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@hereprettykitty
Giving the erotica a listen girls. JC it’s embarrassing. It just doesn’t…. I mean he just can’t. It’s sounds exactly like SH, not the character. I cringed through the first 15 minutes then had to give up.
I think I’ll take your word for it. 🤣
Everyone losing their effin mind because there is finally conclusive proof of what we’ve known all along … that she is indeed his girlfriend. They are in love, obviously. I can actually smell the spitting jealousy of certain fans through my screen. This envy seems at the real root of the vitriol, hidden as moral high ground and character analysis of a woman they’ve never met. Every single one posting horrible stuff about this would, at the drop of a hat, do ANYTHING to be at the centre of his attention. The only way to get over him not wanting them ( or CB) is to ridicule the one he does.
His love life has always been a source of much entertainment and discussion on here. There have been questionable choices. Now he’s on the way to settling down it may feel like the fun is over. What is left but to pull apart his final selection, poke fun and diminish her, examine the timeline of her grief, her parenting skills? There is a lot of this on here and it’s not nice. We can maybe analyse but not be spiteful. At the end of the day it’s none of our business. I’ve always said if he was just open and normal about his girlfriends instead of trying to hide everything, the speculation, prying and obsession would just dissipate. She’s doing the hard yards for him now. Hope he follows her lead.
This,I suppose, has been a distraction from the absolute drudge of the final series, which has been dissatisfying to say the least. This iconic show is petering out, spluttering to a ridiculous end. Its stars are settling down. Things will get pretty boring, pretty soon around here
I don’t necessarily agree that it is envy, but otherwise I agree with you. This has happened with every semi-serious relationship Sam has been in since he was cast as Jamie. The woman gets picked apart for any little detail. I remember Abbie getting attacked for using a profile pic of her licking batter with raw eggs in egg because “she was about promoting a healthy lifestyle and eating raw eggs could potentially make someone sick”. Or when she posted about clay shooting, she was “promoting guns”. With Mackenzie, she was “racist” because she shared a pic of her and her friend in sumo wrestling costume. And a pic of her dad with a gun was dug up and she was, like Abbie, accused of being pro-gun. There were more with Mackenzie, but those are just off the top of my head. Both were accused of posting innuendo and using Sam’s fans for attention and monetary gain. And accused of insisting they attend events with him to gain even more attention and that they must have insisted because Sam ignored them.
Steph is no different. She has more to pick at being divorced and a widow with a child. I’ve been told by others that I’d “feel differently if I’d seen what they had seen” on her socials, but omg, if it was so awful, someone must have screen-capped these horrific displays that are discussed in DMs? And occasionally, some new story pops up about what used to be on her social media, but it was scrubbed (that sounds familiar to the Sam is gay crowd and used to be open about it but all evidence was disappeared when he was cast as Jamie). She lied about her credentials? Limited space on an IG profile. She neglects her child by pulling her out of school? Where is the proof that the kid attends a regular school? Sam didn’t. She leaves her kid to travel with Sam. Again, where is the proof? Kid has a biological father and as far as I know, the custodial arrangements are unknown.
In my opinion, Sam is the problem. He’s always got one foot in and one foot out. He’ll bring his serious girlfriends to public events while dodging questions about his personal life. He’ll ignore them in public, woo them in private. Some of his less serious exes have blabbed about that and even he has admitted to love bombing. Easy out for him, should it end and he won’t have to answer questions about a break-up. On that point, I do question why a woman with a child would get involved with him, but I side eye him even more, considering he has made his relationship issues public. I think we all know a woman who thinks she can change a man, and my lowest opinion is Steph is that she thinks she can change Sam. And she’s probably mistaken in that; with the show ending, he lost stability that he has had for over a decade. Which is sad for her, but not uncommon.
Seriously, why the Steph hate? I don’t believe for one second Sam is about to settle down and marry her. He, who has confessed to love bombing and enjoying the early stages of a relationship but can’t maintain it because “work comes first” is the last person who should be be dating a one divorced mother and a widow. Why blame her for falling for someone who admits he goes all in during the early stages? To me, that suggests he takes advantage of vulnerable women.
He’s never acknowledged any woman as a his girlfriend. He has always been perfectly happy to let fans assume he was with Caitriona and even threw under the bus when she wanted to clarify they weren’t together.
He’s the problem, not her. Yes, yes, I know how the optics look. But it is still not her fault. He’s the one taking advantage. Stop blaming her.
