Outlander star Sam Heughan has said he resents having to address made up stories about him and co-star Caitriona Balfe. Sam, 44, and Caitriona, 45, have starred in the hit show for several seasons, a stint that has increased their public profiles and kept them firmly in the spotlight.
However, this has come at a cost admits Sam, something he admits in his book ‘Waypoints: My Scottish Journey’ where he discusses the impact of becoming famous and well-known on his life outside Outlander.
This includes people peering into his private life and holding him accountable for things fictional characters do. He explained: “I’ve discovered a dark side to fame. It’s the one part of my job that unsettles me. I like people enjoying my work, but when they invest in my private life, it takes something away something that all of us value.
“There are times when I have found myself held accountable for actions taken by Jaime, which is ludicrous. Or they have created false narratives around relationships I’ve had.”
With regard to his working partnership and off screen friendship with Caitriona he penned: “In particular, this can focus on Jamie’s relationship with Claire. Off screen, Caitriona Balfe and I enjoy each other’s company.
“We’ve worked with each other for long enough to relax and be ourselves, and we know each other extremely well, perhaps like brother and sister; we have been through a lot together. We’ve learned to take it in our stride, but I sometimes resent having to address the made-up stories about us. By doing so, I just give it substance.”
Sam is reportedly single but Caitriona married businessman Tony McGill in 2019.
In Outlander, Sam and Caitriona star as husband and wife due Jamie and Claire Fraser. Series seven has been greeted with much anticipation as the two characters endure a painful and emotional goodbye.
Speaking about the filming of those goodbyes, Caitriona told The One Show: “We’ve had a couple of wraps. We had the official one and then we had our final pick-ups and that sort of stuff. But our official wrap we had a lot of executives came, there was a lot of the cast who came to the studio, the whole studio was full. And we had a seven minute scene or something?”
Caitriona added that the emotional scene had caused something unexpected to occur whilst filming due to the intense emotions. She said: “My face had started to do some weird… parts of my face twitched that I didn’t know was possible.”
Outside of Outlander Sam has been one of several actors tipped to potentially replace Daniel Craig as the next James Bond, but the Scottish Daily Express reported that it could be fellow Scot Jack Lowden who is in pole position to take on the iconic role according to Gambling.com.
They said: “Jack Lowden’s star is on the ascendancy on the back of his performances as River Cartwright in award-winning British spy series Slow Horses. Lowden’s excellent comic timing brings levity to the series, but he also packs a punch when necessary, so he has the attributes needed to play Bond.”