Outlander actors ‘perhaps forced’ to do nude scenes, Sam Heughan says

By Craig Meighan, Press Association Scotland political reporter

Outlander star Sam Heughan has said actors on the programme were “perhaps forced” into filming nude scenes.

Speaking during an on-stage conversation with fellow Scottish actor Alan Cumming, Heughan discussed the early years of the hit historical drama.

He said that naked scenes were “always a negotiation” with the show’s team and “it wasn’t particularly a nice one”.

Asked by Cumming whether the show had intimacy co-ordinators, Heughan said: “We didn’t and we were very much left to our own devices.

“In fact, dare I say, even perhaps forced to do nudity when we were not particularly happy about it.

“It was always a negotiation but it wasn’t particularly a nice one.”

The 46-year-old, who played Jamie Fraser in the long-running series, said the television industry had fewer guidelines and protection during the early days of Outlander, which began in 2014.

Speaking at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre event, he said there was an intimacy co-ordinator during the later parts of the show, which he described as “great protection” for actors.

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.”

The Scot spoke about a scene in Outlander in which his character is raped, which he said was the most challenging scene in his career.

He told the crowd: “It was challenging and I remember it was many days (filming) because it was a really long scene.

“He (Jamie) 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.”

Sony Pictures Television, which produces Outlander, has been approached for comment.