Stop blaming her. He is the always the common denominator.
What I find striking is how quickly this keeps getting turned into a question of sides. People either blame Steph or defend Sam, or the other way round. But that framing doesn’t really hold up here.
This isn’t a case of one person getting it wrong while the other is somehow exempt. Both of them are making choices, and both of them are responsible for how this is playing out. And right now, it doesn’t come across well at all.
Whatever this is meant to be, it reads less like something grounded and more like a bit of a spectacle. And not a particularly flattering one.
There’s a difference between having a private life and creating a public dynamic that invites this level of reaction. And that line feels very blurred at the moment.
So for me, this isn’t about picking a side. It’s about recognising that both Sam and Steph are contributing to the situation we’re seeing. And, personally, it’s made it quite difficult to feel any real sympathy or respect for either of them at this point.
Of course, that is true. But only to a degree, imo. It’s Sam’s pattern with every woman he’s had any relationship with that was serious enough that they attended events with him. And the fandom’s reaction, by and large, has always had the same attitude towards the women. They are all “attention whores” who are using him to get followers. There is “always” something dug up from their past or something they post on their socials that get used against them.
Mackenzie Mauzy was recently divorced when she started dating Sam, so she was labeled a cheater. Never mind that no one knew how long she and her ex-husband had been separated before the divorce. Also accused of using Sam for followers because she, like many jobbing actors, had a side gig. Her’s just so happened to be selling make up. And most people didn’t even realize she did that until close to when they broke up. People dug up pictures of her father holding a gun. And accused her of being racist because she wore a sumo wrestling costume.
With Abbie, it was “she’s using him because she wants to get back into acting”. She is (so was) a teacher, ffs, and it was hard for fans to find dirt, but still, people found ways to demean her. Clay shooting…which she did with Sam but it was spun into her being pro gun. Dragging her for licking batter off her finger because she promoted eating healthy and how dare she encourage people to risk eating raw eggs?
And now, Steph. Same story. She’s apparently an easy target because she is divorced, a widow, and has a child. Never mind she actually does hold several degrees. She’s a phony because she didn’t list her qualifications exactly right on her new business profile. You know, the one she started just so she could get business from Sam fans. And there are multiple people who claim to have seen or heard things about her but won’t say but the they swear, no one would defend her if everyone else knew what they knew. And the daughter. Which I hesitate to talk about, but since everyone else is, I’ll say this. Does anyone know if she attends a normal school? I certainly don’t. So why assume Steph is a horrible mother for “constantly yanking her out” of class? Her biologically father doesn’t live in the same country. Does anyone know their custodial agreements? Maybe the kid does correspondence school? It does bother me that Sam is with someone who has a child and is involved with the child’s life given he made his daddy issues known. I was raised by a single father who made the mistake of introducing a lot of dates to me and my siblings, so I’m biased. If he’s not serious about her, he should know better. So should she. See, I can judge her, too. I’m just more focused on him.
Some fans (admittedly mostly shippers) pulled the same crap with Cait and Tony. The only real difference was that he doesn’t use social media so it was more difficult to find ways to attack him. But fans managed, just the same. A dead Christmas tree on the roof of a bar. Public business documents that “proved” he was broke and just using Cait for money. And Sara Ziff’s documentary where a much younger Cait talked about how she felt used in relationships for money (which she wasn’t making much of to begin with).
Back to Sam and his relationships. I speak only for myself. Once again, my main observation is, he is the common denominator. He’s the one who brought these women to public events and basically ignores them. He’s the one who refuses to answer questions about his private life. Which is his prerogative, but after he went public on his socials with Mackenzie, he still refused to answer if he was seeing someone. He’s also the one who wavers between canned answers of “I’m too focused on my career for a relationship” or “I’d like to settle down and have a family someday”. He hasn’t changed a bit since the start. Should the women he dates have more self respect for themselves? I don’t know. Fans can’t make those choices for them. Presumably, he doesn’t treat them like after thoughts in his private life. For me, it’s not about “picking a side”. It’s me noticing it’s his patterns and he sets the tone for how fans “treat” the woman.
Seriously, why the Steph hate? I don’t believe for one second Sam is about to settle down and marry her. He, who has confessed to love bombing and enjoying the early stages of a relationship but can’t maintain it because “work comes first” is the last person who should be be dating a one divorced mother and a widow. Why blame her for falling for someone who admits he goes all in during the early stages? To me, that suggests he takes advantage of vulnerable women.
