Just as The Handmaid's Tale returns to us for its final series, we've also received some exciting news about its prequel TV series, The Testaments. The TV adaptation of Margaret Atwood's prequel novel, released in 2019, has officially started production.
And some of The Handmaid's Tale family will be along for the ride. Ann Dowd, who plays Aunt Lydia in the original series, will reprise her role in The Testaments, and Elisabeth Moss herself will be an executive producer. Handmaids Tale creator Bruce Miller will also be showrunner for the prequel series.
Excitement is an understatement!
An Instagram post from the show's table read was released on both US network Hulu and The Testaments' accounts showing the whole team ready to get going.
The timing of this exciting development is perfectly timed, seeing as the final season of The Handmaid's Tale is set to air this month. Elisabeth Moss recently opened about the experience of becoming a mother herself while filming the final series.
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“It was incredibly meaningful to be able to end this show as a mum, I got to tell you,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “Because I’m playing this character who is this iconic mother figure. All mothers are heroines, and she’s definitely a heroine.”
Here's everything we know so far about the upcoming TV series of The Testaments.
The Testaments plot
Taking place more than 15 years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale, following the lives of three women Aunt Lydia, Agnes, and Daisy as they navigate the dystopian world of Gilead. It is more of a coming-of-age story, as certain characters in The Testaments grew up in this world with no previous memory of a world outside. They will search for new and old allies to aid them in the fight for their freedom and escape a life of marriage and servitude, in the hope that they can reach the lives they know they deserve.
The Testaments is expected to continue Hannah/Agnes’ (expected to be the daughter of Elisabeth Moss' June) story from inside Gilead, picking up from where The Handmaid's Tale left off.
The Testaments cast
The confirmed cast for The Testaments is as follows:
- Chase Infiniti will play Agnes
- Lucy Halliday plays Canadian teenager Daisy, who discovers her chilling connection to the Republic of Gilead.
- Rowan Blanchard plays Shunammite, who hails from a privileged Gilead family.
- Mattea Conforti plays Becka, a girl from humble origins who goes to school with Gilead’s elite, and begins to question the regime.
- Mabel Li plays Aunt Vidala, the heir-apparent to the women’s sphere of Gilead.
- Amy Seimetz plays Paula, whose perfect life as the husband of a Commander is complicated by her new step-daughter.
- Brad Alexander plays Garth, a young Commander who finds himself involved in the personal lives of the girls he’s sworn to protect.
- Zarrin Darnell-Martin plays Aunt Gabbana, right hand to Aunt Vidala and a strict educator.
- Eva Foote plays Aunt Estee, seen as the “cool Aunt” amongst her students.
- Shechinah Mpumlwana plays Jehosheba, who is from a respected family and set on finding a high-status marriage.
- Birva Pandya plays Miriam, who struggles under the pressure of marriage season.
- Kira Guloien plays Rosa, a maternal figure to Agnes and a much-needed source of love.
Things are about to get very, very intense.
We're hoping for an Elisabeth Moss cameo as June, but nothing has been confirmed as of yet. We can only hope.
The Testaments release date
No release date has been confirmed yet, but we are hoping for a late 2025 or early 2026 premiere.
The Testaments trailer
It's too early in the production process for a trailer, but we'll keep this article updated when one drops.
