‘Outlander’ Star Sam Heughan Says Season 7 ‘Starts Off With a Bang’ After Massive Cliffhanger

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

'Outlander' Star Sam Heughan Says Season 7 'Starts Off With a Bang' After Massive Cliffhanger

Starting strong. Outlander star Sam Heughan can't wait for fans to see the exciting season 7 premiere, the Scotland native exclusively told Us Weekly. "We pick up shortly after with the end of last season, which is a great cliffhanger," the actor, 42, said while chatting with Us on Wednesday, June 1, about his participation in The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride in support of Movember (the global men's health organization which raises awareness for prostate cancer, testicular cancer, men's mental health and suicide prevention). The sixth season of Outlander ended last month with Claire (Caitríona Balfe) being arrested for murder, and Jamie (Heughan) has to find her while the Revolutionary War is officially underway. "America really is in sort of turmoil. There's revolution, and Jamie and Claire are separated," the Men in Kilts star teased. "There's also the prophecy of Jamie and Claire's death, you know, that they're supposed to die in a fire. There's just so much going on." Luckily, there will be even more episodes than usual to unpack all of that drama. Between COVID-19 protocols and Balfe's maternity leave (she and husband Tony McGill welcomed a baby boy in August 2021), season 6 was shorted to just eight episodes. The four remaining installments were added to Outlander season 7, giving the Starz series a 16-episode season. "This really is super-sized season," Heughan explained. "We really start off with a bang. The first couple episodes are really strong, and that's as far as we've got shooting-wise. But I know there's so much that we are still about to get to. Not only that you've got a lot of new characters coming in or characters that I think are anticipated by fans — including, of course, Jamie Fraser's son — but a bunch of new characters as well." William Ransom hasn't been seen since he was a child, but season 7 will introduce Jamie's estranged son as a man, played by actor Charles Vandervaart, who is already having fun alongside Heughan. "Charles does a pretty decent job. I have to say, he's a very good looking boy. Too good looking. I tried to get him sacked on his first day, but no luck," the Clanlands author joked. [jwplayer tSOSAbKc-zhNYySv2] He knows Charles is likely to get the same support he gets from the Outlander fandom. The viewers support Heughan's many projects, including his various philanthropy efforts. When Heughan announced he was participating in The Distinguished Gentleman's Ride last month, his fan base immediately mobilized, raising over $56,000 for Movember — despite only learning about the actor's participation less than a week before the event. The Spy Who Dumped Me star gushed about his generous supporters while speaking to Us on World Outlander Day, which falls on June 1 every year to mark the anniversary of Diana Gabaldon's first novel in the historical series hitting shelves. "On World Outlander Day, I'd like to thank all of our fans for their support," Heughan exclusively told Us. "Honestly, it's been overwhelming, and they continue to surprise us. And then I think this support of the [Distinguished Gentleman's Ride] is just case in point." The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama alum explained that he only had to put out a simple tweet before donations started rolling in. "I hadn't even put it on my other social yet, and my inbox was flooded from messages from the donations page, and it hasn't stopped," he raved. "So I'd like to like thank everyone that's supported this great cause. It was a lot of fun to partake in, but also really important 'cause of the work that Movember is doing. So thanks to them." He concluded, "To the fans, please, please keep enjoying the show, and you've got a lot of bingeing to do before we get back to the new season — but the Droughtlander will be over. I promise." Starz has not announced a premiere date for season 7 yet. Scroll down for more photos of the Outlander star at the Distinguished Gentleman's Ride: [podcast_block]

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

'Outlander' Star Sam Heughan Says Season 7 'Starts Off With a Bang' After Massive Cliffhanger