He’s never acknowledged any woman as a his girlfriend. He has always been perfectly happy to let fans assume he was with Caitriona and even threw under the bus when she wanted to clarify they weren’t together.
He’s the problem, not her. Yes, yes, I know how the optics look. But it is still not her fault. He’s the one taking advantage. Stop blaming her.
Stop blaming her. He is the always the common denominator.
Wow. Wow. Wow. No one has to like her. Or Sam. But this is going too far. Some of you are acting worse than shippers and justifying it by claiming she “asked for it”.
Y’all ever hear of Punch, the Macaque monkey? That rejected monkey got himself a girlfriend named Moe. And when it “didn’t work out”, the jokes about Moe flew around with her being a gold digger, just using Punch for his fame. That gold digger trope is so prevalent that people applied it to a pair of monkeys.
“I know someone who DMed her and she’s a fraud”. Oh? Then report her to actually authorities instead of pretending like you actually care instead of being a disgruntled Sam fan.
Anyone else not enjoying the new series? It feels a lacklustre ‘paint by numbers affair’ . I’m really not interested in all the revolutionary war stuff. It feels like a docu drama on occasion. Every episode has left me feeling frustrated about wasted time, lack of character driven development and a really damped down feel to everything. I know they’re trying but it really has over run its course.
When I heard they were doing a season 8, I wondered how they were going to manage it, not because Diana had not yet written the ending, but because what she had written left so many loose ends suspended in mid air. To me, Bees felt like a patchwork of storylines loosely connected, but with no real story arch holding the pieces together. I thought the only way they could manage bringing the story to a satisfying end was to steer away from the book. I know they have done it in the past, and not always judiciously, but in this case, I was ready to forgive them, because I thought the source material was really not doing justice to its own epic story. To my dismay, so far, the show is doing the opposite, with the exception of the Faith storyline. And I'm afraid they'll just slap on a "wouldn't it be fun if" type of ending to what Diana wrote, leaving us with more questions than answers. I wish the story would have ended with: "Hello the house!"
I agree with @bestjaydee. Reuniting the Frasers and Mackenzies would have been a perfect place to end the show. Bees, among its other problems, felt like a spin-off of McKenzies and William. And one that is bogged down with a lot of historical details. I was surprised to see the extended Grey family plot on the show because the show never really included them and it feels plopped in just because it was in the book. I’m fine with toned down sex scenes but these are badly written and that’s not entirely the fault of the show. They were badly written in the book, too. But I could really do without the cliched heavy breathing.
The only thing I’ve liked so far is the return of Buck, which wasn’t in the book (another unclosed DG plot). The show would have been better served by picking and choosing rather than chasing everything down.
Marie Claire Australia Interview
Outlander’s Caitríona Balfe Bids Farewell: ‘A Quarter of Our Lives’
Caitríona Balfe from 'Outlander' is photographed for TV Guide/TVInsider.com on October 17, 2024, at New York Comic-Con at Jacob Javitz Center in New York City.Read Less | Matt Doyle Photo/Contour by Getty
“[Outlander] has been a quarter of our lives! An insane amount of time.”
Caitríona Balfe reflects on the final season of Starz’s epic historical drama Outlander, taking time to decompress after wrapping and how she decides what comes next.
It's such a pleasure to meet you. When I told people that I was doing this interview, I can’t tell you how many people freaked out about Outlander. I know of the show, obviously, but people go mad for this show. The audience is wildly in love with it.
I guess because we've been around for a while. A little over 10 years, right? Yeah, we first aired in 2014. And I think also because the show has also gone into syndication and people are finding it still. And it's amazing it does always kind of blow me away how many people watch it. And the kind of...breadth of people who watch it? It's like it traverses all kinds of age groups and it's men and women and it's younger people now a lot. I think it was a slightly older demographic in the beginning, but it's great.
And how active they are on social media! And some of the fan fiction! I really discovered some things that I didn't know.
We've all learned a few things in Outlander.
Caitríona Balfe (L) and Sam Heughan (R) in STARZ’s Outlander. Credit: STARZ. | Starz
But they get really invested! Especially in the two leads, you as Claire and Sam Heughan as Jamie. And it created spin-offs!
They've got the prequel now. [Blood of My Blood.] I think it's just this beautiful love story. I think that is just such a positive and hopeful thing to invest in. I think people need that. So it has been really amazing to be part of something that has meant a lot to people. I think that's a really special thing.
