‘Outlander’ Season 3 Cast, Updates: Filming Officially Begins in Scotland; Sam Heughan Jokes About Jamie’s New Look

‘Outlander’ season 3 begins filming in Scotland. Sam Heughan, who plays lead protagonist Jamie on the series, joked about his character’s new look in a Twitter post.

According to The Knowledge, filming for ‘Outlander’ season 3 has officially commenced in Scotland. It was reported that cast and crew have begun production in Wardpark Studios, a converted warehouse in Cumbernauld near Glasgow.

Chairman of Wardpark Studios Limited Terry Thomson confirmed that the facility has been given permission to double in size to 78,000 sq ft. Thomson said, "We’re committed to making this expansion happen… When the development is complete, we’ll have added a further 30,000 sq ft across two new 50-foot-high sound stages, bringing our total facility to 78,000 square feet across six sound stages… We know there is demand from other international and indigenous productions for purpose-built studio facilities in Scotland. We’re confident we can make this expansion a commercial success.”

Scotland remains one of the more popular filming locations in the UK. Films such as Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones’ slapstick comedy ‘Monty Python and the Holy Grail’, Lasse Hallstrom’s romantic comedy-drama ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’, Sam Mendes’ James Bond film ‘Skyfall’, and Justin Kurzel’s Shakespearean adaptation ‘Macbeth’ all had scenes shot in various locations in Scotland.

Meanwhile, Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe are set to reunite for a third season as lead protagonists Jamie Fraser and Claire Randall/Fraser, respectively. According to Celebrity Dirty Laundry, Jamie and Claire’s reunion will reportedly take place in a print shop.

Heughan took to Twitter to announce season 3’s official first day of filming on August 22. He posted, “First day. Season 3. Done. Zzzzzzz #goodtobeback.” He also made fun of Jamie’s comeback look by posting an image of a fictional character portrayed by Mike Myers on the ‘Austin Powers’ film series. The image posted on August 21 was one of Myers in a fat suit as the character Fat Bastard, Dr. Evil’s henchman hailing from Scotland.

The 36-year old actor previously teased that the incoming season will feature a completely different Jamie. The series will do a 20-year time jump with many characters aging significantly. Season 3 is reportedly based on Diana Gabaldon’s ‘Voyager’, the third book in the ‘Outlander’ series.

‘Outlander’ is a historical drama television series based on Diana Gabaldon’s historical time travel books of the same name. It was developed by Ronald D. Moore and produced by Sony Pictures Television and Left Bank Pictures. It first aired on Starz on August 9, 2014.