Outlander star Sam Heughan has said actors were “perhaps forced” into filming nude scenes on the long-running US series. Heughan, who played Jamie Fraser, said nudity on the show was “always a negotiation” with the production team and “it wasn't particularly a nice one”.
The 46-year-old made the remarks during a conversation on stage with fellow Scottish actor Alan Cumming at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre, where they discussed the early years of the hit historical drama. Heughan said the introduction of intimacy co-ordinators in later series was a “great protection” for actors, and said guidelines and safeguards around nude scenes had changed over the last 12 years.
He said the difference was stark compared with his experience when the show began in 2014. Outlander, which ended this year after eight seasons, did not initially have intimacy co-ordinators and, Heughan said, “we were very much left to our own devices”.
He added:
“In fact, dare I say, even perhaps forced to do nudity when we were not particularly happy about it.”
Cumming told the audience in the Highlands that in previous years
“some lines have been crossed”by actors during intimate scenes.
Speaking about his own experience as a younger actor, Heughan said performers often asked to remove their clothing. He said:
“I remember starting out as an actor and sort of going for auditions, and they'd be like, 'Right, OK, take your top off now', and it was awful, or you're kissing someone you've just met in an audition.
“I promise you, it's not like that anymore. It was just a different time.”
Heughan also discussed a scene in Outlander in which his character is raped, saying it was the most challenging scene of his career. He said the sequence took many days to film because it was a really long scene, and described the storyline as horrific to perform.
He told the audience:
“It was challenging and I remember it was many days filming because it was a really long scene.
“He was captured and tortured and then raped.
“It was horrific to do but I suppose these are the stories that also, if treated well and done with respect, can be also revealing or helpful in some ways.
“It's hard. I think the industry's totally changed.”
An Outlander prequel series, Blood Of My Blood, began in August last year and has been renewed for a second season due to air in September. Sony Pictures Television, which produces Outlander, has been approached for comment.
How has Outlander changed for actors?
Heughan said the industry has changed significantly since Outlander began in 2014, particularly around intimate and nude scenes. He said later series benefited from intimacy co-ordinators, which he described as a “great protection” for actors.
He said early in the show’s run there were no such safeguards, and that performers were left to manage those scenes themselves. He also said his own early acting experiences often involved being asked to undress at auditions or kiss people he had just met.
What did Heughan say about the rape scene?
Heughan said the rape scene involving Jamie Fraser was the most difficult of his career. He said filming took several days because it was a long scene, and that the character was captured, tortured and raped.
He said it was horrific to perform, but added that such stories can be revealing or helpful if treated with respect. Cumming, meanwhile, said during the discussion that in earlier years some lines had been crossed during intimate scenes.
What else is happening with the Outlander franchise?
Outlander ended this year after eight seasons, but the franchise continues with the prequel Blood Of My Blood. The new series began in August last year and has already been renewed for a second season, which is due to air in September.
Sony Pictures Television, the producer of Outlander, has been approached for comment.
Key Facts
- Sam Heughan made the comments at Pitlochry Festival Theatre in conversation with Alan Cumming.
- He said intimacy co-ordinators were a “great protection” and that early Outlander episodes had no such safeguards.
- He described a rape scene in Outlander as the most challenging of his career.
- Outlander ended this year after eight seasons.
- Blood Of My Blood began in August last year and has been renewed for a second season due in September.