How does the end of this chapter feel for you? Because this is a massive part of your career!
It was all my career for a long time. It's such a mixed bag of emotions—I think there's obviously a lot of pride, and I feel so proud to have been part of something like this. It is sad; any ending is sad. But I think it's also doing something for a decade plus. When we finished the show, Sam [Heughan] and I were both like "Wow, this has been a quarter of our lives!" An insane amount of time to be playing one character and being involved in one show. So it also felt like, "Okay, as an actor and as a person, I'm ready for new challenges," and that's exciting and scary. But to have had the education that I've had on the show, to have the experiences I've had, to have formed the relationships I've had, I just feel so grateful for that.
Without giving anything away, do you feel like the story—your character's story—comes full circle in the end? Do you feel like it's a satisfying ending for her?
It's hard to know, right? Because like, what is a satisfying ending? You don't want your character to end. I feel like Claire found peace, in some ways. Well, no, actually that's...there's never peace on Outlander. There's always drama. But I feel like, in terms of the overall thing, she's with her family. And I think that that felt very appropriate and that this season especially there's a lot of people coming back together, and that was really beautiful. But I've lived with her from—in the show she traverses from the age of like 27, 28 I think in the beginning, that's how old she was, and by the time we finished she's supposed to be in her 60s. So that's a life. And I think that you just have to be, I don't know, there's no kind of proper ending. It is all part of itself. Does that make sense?
It totally makes sense. And also, too, with a show this big, with the fan base that's writing fan fiction and doing the things that they do, that must be a lot of pressure going in for creatives—but also for the actors involved—going into a final season to give that final season what they expect, or what hopefully the fans want. Was there pressure there?
I think Sam and I especially felt a lot of responsibility to end this show in a really strong way. It's funny because I think it's the season that we knew the least about. Because I think the writers were very...they didn't want to give any spoilers. So we never knew at any point what was gonna happen until we got the scripts. And that was new because I think in previous seasons we'd always get an overview. And so it was really interesting because it was exciting in a way because we're like, "Okay, well, we have no idea where this is going." And that’s probably the best thing, because I think otherwise we probably would have been trying to steer it one way or another or something. But as a control freak that I am, it was hard to give up that control a little bit. So yeah, there is no way I think to end anything in a perfect way. I think you just have to let it be and go with it and enjoy the ride. So we tried to do that.
Over the course of the series, as it became more popular, both you and Sam had more involvement. You became a producer on the show. And that I think is only fair because you're so wedded to these characters. Of course you want to have a stake in maybe even the discussion of where this character's going, how she ends up. From a producing standpoint, how much involvement did you have?
Well, this season was interesting because I got to direct as well. So in the very beginning, I felt that I was part of so many conversations, and it was really interesting. I was there from the very first day of prep. I started prep about five, six weeks before we started shooting. So I got be involved in conversations about like bills and things like that...the new house that was built and all of that, and it was amazing. Because as an actor I could bring something to the table as a producer that maybe other people didn't, so I got to have conversations with our set designer being like "Well, we need places like this or this" and to be able to do stuff and that affected how the build went, and that was amazing. But it was really funny because then after I directed my episode—which is episode two—I had to go back to, like, not knowing. And I was like, "Hold on. I'm not part of these conversations..." And other people are in those rooms instead. So personally, that was hard because, as I said, I am a control freak. But yeah, it was interesting not knowing where your character was going to go, especially [in] the last season. I was constantly like, "What's happening? What's happening, like what's going to happen?" And they'd be like, "We can't tell you." It did drive me nuts.
Sam Heughan (L) and Caitríona Balfe (R) in STARZ’s Outlander. Credit: STARZ.
But it probably made the performance.
Well, that's the thing. You have to then take every moment as it comes to you. And there was something great in that, too.
What I think is so amazing about a show that is on for a long time—any show I'm thinking, even like sitcoms like Friends or whatnot—you see the performers on the show become full-fledged creative forces in their own way. And you, of course, are a great example of that over the course of this series. Not even just producing, but then going into directing, but also the start of even more higher-value film work and things you're doing in film spaces. Why was it important for you to direct more? And do you want to be doing more of that in the future?
