‘Outlander’ Season 4 Air Date, Spoilers: Tragic Brianna Storyline Is Happening in TV Series Adaptation; Leaked Premiere Date Confirmed

Starz has finally confirmed that the previously leaked premiere date for “Outlander” season 4 is accurate. Meanwhile, fans should also brace for a tragic storyline focused on Brianna (Sophie Skelton).

Avid fans of the series know now that “Outlander” season 4 is based on Diana Gabaldon’s “Drums of Autumn.” And those who have read the 1996 novel might be wondering if Brianna is going to suffer the same fate in the hands of Stephen Bonnet (Ed Speleers) in the TV show adaptation. The answer is yes.

Based on the spoilers and plot details that were confirmed for “Outlander” season 4, it is starting to look like there will not be many alterations in the TV series adaptation from its reference material, “Drums of Autumn.” This is also going to be the case for Skelton’s Brianna in “Outlander” season 4.

Book lovers who have read “Drums of Autumn” know that Brianna encounters the heartless smuggler who is also the main villain in “Outlander” season 4. In the book, Brianna approaches Bonnet after noticing that he has Claire’s (Caitriona Balfe) wedding ring. Their first meeting turns for the worst as Bonnet raped Brianna.

The rape of Brianna is already a potentially controversial scene from the returning TV series. But it also leads to subsequent major plots, making it impossible for the showrunners to skip it. For one, Brianna gets pregnant after she was raped. It then leads to the storyline of Brianna's added struggle of wondering whether the baby is fathered by her husband, Roger (Richard Rankin), or by the rapist, Bonnet.

The fact that Brianna comes across Bonnet in “Outlander” season 4 also means one thing: she will be meeting her real father, Jamie (Sam Heughan), for the first time in a different era. Brianna’s rape storyline also confirms that she will be time traveling from the 1960s to the 1700s to find Claire and later meet Jamie in the TV series.

Meanwhile, Starz recently confirmed that “Outlander” season 4 will premiere on Nov. 4 at 8 p.m. ET. Prior to Starz’s announcement, there was a leak that mentioned Nov. 4 as the show’s return on the air for its fourth installment.