‘Outlander’ Author Diana Gabaldon Sees Every TV Script

Book-to-screen adaptations are tough. Many productions leave the authors of the original works behind, but “Outlander” is different. While Diana Gabaldon hasn’t been seen on screen since Season 1, she is still very much involved with the Starz series as Season 5 films.

“We email her all the time,” executive producer Maril Davis told Parade. “She sees all the scripts. She sees dailies.”

More importantly, the show always checks in with her when they veer off the path Gabaldon, who is credited as a consultant on the drama, laid out. The show has made several changes to the book, some out of necessity and some for more creative reasons.

“Anytime we do something crazy, or we want to kind of go off the reservation a little, we always consult her first. She doesn’t always like it. For the most part, though, we always try to please her,” Davis added.

One of the biggest changes was keeping Murtagh (Duncan Lacroix) alive. The Highlander died during the Battle of Culloden in the novels, but he’s still kicking in Season 4—and hopefully Season 5.

The January finale showed Jamie (Sam Heughan) getting new orders from the British: he has to form a militia to hunt down and kill Murtagh. It’s a true cliffhanger, with even fans of the books unsure as to how it will unfold.

“Certainly next season we’ll get to explore more of Jamie and Murtagh potentially being on different sides of the line of this conflict and what will happen to them,” Davis told the Hollywood Reporter after the finale aired. “They’re family, godson and godfather, and for Jamie to be put in this predicament, he made a deal with the devil, and we wanted to end the season on a cliffhanger. This starts to set the table for the next season in wondering what Jamie’s going to do.”

While Gabaldon has already seen some scripts, fans will have to wait until Season 5 premieres on Starz to see how it will play out. A premiere date for the new season has not been announced yet.