Outlander had Graham McTavish play Buck MacKenzie in Outlander Season 5. He didn’t return in Season 7. Why did the show change the actor?
If you were a little confused about Buck MacKenzie in Outlander Season 7, you’re not completely alone. Consistency is important, and for show-first or show-only fans, that wasn’t offered in the series.
Graham McTavish took on the role of Buck MacKenzie in Season 5. It was for one episode, and it was a great cameo. The problem is that seeing Buck for the first time in 1980 in Season 7 didn’t quite have the same effect as it could have done had the same actor been used. Why would the show change the actor playing the character?
Outlander Season 7 has a biggest storyline for Buck MacKenzie
While the series has never explained the change officially, it’s likely linked to what’s to come for Buck MacKenzie. We can see just from Outlander Season 7, Episode 7 alone that Buck is going to get a bigger role than he had in the fifth season. He spends more time with Roger, and that means finding an actor how embodies the character a little better.
We love McTavish, and having him turn up in a cameo for an episode was great. The problem was that he’s on the older side. There’s only so much you can do with makeup, and he wouldn’t be as convincing as Dairmaid Murtagh in the role for a longer stint.
One thing McTavish’s part as the character did was confirm who Buck was. This is Dougal and Geillis’s illegitimate son, Roger’s ancestor. There was no doubt about that with the casting choice. The seventh season just needed someone a little younger who could play the role a little more convincingly.
And get ready for more Buck. You can likely see where the storyline is going in a way. Buck and Roger are about to get more screen time together.