Not long ago Yvonne Strahovski, who plays beautiful, ruthless, deeply complicated Serena on 鈥淭he Handmaidsa国际传媒 Tale,鈥 was forced to watch early scenes of her charactersa国际传媒 cruelty.
Of course, Serena was being cruel to long-suffering heroine June It wasn鈥檛 a nice experience to relive.
鈥淚 was dying. I wanted to vomit! It was horrible,鈥 Strahovski said in an interview, of footage played at a panel event. 鈥淭o go back and look at that was insanely jarring.鈥
To which longtime 鈥淗andmaidsa国际传媒鈥 fans would likely reply: Tell us about it, Serena! We鈥檝e gone through hell and back ourselves, for 56 episodes.
Rapes. Mass hangings. Shootings. Torture. Kids torn from mothers, tongues from mouths. And more. The searing Hulu drama about a totalitarian state that treats women as property, based on may have been brilliant. But the brilliance came from abject darkness.
So praise be, loyal fans: Creators of the show felt your pain. They want you to know that this, the sixth and final season, will be different.
It will still be Gilead, to be sure. As Bradley Whitfordsa国际传媒 ever-quotable Commander Lawrence would say: 鈥淕ileadsa国际传媒 gonna Gilead.鈥 But it will be faster-paced, and more satisfying. There will be catharsis and redemption 鈥 rewards for all that fan loyalty.
There may even be 鈥 levity?
Yes. Don鈥檛 take it from us (though we鈥檝e previewed the first eight episodes). Take it from June herself.
Moss, who not only stars but directs four episodes this season, says it was around season 4 or 5 when creators realized they wanted to move away 鈥渇rom too much in-your-face darkness.鈥
Of course, the showsa国际传媒 hardly turned into a sitcom.
鈥淲e wouldn鈥檛 be 鈥楾he Handmaidsa国际传媒 Tale鈥 if we didn鈥檛 have those dark moments,鈥 she says. 鈥淚t would be dishonest.鈥 But, she says, 鈥淲e did want to bring in more lightness and levity.鈥
Helpful in that regard: Whitfordsa国际传媒 whipsmart characterization of Commander Lawrence, who tosses off memorable one-liners like 鈥淪erena, are you suffering from an irony deficiency?鈥
Whitford confirms a reportersa国际传媒 suspicions that he鈥檇 come up with that one himself. 鈥淚鈥檝e been telling that joke for years,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 pitched it 鈥 and I鈥檓 very proud of it.鈥
The series will move faster, too
Eric Tuchman, showrunner with Yahlin Chang, recognizes people had started to find the show 鈥渁 hard watch 鈥 and that was honestly a way we as writers were beginning to feel.鈥
So, along with shunning the most extreme cruelty, the show has abandoned what he calls the 鈥渕ore languid pacing鈥 of the past.
鈥淲e had a lot of stories we wanted to tell in 10 episodes,鈥 Tuchman says. 鈥淲e wanted the season to have a feeling of momentum and to be propulsive.鈥
Adds Chang: 鈥淚t was a now-or-never thing 鈥 this is the last chance we get to tell these stories with these characters."
We can likely expect fewer endless gazes into Junesa国际传媒 tearful eyes. Theresa国际传媒 stuff to get done.
Itsa国际传媒 decision time: Are you good or evil?
A number of characters have flirted with the other side, morally, in the show 鈥 good people doing terrible things, terrible people occasionally doing good. Well, it's time for everyone to take a stand.
鈥淧eople don鈥檛 stay the same,鈥 Moss says. 鈥淪omeonesa国际传媒 gonna go to the dark side, someonesa国际传媒 gonna go to the light. But 鈥 you can鈥檛 just plod along, avoiding choosing a side. At a certain point, you have to choose.鈥
Of course we鈥檝e always known where June stood, as the show's moral compass 鈥 even if many viewers were stunned/perplexed/annoyed each time she returned to Gilead of her own accord.
But Junesa国际传媒 gonna June, as Lawrence might say.
When we left her in season 5, June had just escaped Toronto, where the tide was turning against refugees from Gilead. She boarded a train headed westward, along with baby Nichole. Then she heard another babysa国际传媒 cry, and it turned out Serena, her former tormentor from Gilead, was there too, with her own baby. 鈥淕ot a diaper?鈥 Serena asked.
While the upshot of this train ride is one of many forbidden spoilers, itsa国际传媒 safe to say June and Serenasa国际传媒 relationship remains 鈥 thorny.
Is everyone redeemable 鈥 even Lydia?
Strahovski herself isn鈥檛 sure Serena is redeemable.
鈥淪he has softened. Shesa国际传媒 made redeemable choices. And if theresa国际传媒 ever going to be a bigger redeemable moment, it may occur this season,鈥 Strahovski teases. But she adds: 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if any of it is entirely forgivable.鈥
Then theresa国际传媒 Aunt Lydia. The very name strikes terror for those who remember the horrid things she did to those handmaids.
But Lydia is already showing signs of change. (Shesa国际传媒 also going to be central in an upcoming sequel, 鈥淭he Testaments,鈥 based on a later Atwood novel.)
Ann Dowd says itsa国际传媒 all about love 鈥 for Janine, her favorite handmaid.
鈥淟ove changes everything,鈥 Dowd says. 鈥淚tsa国际传媒 the most powerful thing in the world.鈥
The 鈥楬andmaidsa国际传媒 Tale' actors have changed, too
鈥淭his role has really pushed me to corners I never imagined,鈥 Strahovski says. 鈥淚tsa国际传媒 made me a better actress for it, 100%.鈥
As for Moss, she says her 鈥渨hole professional life has changed on this show.鈥 Not only as actor, but as director and producer.
鈥淔or me, thatsa国际传媒 been massive,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 love acting so much, but I did need something more to sink my teeth into 鈥 I wanted be more involved in all sides of what we do, and I have learned so much.
Current events have seeped into the script
鈥淭he Handmaidsa国际传媒 Tale鈥 premiered in 2017, six months before erupted. In 2022,
鈥淎s a woman, I have fewer rights now than when I started on the show,鈥 says showrunner Chang. 鈥淚 never thought that we would lose Roe v. Wade, even working on the show 鈥 And that does start to get infused into our writing.鈥
Whitford brings up the plight of pregnant rape victims 鈥渨ho do not have access to contraception or abortion care, or the healthcare that they need.鈥
鈥淚tsa国际传媒 certainly been in our consciousness,鈥 he says, 鈥淚tsa国际传媒 a reason why you need a show like this, about resistance.鈥
As for Moss, she prefers to cite the continuing relevance of Atwoodsa国际传媒 story, 40 years on.
鈥淥f course it had a relevancy that you couldn鈥檛 ignore in 2017,鈥 she says. 鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 know when this book and this material has ever not been relevant 鈥 You look at the show and go, God, are they trying to make that connection? No, I think we鈥檙e just trying to be honest and tell the story of these people in this place, and it happens to be something that is incredibly relevant and present."