Yeah, I would love to. I think just being on set all the time and watching how the decisions get made and watching other people direct and watching people who I was like, "Oh, I really love how you're doing this." And then watching some other people and you're like, "Hmm, if I were doing that, I would do it differently." And I just thought I am always aware, as an actor, of my limited ability within storytelling in the terms of—as Caitríona, who I am, the age I am, the way I look, all of these things there are only a certain amount of avenues for me to tell stories in a way. And you become sort-of limited in your casting. It's like, you're this age group so you're gonna get roles that are in this age group, or you're female, so you're going to get roles that are this. I love storytelling, and I love telling different stories. And so I just wanted to expand my ability to do that. And also, I just found it so interesting how, as an actor doing one character, you become so micro-focused on that role and what that character's role and journey. But as a director, you get to be over everything. And you see the bigger picture. That part I found really interesting. I just loved it. Like when I got to do it, there were so many new things and exciting things that I didn't really understand went into it, like all of the prep stuff and how you take a script from that first day and how you start building your visual language, building your thematic language throughout the whole thing. All of that was so interesting. And then just getting to work with all of the different departments, it’s so exciting and you get to see the amazing talent that comes together to make an entire project. I had the best time, and it was really hard then to go back and just be like, "All right, I'm just gonna stay in my lane." Well, especially for a control freak.
You've also worked both on Outlander and outside of Outlander in films with great directors. Was there any influence that you had in terms of your directing style that you look back on with other directors?
Oh, of course. I think, I am a magpie—constantly stealing from people—and just inspired by people. I've been so lucky. I've worked with Jodie Foster as a director, Jim Mangold as director, who's like amazing. I think Jim is so jovial and like... Jim is never afraid to give anybody a direct note, and I think that's the one thing with the directors that I've loved working with, like Kenneth Branagh. It's the specificity of direction. I think the worst thing any director can do is try and tentatively walk around an actor and be afraid to tell them "no." We all like direct notes and, you know, obviously given with kindness and an understanding of the vulnerability of the process. But I've been so lucky with the people and also all of the directors I've worked with, how generous they have been once they know that I'm interested in directing with their kind of advice and showing you and also cameramen and women and all the people in those departments. Like, they're always willing to share information. They all want to give that. They want to impart all their knowledge. I've just been so lucky to work with great people.
I recently interviewed James L. Brooks for his new film, and he was talking about the directing style and what he loves about directing, particularly some of the women he's directed over the years. And one of the things that he said that stands out to me from what you're saying is that a great director is just obsessed with actors and is just in love with what an actor can do with whatever they put on, whatever they take from what they're giving or the director's giving or writer's giving, or in his case, writer-director. And for an actor then to go into directing, I've talked with other actors, like recently with Tyler James Williams from Abbott Elementary about how he's directing episodes now, too, and that experience of directing your colleagues, your fellow actors, it actually—from what he tells me—it's heightened because you have this serious relationship with this person, it’s a secondhand language that you have with maybe Sam and directing him or whatever it might be. Did you experience that?
Oh, my God, I was so scared. I think my first day I had this seven-page scene with Sam and Richard [Rankin]. And I was like, "Oh, my God," like "They're really throwing me in the deep end!’" But I was so unprepared for the fact that I would stand behind the monitor, and I would have this like Cheshire cat grin on my face because I was just enjoying watching them and because I do know them so well, I'm like, "I can see what he's going for." And I think I know how I can help him just that one little bit, either amplify it or put it down because like in the whole piece. And it was beautiful. Also because you're never watching your co-star or your scene partner as an audience member when you're in a scene with them. You're never watching them, you're affecting each other and you're with them. So then to be able to watch them, and I was like, "Oh, my God," like, "I get it." Not that I didn't, but like you're watching in a different way. And you're like, "Wow." And with Richard, it was just—all of them. I loved that relationship. To go in and just help all of them get to where I could see they want to go. And most of the time it's staying out of their way. It's like, if ever there's a moment where you can see somebody needs a little adjustment, then to be able to do that was so amazing.
With Claire, what were you first attracted to when you first received the script, and how do you feel like you've seen the evolution of her?
