All We Know About Handmaid’s Tale Sequel, The Testaments
The Handmaid’s Tale ended last year, but we’re not leaving Gilead yet. We’ve finally got proper details on the first season of The Testaments, based on Margaret Atwood’s sequel novel to the original. It’s set several years after the ending of The Handmaid’s Tale, and follows a new set of characters who live in the oppressive state of Gilead and their attempts to fight for freedom. Here’s everything we know so far…
What is The Testaments about?
From what we know so far, The Testaments will adapt the book fairly closely, though unlike the book (which takes place fifteen years later), it is set around five years after the finale of The Handmaid’s Tale. Gilead is still very much not a fun place to live, and for the new generation of women who were introduced to it, it’s all they’ve ever known. But could a better life lie beyond? It’s not easy to follow Elizabeth Moss’ June, but excitingly, The Testaments has a very promising lead. Chase Infiniti, who starred alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in One Battle After Another to critical acclaim, will be playing Agnes, the show’s central character. Agnes is June’s daughter, and it looks like she, too, will become involved in the resistance.
Hulu’s official synopsis of the series states “For these young women, growing up in Gilead is all they have ever known, having no tangible memories of the outside world prior to their indoctrination into this life… …they will be forced to search for allies, both new and old, to help in their fight for freedom and the life they deserve.” Agnes is joined by Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd, reprising her role from The Handmaid’s Tale), who narrates the action in the novel, and Daisy (played by Lucy Halliday), a young Canadian teenager. It’s unknown whether Elizabeth Moss might return in a cameo as June, perhaps in flashback- but for now, it’s all about the new cast.
What else do we know, and is there a release date?
So far, there isn’t a huge amount else that we know about how The Testaments will unfold (unless you’ve read the book, of course), but we do have a few first looks at Agnes, Aunt Lydia and Daisy in the newly released trailer. The show is set to debut on Disney+ in the UK on April 8th, and you can watch the teaser below.
