Filming for Season 2 of the British-American historical drama TV series “Outlander’ on Starz is now ongoing and typical with a show currently in production, casting rumors abound.
There have been rumors that Brianna or Bree, the daughter of Jamie Frazer, played by Sam Heughan, and Claire, played by Caitriona Balfe, will be making an appearance in the upcoming season, a plotline which did not make it to the second book of Diana Gabaldon’s novel titled “Dragonfly in Amber.”
In the book series, Brianna was featured in the fourth book and if the TV series is to follow the plotline of the published novel, the character should appear on Season 4. Apparently, the TV series will have its own plots and twists and it is likely that it will be in the main storyline where it will reconnect with the novel.
In fact, there was even a casting report that a plot from Gabaldon’s fourth book was mentioned in the casting call for Brianna’s role. According to the casting call, Brianna will secretly follow her mother Claire back in time to find the father she never met and the family she never knew.
It seems that the TV series is planning to advance the appearance of Brianna on Season 2 and reports have it that the producers were considering British young actress Sophie Turner to take on the role.
A big casting inclusion
In fact, Sam Heughan got so excited about the prospect of Sophie Turner possibly joining the series that he actually tweeted about it.
Had the producers of “Outlander” was able to convince Turner, best known in the TV circles as Sansa Stark in the very popular HBO TV series “Game of Thrones,” it would have meant positive things for the show in terms of viewership, ratings, and popularity.
Turner has gained a lot of following because of her portrayal as Sansa Stark in the TV series based on the fantasy novel series of critically-acclaimed author George R.R. Martin titled “A Song of Ice and Fire.”
However, Turner debunked the speculation during a recent red carpet appearance when she said that she remains loyal to her one true love, referring to “Game of Thrones.” But she did confirm that an offer was made to her to play the role of Brianna in “Outlander,” details the International Business Times of Australia.
A casting consolation
If it’s any consolation to the producers of “Outlander,” they actually managed to snare a cast member of “Game of Thrones” to take on a role in Season 2 of their TV series.
British actor Clive Russell, who plays the role of Brynden of House of Tully in “Game of Thrones” has been confirmed to play the role of Simon Frazer, the grandfather of Jamie.
Simon Frazer is the 11th Lord Lovat and the father of Brian Fraser, the father of Jamie. At the behest of Charles Stuart, Jamie meets with his grandfather Simon to negotiate the sending of troops to support the Stuart rebellion, details Movie News Guide.
In addition to Russell, Oscar Kennedy has also been confirmed to join the cast for Season 2 of “Outlander” and will take on the role of the young Lord John Grey.
Kennedy has been part of many TV series in the past including “Hunted,” “The White Queen,” “The Body Farm,” and “The Politician’s Husband.” He has a new TV series titled “Elevator Gods” which have yet to premiere on the small screen.
The producers of “Outlander” have decided to introduce John Grey as a young boy and make it similar to how the character appeared in the second book of Gabaldon.
“Outlander” is actually a costume-heavy TV series because of the nature of its storyline. While there are a good number of shows or TV series that have a robust costume department, none of them can come close to the level of “Outlander.”
I am sure Sophie Turner would have been great but just think if we only used well know actors and actresses we might not have gotten Sam to play Jamie and that would have been a tragedy.