That's a really interesting question. I don't know, because when I was given the script, I was a struggling actor in L.A. I was just trying to get any job. And I remember getting the first audition, and I put it on tape, and then never heard anything. And then I met with an agent in London. He was like, "There's a role, and I think you'd be really good for it." And he was explaining it. And I was like "Oh no, I think I've already taped for that." And he was like, "Send me the tape." So I sent him, and he was like "Oh." Because I had only gotten two lines of an explanation or whatever at the time. And he's like, "Oh no, this is a much deeper breakdown of who the character is. Like I think he should re-tape it." And I did, and I sent it in and that was when they were like, "Oh, we want to test you." So I had four days, and I read the book in four days, which is.... These books are not...they're pretty thick. So I remember—this was L.A,. so it was like nice, I could lie out in the sun and like just, but from the book—because I didn't have a script, I only had two scenes or whatever—from the book I was just like, "Oh my God, like—this woman's amazing, this world is amazing, this would be the most insane adventure." And then, I tested for that, but I don't know that I, I think the Caitríona that met Claire, it was perfect synchronicity, because I think where I was at in my life, I could relate to that idea of being thrown into something, because I was so green. And had I been a more experienced actor, maybe I wouldn't have understood that kind of, lack of knowledge of anything in the same way that Claire was experiencing when she went back in time first. There was this, I don't know, there was a synchronicity there.
Which really worked! Also on paper, even just the IMDB description of the show, I'm always kind of enjoying it because when you read it, it sounds kind of bonkers. But then when you watch it...
When you watch it and explain it in the beginning and people are like, "What?"
Caitríona Balfe on the set of STARZ’s Outlander. Credit: STARZ.
Well, when you watch it, you see how epic it is and how grand it is and how big it is. And the story is just so intimate. And there's a poignancy to it, but yet in the description, you're like, "Wait, what does she do?"
I think that was also, you talk about synchronicity and meeting things in life at the right time. Like I just had my heart broken. I remember then when we started filming and it was like all of this grief that I had to play and heartbreak and everything. And I was like, "Oh my God, this is all just like my life," you now? And then the falling in love was like, I was finding myself. Like it was all perfectly in sync for where I was at that time. And that first season—it's such a beautiful story where Diana got it...like downloading from wherever it was. It's such a beautiful...it's just it's a beautiful, inspirational and hopeful story. Also violent and crazy. Of course, yeah. But the two together really work.
To have those 12 years to look back on, that must be special in a way, to see that your career quite literally grew over the seasons and who you are as an actor and where you've gone. It's so impressive to watch!
That show has given me so much. It has opened so many doors for me. But it gave me the most incredible education. It allowed me to explore so many different facets of humanity and human emotion and all of these things. And yet there's also action and there's bits of comedy and all of these things. It encompasses so much. And I learned so much on that show, and I grew so much as a person, as an actor. Yeah, it will always forever be a huge life-defining part of me and my story.
Speaking of your film work, it defined you as an actor, and it also allowed you to do roles that I think are really special and different and kind of new. Just the list of films you've done while being on Outlander is so unique in the span of the stories that are being told and from The Amateur to Belfast, so many. How do you feel the show and playing Claire changed the type of roles you're offered or that you're able to pursue?
First of all, it allowed me to be offered anything. I think, especially in the beginning. I was a struggling actor in L.A. I had done some very, very small roles prior to Outlander. And all of a sudden, you're getting put up for things that you would never normally be in the conversation for. And it gives you confidence, because you have thousands of hours of work behind you all of a sudden, and you have that comfort of being able to just perform, I think that's the thing—regular work gives you confidence, and confidence is key to being an actor. But I've been so lucky. It doesn't feel like I did that much because we had such a long schedule, but I think the great thing that I had was also the ability to wait. And wait for a good role and wait for things that really spoke to me. And so that's why I've tried to just choose things that I really was invested in.
Irish actress Caitriona Balfe arrives for the 92nd Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California on February 9, 2020. (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP) (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
One of them that was so special to me was Belfast. It was the level of anger that I had when you weren't nominated for an Oscar for the film. And yet, the film received so much love, and obviously it did win the Oscar and it was so internationally recognized for how special it was. What was that experience like for you, looking at that and looking at your career as a whole? Outlander obviously was a massive, massive imprint, but I feel like Belfast is almost a peek into the future of the caliber of work that you're going to go on to do, I hope.
