Starz’s “Outlander: Blood of My Blood” introduced a new love interest for Murtagh in Season 2, Episode 2, titled “The Veil of Time,” now streaming on the network.
In the episode, Brian (Jamie Roy) and Murtagh (Rory Alexander) travel to Castle Leoch to tell the MacKenzies that Lord Lovat (Tony Curran) has agreed to rally troops for the Jacobite cause. Before they can deliver the news, they clash with Dougal (Sam Retford) and his men. When Mrs. Fitz (Sally Messham) finds her injured nephew Murtagh, she hands his care over to Jocasta Cameron’s (Sadhbh Malin) new maid, Grace Cameron, played by Ruby Fubara, while she goes for medical supplies. Murtagh and Grace immediately show chemistry, and Jocasta notices.
Executive producers Matthew B. Roberts and Maril Davis told Decider why they created the character now.
“As soon as we broke his heart last year Rory [Alexander] just felt like a puppy that needed a home,” Matthew B. Roberts said. “So we thought about it, and putting [Grace] in Jocasta’s world also felt very organic to creating more and more story.”
Roberts added that the relationship “blossoms” over the season. “It’s going to be really cool to watch them develop this. It was fun writing it and breaking the story for it,” he said.
Davis said the writers wanted to explore how young, hopeful Murtagh became the “curmudgeonly” character seen in the original “Outlander” series.
“Everyone forgets that Murtagh became that way, curmudgeonly, as we saw in Outlander. What led to that?” Davis said. “We were keen to see young, hopeful Murtagh, which Rory has portrayed now, but what led to him becoming that way? And we’re seeing some of that. He was in love and there was a time when he was hopeful. So it’s fun to see that for him.”
Grace Cameron does not appear in the original “Outlander” series, meaning she was created specifically for “Blood of My Blood.” She has an English accent, like time-traveling character Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Claire’s parents, raising questions about her backstory that the show has not yet answered. Roberts confirmed the producers are building a genuine love story between Grace and Murtagh.
Grace is played by Ruby Fubara, who has previously played a character also named “Grace” on the show “Breeders.” Fubara does not appear to have a public social media account. Roberts said Fubara “hit the ground running” on set.
“She just embodied exactly what we wanted in Grace, and I think it’s going to be a great addition to the love stories on Outlander,” Roberts said.
“Outlander: Blood of My Blood” Season 2, Episode 2 is now streaming on Starz.
