Scrapped Outlander Film Saw 2 A-List Hollywood Actors as Jamie & Claire
We almost saw a much, much older Jamie.
Summary
- An Outlander movie adaptation has fallen through more than once
- Liam Neeson and Sean Connery were both pitched for Jamie
- Katherine Heigl was in the running for Claire in 2010
- Casting for the Starz series didn't go exactly as expected.
The Starz Adaptation Wasn't the First
Diana Gabaldon's first novel Outlander has been a smash hit since its publication in 1991. More than thirty years later, the still-ongoing series has published more than 50 million copies worldwide.
With that much fan support behind the books, the question might be asked: why did it take so long for a film adaptation to happen?
In fact, Gabaldon's books were optioned several times before Starz finally made something happen with its popular Outlander television series. The book (originally titled Cross Stitch in the UK) was in the pipes as a Hollywood movie on several occasions, but production always fell through.
Who Could Have Been Jamie?
Outlander came close to being a feature film more than once.
In an interview with E! Online, Gabaldon revealed that at one point in the nineties it looked quite likely that Liam Neeson would take on the role of Jamie. The dreamy Irish actor was famous for playing Scottish highlander Rob Roy in 1995, so the kilt definitely fit.
Gabaldon named one other actor who was considered for the role of Jamie: original Hot Scot Sean Connery. However, we have point out that – attractive and talented as Connery was – this would have been a strange choice.
By the time Outlander was published Connery was already 61 years old. When he first meets Claire, Jamie is 22 years old. We may have dodged a bullet with that one.
Who Could Have Been Claire?
Later, when talk of a movie was in full swing again, it was Katherine Heigl who was pitched as Claire.
The former Grey's Anatomy star and once reigning Queen of the rom-com was interviewed by the New York Times in 2010. The article stated:
'Heigl will then turn toward sharply dramatic work, starring as a Scottish heroine in an adaptation of Outlander.'
Heigl was excited by the possibility of playing Claire, teasing 'Scotland? 2012? What do you think?' But both the actress and fans were bound to be disappointed, as this adaptation was also scrapped.
The Starz Aligned
The patience of fans was finally rewarded a whopping twenty-three years after Gabaldon's novel first came out. Starz premiered the first episode of Outlander to rapturous fan and critical response on August 9th 2014, and will be broadcasting its seventh and final season this summer.
Perhaps a television show was the best possible outcome for a sprawling series of novels, as the Starz adaptation of Outlander has been able to follow the plot of the books much more faithfully than a 3 hour movie ever could.
The Right Actors for the Roles
Although it's too bad we'll never get to see Liam Neeson's Jamie or Katherine Heigl's Claire, there's no doubt that the series nailed its casting with relative unknowns Sam Heughan and Caitríona Balfe.
Showrunner Ronald D. Moore expected that Claire would be the first one cast, but in fact Heughan took the part of Jamie very early in the process. After that, it was a months-long struggle to find Claire. Producers were getting frustrated, but then Caitríona Balfe sent in a tape. Moore says:
'Claire just took a long time. A lot of actresses, a lot of tape, looking for really ineffable qualities. She had to be smart, she had to have a strength of character, and really, she had to be someone that you could watch think on camera. But then suddenly Caitriona's tape came in and we had that same light-bulb moment.'
After seeing Caitríona's tape, producers called her in to do an on-camera chemistry test with Heughan. Obviously, the chemistry was smoking hot – and the rest, as they say, is history.
Source: E!News Online.