That was the most beautiful experience. Like, Kenneth [Branagh] is just the most—he's a genius and he is a legend and a titan of our industry, but he's also just the loveliest, most humble, just gorgeous human, and he was telling a very personal story and it was sandwiched between two lockdowns. So the world was crazy. This was pre-vaccination. So everybody was just slightly scared and we got to go to this little tiny place in Berkshire and play on the most beautiful story with Judi Dench, who is just the legend of all legends and Ciarán [Hinds] and Jamie [Dornan]and everybody else who's in [it]...Jude [Hill], and we just had the most amazing seven weeks in this heat wave of a summer. It really felt magical, and then you don't know what is going to happen. You don't know how anything's going to be received. And the way everyone was looking at it, Ken[neth Branagh] was like, it's just this little story. It's his passion project and we never knew what it would do. And then I had my son and literally four weeks after he was born, they were like, "Do you think you could go to Telluride?" And I was like, "no." And then at Telluride, it obviously got really well received. And then this machine starts rolling. Yeah. And I had this tiny little infant. And so the whole thing is just like a bonkers blur because you'd be at events...and then I'd be in these...fans and pumping and running to hotel rooms. But it was so fun because we had the best time, and I was with my friends and we got to go to L.A., and we got to the Oscars and it was just amazing. I'm so proud to have been a part of it, and I felt just so grateful and I'm so proud that Ken got his Oscar. It just was very, very special.
With the final season, there's gonna be a lot of—just like I'm doing now—looking back at your career and how this thing changed you and the films that you did and the projects that you did outside of it, what do you do next? How do you decide what to do next? That would be a lot of pressure for me.
No, I think, this last year has been—I took six months off after we wrapped. I wanted to spend time with my family. I wanted just enjoy my life a little bit and decompress because I think coming off the show, it was such an emotional season, just because every time you're like, "Ah, this is the last, we're doing the last season!" It's hard not to have that intense energy for a long time. So I needed to decompress. And then I've just been so fortunate that my reasons for choosing projects is still always the same. I wanna work on great material with good people, and it just has to speak to me. So I've done these lovely little bits in projects. Sometimes it's a very small role, sometimes it's a bigger role. That part doesn't bother me. I just wanna work with interesting artists and on great scripts. And I had the best year, and I think if I let my curiosity lead me then I can't really go wrong.
I spoke with Paul Giamatti yesterday, and I was talking to him about that, about the pursuit of the journeyman actor, how it doesn't matter the size of the role, if there's something great in that small role. Then you just have to do it.
Or the project, for me, so I got to be a small part of this incredible film that's gonna come out next year called Tenzing, and I'm probably in five or six scenes, but I got go to Nepal, work with incredible actors, this brilliant director, Jennifer Peedom, also on a project that is reframing the narrative, this historical narrative about Tenzing Norgay. And his achievements in Climbing Everest, because he was always just regarded as a footnote in Edmund Hillary's story. And all of a sudden, they're making this beautiful film that gives him the recognition that he deserves. And it's using all these amazing Nepali-Tibetan actors, and it's the most gorgeous project. Honestly, it was like a gift. I just was like, "Wow, I am so grateful," and I have such a small role but it was the most fun and that to me is like why I'm in this business. And then other stuff where it's like bigger roles but when you feel that excitement about something and it's like "Oh well, then I have to do it!"
Newsweek
Remember… as an actor doing one character, you become so micro-focused on that role and what that character's role and journey. But as a director, you get to be over everything. And you see the bigger picture. — Caitríona Balfe
Starz, really, this is how you want to treat fans of your series they've invested in, been following all these years and spend a lot of money on?
Within 3 minutes the RSVP was closed apparently
And the ones that did manage to sign up:
It doesn't mean you can attend the event
People getting confused, it's all super vague and it looks like people just need to turn up and be there even if they have no guarantee they can get in?
Shame on you Starz, this is no way to treat fans!
I just received what the email contains when submission was successful:
Thanks @highheelsandvodka for sending this to me
They did this with BoMB’s premiere. I know someone who went to that and they explained in my local fan group. Those that successfully “RSVPed” will later be contacted by email to confirm if they’ll actually attend. That’s where the first come, first serve part comes in. Out of that pool, those that confirm first will get tickets. Once those were all claimed, they had a second tier for stand-by tickets. The people with the stand-by tickets would know that’s what they got and it is up to them if they want to go to NYC and hope for no-shows.
I’m not defending it. It’s still a poor way of handling it given that it is something some fans will travel for and it doesn’t give them a lot of time to make travel arrangements. But not quite as bad as it seems. Calling it RSVPing just creates a lot of confusion.
On the one hand, of course Tumblr’s woobifying Jimmy Crystal.