Starting strong. Outlander star Sam Heughan can't wait for fans to see the exciting season 7 premiere, the Scotland native exclusively told Us Weekly. "We pick up shortly after with the end of last season, which is a great cliffhanger," the actor, 42, said while chatting with Us on Wednesday, June 1, about his participation in The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride in support of Movember (the global men's health organization which raises awareness for prostate cancer, testicular cancer, men's mental health and suicide prevention). The sixth season of Outlander ended last month with Claire (Caitríona Balfe) being arrested for murder, and Jamie (Heughan) has to find her while the Revolutionary War is officially underway. "America really is in sort of turmoil. There's revolution, and Jamie and Claire are separated," the Men in Kilts star teased. "There's also the prophecy of Jamie and Claire's death, you know, that they're supposed to die in a fire. There's just so much going on." Luckily, there will be even more episodes than usual to unpack all of that drama. Between COVID-19 protocols and Balfe's maternity leave (she and husband Tony McGill welcomed a baby boy in August 2021), season 6 was shorted to just eight episodes. The four remaining installments were added to Outlander season 7, giving the Starz series a 16-episode season. "This really is super-sized season," Heughan explained. "We really start off with a bang. The first couple episodes are really strong, and that's as far as we've got shooting-wise. But I know there's so much that we are still about to get to. Not only that you've got a lot of new characters coming in or characters that I think are anticipated by fans — including, of course, Jamie Fraser's son — but a bunch of new characters as well." William Ransom hasn't been seen since he was a child, but season 7 will introduce Jamie's estranged son as a man, played by actor Charles Vandervaart, who is already having fun alongside Heughan. "Charles does a pretty decent job. I have to say, he's a very good looking boy. Too good looking. I tried to get him sacked on his first day, but no luck," the Clanlands author joked. [jwplayer tSOSAbKc-zhNYySv2] He knows Charles is likely to get the same support he gets from the Outlander fandom. The viewers support Heughan's many projects, including his various philanthropy efforts. When Heughan announced he was participating in The Distinguished Gentleman's Ride last month, his fan base immediately mobilized, raising over $56,000 for Movember — despite only learning about the actor's participation less than a week before the event. The Spy Who Dumped Me star gushed about his generous supporters while speaking to Us on World Outlander Day, which falls on June 1 every year to mark the anniversary of Diana Gabaldon's first novel in the historical series hitting shelves. "On World Outlander Day, I'd like to thank all of our fans for their support," Heughan exclusively told Us. "Honestly, it's been overwhelming, and they continue to surprise us. And then I think this support of the [Distinguished Gentleman's Ride] is just case in point." The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama alum explained that he only had to put out a simple tweet before donations started rolling in. "I hadn't even put it on my other social yet, and my inbox was flooded from messages from the donations page, and it hasn't stopped," he raved. "So I'd like to like thank everyone that's supported this great cause. It was a lot of fun to partake in, but also really important 'cause of the work that Movember is doing. So thanks to them." He concluded, "To the fans, please, please keep enjoying the show, and you've got a lot of bingeing to do before we get back to the new season — but the Droughtlander will be over. I promise." Starz has not announced a premiere date for season 7 yet. Scroll down for more photos of the Outlander star at the Distinguished Gentleman's Ride: [podcast_block]

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

Riding for a Reason

Heughan attended the 11th annual Distinguished Gentleman's Ride, a global event across 107 countries, on Sunday, May 22, in London, to raise funds for men's health charity Movember. The Outlander star's fans raise over $56,000, and in total, the DGR raised over $4 million.

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

Distinguished Duds

"You know, I think it's just so fun, right? When do you get to, like, don a suit and ride out on a motorbike with hundreds of other people?" the actor told Us. "And there were like over 200 riders there and different costumes, so to speak. I wore my Stewart Christie suit, which was created for me by the oldest tailor in Scotland. They were created in 1775. So the time of the Jacobite rebellion, they would've dressed these Jacobite warriors. They suited me up in this beautiful Scottish tweed."

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

Motorcycle Metaphors

Heughan found it refreshing to ride along with others while bringing awareness to Movember. "It was just great to be riding with other people. You know, we don't normally do that, and I think maybe it's a metaphor for men as well," he explained. "We tend to be loners or not really share our feelings with other people or spend much time really just getting to know people. It just brought a lot of guys together — and women — and it was just really nice to sort of share a common interest and also bring your voice to this great cause."

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

Slew of Support

"It's been incredible because, to be honest, I didn't expect like all the support that we got," the Sassenach Spirits founder explained. "It was a great idea to raise awareness and a fun day out. But ... I've had so many messages from people giving their support and [revealing] how much that [mental health issues as well as prostate and testicular cancer] have also affected their families."

Credit: Euan Cherry/PA

A Golden Guy

Heughan has raised millions for various charities with My Peak Challenge, his fitness program, and even received an honorary degree from Glasgow University in recognition of his artistic success and his charitable work in 2019.

"There's so many [worthwhile nonprofits and fundraisers], it's hard to choose, but I just felt this was a really strong one," he said of Movember and the DGR. "We don't really talk a lot about men's mental health, and prostate cancer I think is easily curable, much like testicular cancer, if it's detected early. And I think it's a bit of a taboo for men to talk about the problems they're having or even to go to the doctor. So, for me, I thought, hopefully this raises awareness or at least gets people thinking and maybe also putting on their suit and jumping on a motorbike to help out."