz, Sam Heughan has found his work the subject of much critical acclaim.
Heughan had challenging scenes all season long in the freshman series. The final two episodes of the drama, though, were full of emotionally gut-wrenching material, as viewers saw his character, Jamie Fraser, not just raped and tortured, but attacked psychologically by Black Jack Randall, who took sadistic pleasure in dismantling the Highlander’s spirit.
The actor’s performance – not just the breakdown of his character at Wentworth Prison, but the aftermath – was layered, heartbreaking and exemplary, and it is why since the episodes aired on the cable network at the end of May, Heughan’s name has been generating lead actor Emmy nomination buzz.
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Heughan was aware of the very serious material at the end of Diana Gabaldon’s “Outlander” book, and in early 2014, he told Access Hollywood he expected the Wentworth material to be demanding.
“It’s in the book. It’s very dark and you don’t expect that to be part of this book, and I think that’s what the book does and the series will do. … When you think you know what’s going to happen, then it just changes. And I think for an actor — I think [for] any actor — that’s a real challenge and it’s gonna be hard, but it’s gonna be really interesting to see what it does to the character of Jamie,” he said at the time.
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It wasn’t until September 2014 that the Wentworth material was filmed, and in the run up to shooting the dark and harrowing scenes opposite co-star Tobias Menzies (Black Jack Randall), Heughan’s preparation work included consulting with the show’s writing staff and a doctor.
“I talked about this and discussed it with the writers and I spoke to our doctor, who is actually an A&E [accident and emergency] doctor, so we discussed a lot about the physical side, and then, I had a good chat with her about the psychology of it,” he explained. “But we all came to the agreement that ultimately, it’s a very personal thing.”
After the finale aired, “Outlander” found itself on the receiving end of praise for the way the show dealt with – and spent time on – showing what came after Jamie’s assault and rescue. The scenes weren’t pretty, nor were they meant to be, as Heughan’s character battled depression and dealt with being haunted by Black Jack, who sickeningly interwove himself into the fabric of the thing Jamie held most dear – his deep love for his wife, Claire. And it also touched on a subject not often shown on television – the misplaced shame the character felt over being aroused during the assault, and as the character saw it, letting Black Jack break him.
“We didn’t shy away from it,” Heughan said of those scenes. “And it isn’t just about the physical act that Black Jack does, it is definitely about the psychology and Jamie… his body can repair, but his mind is still troubled by it. … And in those days there was no talking about it or no therapist… So, yeah, he has to deal with it in his own particular way. And for an actor, I’ve said it before, it’s a gift because it’s – you get to really discover that side of yourself and portray something quite dark and quite challenging.
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“I was just really pleased with the outcome — the way it had been edited. I think it had been sensitively done and I think the way it had been directed, and I don’t think it’s gratuitous,” Heughan continued. “I think it’s just a really important part of what happens to Jamie and so we learn about who he is.”
Another one of the big, emotionally complex moments for Heughan’s character that revealed new sides to Jamie occurred at the start of the second half of season (which aired in early April), after the Highlander rescued his new wife Claire (played by series star Caitriona Balfe) from Black Jack at Fort William.
Back among the Highlanders as they watered their horses, the newlyweds had a big fight that ended with a big admission. Jamie had gone to save his wife armed with an empty pistol and just his “bare hands.” It was a charged scene, and the one that most revealed his strong character’s vulnerability, that thing would later be exploited by Jack – Jamie’s love for Claire. “You’re tearin’ my guts out, Claire,” Jamie said, as he slumped against a rock. It was a big moment for Heughan in his freshman “Outlander” season.
“I absolutely relished it,” Heughan said of filming the palpable scene with Balfe. “The first half of the season, you don’t really get to see much of [Jamie]. He’s kind of on the periphery, so to be given a scene like that, which is like a sort of six, seven-page scene of dialogue and very sort of high stakes, high emotion, it’s a gift and it was great to be able to sort of throw it at Caitriona and she’d throw it right back at me and you kind of really relish those scenes.
“You don’t want it to be over the top or melodramatic, but it’s all about the situation that they’re in and it is high stakes. Actually, it’s pretty much taken straight from [Diana Gabaldon’s] book. … The dialogue is almost a copy. And similarly, some of the Wentworth stuff is taken from Diana’s books, and I think that’s credit to her, as well as our writers,” he said.
Asked for which scenes with his co-star, Balfe, were the most challenging, the aforementioned Claire rescue aftermath at the water’s edge in the Season 1, Part 2 premiere ranked high, as did the finale moments between Jamie and Claire after his character’s own rescue from Wentworth Prison.
Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser and Caitriona Balfe as Claire Fraser (Sony Pictures Television/Starz)
“I think the one by the river — the one that we really had to go for it. And it was quite early on in this process. And then, I guess also toward the end as well, not just because of what happened with Wentworth, but it’s just the fact that there’s very little defenses left and they’re really trying to fight to get to each other and trying to fight for each other. And you can’t sort of come on set that day and just sort of phone it in or sort of treat it like every other day. You’ve gotta come in willing to give it all up,” Heughan said. “And that certainly is kind of interesting coming into Season 2, to sort of try and get back to that, but there’s so many factors in the way. You know, there’s factors that they… that she’s pregnant, that he’s had this happen to him. They’re sort of both trying to sort of come to terms with everything that’s happened and be open with each other once again.”
“Outlander” Season 2 is currently in production.
— Jolie Lash
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Copyright © 2024 by NBC Universal, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
This material may not be republished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.