On the other hand-
No, actually, they gave Jack O’Connell a fucking tiara, they knew what they were doing 😩
Are you a fan of Jack O'Connell's or did you just post about him to compare him to Sam? If you're a fan, I love him and would love to see more Jack content.
I’m a fan of his. I realized I was a fan when he did Godless and had actually seen most of what he’d been in previously without noticing I enjoyed every role I’d seen him in previously. Full disclosure, I only watched Skins after Godless, and I did enjoy it despite being a tad too old for the target market by that point).
I didn’t necessarily post (technically it was a couple of reblogs) about him to compare him to Sam. It was really more about how someone can actually keep their private life private if they really want to do so. And just randomly slip in personal details here and there. JackO is more like Cait, imo. Put a little bit out there not to intrigue people into wanting to know more, but enough to satiate (some anyway) and not make your private life look like a dirty secret.
Sam maintains his status quo of never talking about his life until HE is directly impacted by it. Then he talks about how HE is bullied.
Back to Jack, I’m more or less here to follow along with stuff I like and occasionally comment. But happy to provide some Jack content here and there since at least I now know one other person in my little tumblr circle is interested.
Full disclosure. It’s a pet peeve of mine when people only read headlines and then proceed to comment like they got the full story from it.
For all the misinformation or disinformation he could correct, this is what he does. And while the headline doesn’t include his entire body of work, in the first sentence of the full article, it specifically states TV role.
Not only does this come across as immature and petty, he presumably knows a headline can’t include his entire resume. Furthermore, his run as Macbeth is over. It’s not something people can check out on streaming. At best, they can go read the mostly mediocre reviews. If he was so proud of it, I wonder why he didn’t choose to highlight it much himself, like the other cast members did. It didn’t seem that important to him in the grand scheme of things (no bts pics or stories from him) and this wasn’t an interview. But he wants to nitpick headlines now for not including it?
he's serving james cook here if u know what i mean
i just fell to my knees at work
https://www.ft.com/content/21fd0b1a-d72c-4c79-8fa5-f9f0bf6f03a5
Casually drops he’s in a relationship and has a daughter and this…
When the industry has tried to make him something “hot”, he has felt an urgency to move in the other direction. “For me that’s not wearing nice tuxedos and quaffing and bantering at big events,” he says. “Let me put it simpler for you: I don’t feel like I’m a show pony.”
Who’s that knockin!! 😏😜
It’s the narrative .. just the narrative .. NARRATIVE!!!🤣🤣
Yet another nail … 🔨. Gotta love that patience!!!😜
And another nail when she talked about how Sam had boot camp with the Highlander cast for the first couple of weeks while she was filming with Tobias and getting drunk with him and she was sort of left out at first. So much for “inseparable since the audition”.
my issue is P posted days ago saying they met long ago, but today she had to add in they met before either marriages. Now, wouldn’t that be in the first post? Wouldn’t they have said they met many years ago before she was ever married? But no, they’re saying that way now because ppl started questioning if they had an affair. This whole thing is so messy and stupid. That means he had to meet her before outlander and he would have followed her then, no one knew him. So why did he follow her once she was married a year and having a child?
“When you’re dead, you don’t know you’re dead. The pain is felt by others.
The same thing happens when you’re stupid.”
Did it ever occur to anon that P is just making stuff up? Or that she’s wrong? It wouldn’t be the first time a “source” lied to her and she published it as FACT! It wouldn’t be the first time she made something up in the absence of anything new. He followers want the fantasy, romantic unproblematic Sam, so that is what she sells.
You don't honestly believe he's happy with her? The photo booth pictures look forced.
That isn’t for me to say. I do believe they are dating, so presumably he’s not unhappy. Shippers have said the same thing about Cait and Tony for years. It is a ludicrous to me that people believe everyone who is in a relationship stare at each other with heart eyes. Sam, like most actors, has a carefully curated public image. He isn’t selling his private life and personal relationships to fans. And it’s not realistic to expect him to look at a woman he’s with the way he and Cait look at each other when promoting Outlander, for example. Or how enthusiastic he is when selling MPC, his books, or his alcohol. And despite what some claim, this relationship isn’t PR that’s being sold to the public. Just because fans can go digging and find it doesn’t mean it’s for public consumption. It’s his life and one can’t really compare how he looks in personal photos to those that are being used to sell something. He also just finished the play and went immediately to a book tour. Maybe he was just tired. I don’t know. But I do know no one can judge how in love someone is or isn’t based on a few pictures.
