Outlander's Diana Gabaldon reveals the one emotional scene that DIDN'T make the cut in 'Faith'
Episode seven was a defining moment in season two of the Amazon drama – but the Outlander author reveals there was even more that wasn't shown in the final version
The latest episode of Outlander was a "gut-wrenching" experience for fans of the show says author Diana Gabaldon – but there was one emotional scene between Claire and Jamie that she regrets didn't make the final cut.
The author spoke to RadioTimes.com about how the events of episode seven compare to the version in her books, and explained how the producers had to make some tough decisions as to what they were able to include – and what they had to leave out.
"I saw all the footage they filmed, and they filmed a great deal more than is actually shown, because, of course, there are time constraints,'" she said. "Consequently they have to make decisions about what they do put in and leave out."
While she was delighted with the final version and says the producers do a "wonderful job," Gabaldon admitted she was sorry that one "marvellous" scene didn't make the cut.
"Well, there's this one lovely scene," she recalls. "Jamie comes back at the end and they have this very fraught conversation. He's kneeling at Claire's feet, and he sort of looks up with eyes blazing and says, 'I gave you my body and soul when we wed until our lives should be done – and it is not done.'
"It's fabulous, and of course I'm sad they cut that out. Instead she says, 'Take me back to Scotland' and he looks up with a Rasputin beard going, 'Scotland!'"
It does indeed sound fabulous – one for the extended edition perhaps?
"I can see why they did it – they needed the shift and to say, 'Okay, we're going back to Scotland' – but it was much less emotionally satisfying," she said.
Gabaldon can understand the reasoning however: "They are always picking the pieces that they think will work, in an emotional way but also in an informational way. They have to explain why things are happening, and so to do that, occasionally they will have to make shortcuts, condense things, or combine two scenes or parts of two scenes."
In cases like these, she admits that she just has to agree to disagree.
"Sometimes it's, 'I really wouldn't have done that!' I would have figured out some way of using this scene, but you can't always do that. It's completely different from writing a novel because I have total freedom and they never do."
However, on this occasion, perhaps it's for the best. After watching episode seven, we're not sure how much more emotion we could take...
Outlander season two continues next Sunday on Amazon Prime
