Outlander is back for season six on Starz. The time travel romantic drama premieres its new season with a super-sized episode on Sunday.
It’s only fitting that the show — known for its strong female characters time-hopping from the 20th to the 18th century — is debuting right at the start of Women’s History Month. Sophie Skelton, who plays Brianna, the daughter of Jamie and Claire, says she finds the show’s portrayal of women empowering.
“I think having these strong women come from the future…Brianna and Claire are very much modern for the ’60s even, and then to throw them back in this time they just have this beautiful strength in them,” she tells ABC Audio. “It just shows that it’s really OK to be rooted in who you are and just stand up for what you believe in.”
Skelton adds that she loves how Outlander “turns gender stereotypes on its head” — and Richard Rankin, who plays Brianna’s husband Roger, is all for it.
“I don’t think [Roger had] ever seen a woman like that,” Rankin says of Brianna. “And I think he had a lot of admiration for that, a lot of love for that.”
In season six, the characters’ strength will be put to the test as they deal with past traumas and new threats — namely, the looming American Revolution, which threatens to upend the life Jamie and Claire have built at Fraser’s Ridge.
Outlander, starring Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe, airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT this Sunday on Starz.
Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.