'Outlander: Blood of My Blood' Season 2 Is About to Put Brian and Ellen Through Hell

Brian Fraser and Ellen MacKenzie finally got the chance to choose each other, but it looks like their happiness will not last very long. Outlander: Blood of My Blood is returning for Season 2, and a new preview clip suggests that Jamie Fraser’s parents are about to face another major test. After spending the first season fighting against family pressure, clan loyalty, and their own complicated feelings, the couple now has to deal with dangers that could tear them apart all over again.

The first season ended with Brian and Ellen making a huge decision. Their families and clans had plenty of reasons to keep them apart, but the two refused to give up on their relationship. They decided to run away together, choosing their love instead of following the rules expected of them. It was a big moment for the couple, but fans of the Outlander universe already know that finding love is only the beginning. Keeping that love alive can be much harder.

Entertainment Weekly has now given fans a look at what is coming next with an exclusive clip from Season 2. The footage puts Brian and Ellen in a dangerous situation and makes it clear that the new season will not give them an easy path forward. Instead of allowing the couple to enjoy the life they fought so hard to build, the story appears ready to throw them straight into another crisis.

The biggest problem will be the political chaos surrounding them. Season 2 moves deeper into the period leading up to the Jacobite Rising of 1715, a real conflict that changed Scotland’s history. Brian will become caught up in the growing unrest, and that could create even more distance between him and Ellen. The couple may be together now, but the world around them is becoming increasingly dangerous, and they will have to make difficult choices about where their loyalties really belong.

Showrunner Matthew B. Roberts has already warned viewers that the new episodes will not be easy. Speaking with TV Insider during a set visit in Scotland, Roberts said, “There are a lot of ups and a lot of downs. And some hard episodes to watch.” That comment is probably enough to make longtime Outlander fans nervous. The franchise has never been afraid to put its characters through painful situations, and Blood of My Blood appears ready to continue that tradition.

Brian and Ellen are not the only couple facing serious trouble. The other major story in the series follows Julia Moriston and Henry Beauchamp, Claire’s parents. Their story takes place in a very different time period, but their relationship is facing its own huge challenge. The first season ended with a major question about whether Julia, Henry, and their newborn son William were able to travel through the standing stones at Craigh na Dun.

Season 2 will finally begin to answer that mystery. According to the show’s official synopsis, Henry ends up separated from Julia and William after traveling through time. He arrives in a different period and eventually finds himself dealing with serious mental health problems while living as a World War I veteran in a psychiatric hospital. His situation gives the season another emotional story about love, separation, and trying to find your way back to the person you care about.

Executive producer Maril Davis has explained that these two romances are meant to connect in an important way. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, she said, “We are going to show not only one great love affair, but two great love affairs and how those parallel love stories intertwine and show us how we got to Jamie and Claire.” That idea remains at the heart of the prequel. The show is not simply telling another Outlander love story. It is showing fans where the Fraser family story began and how these earlier relationships helped shape Jamie and Claire’s future.

The cast returning for the second season includes Harriet Slater as Ellen MacKenzie, Jamie Roy as Brian Fraser, Hermione Corfield as Julia Moriston, and Jeremy Irvine as Henry Beauchamp. Tony Curran, Séamus McLean Ross, Sam Retford, Rory Alexander, and Conor MacNeill are also part of the returning ensemble. The season will contain ten episodes, with Outlander author Diana Gabaldon continuing her involvement as a consulting producer.

Outlander: Blood of My Blood Season 2 premieres September 18 on Starz. Brian and Ellen may have finally chosen each other, but judging from the new footage, their biggest problems are only beginning. If this season follows the show’s usual pattern, fans should expect plenty of danger, heartbreak, separation, and hopefully a hard-earned reunion.