It didn’t take long for June to plan a return to Gilead — with Luke by her side — while Serena is getting courted by newcomer Commander Wharton on The Handmaid’s Tale.
During the new episode on Tuesday, April 15, June (Elisabeth Moss) was making plans to return to Alaska, but Luke (O-T Fagbenle) and Moira (Samira Wiley) had other plans. Luke was in the thick of helping draw up plans that would bring bombs to Gilead while Moira signed up for an undercover mission reuniting her with the Jezebels.
June’s best efforts to convince Luke and Moira to go to Alaska with her are unsuccessful. By the end of the episode, she volunteers to join them instead by being the one to infiltrate Jezebel’s to help the women — including Janine (Madeline Brewer) — out. June and Luke have an emotional conversation where they admit they still hope this mission would give them a chance to see their daughter, Hannah (Jordana Blake).
Elsewhere in the show, Rita (Amanda Brugel) visited New Bethlehem, where she reunited with her sister and considered a move there. A conversation with Nick (Max Minghella) convinced her to stay, but it remained unclear where his loyalties truly lied or how safe New Bethlehem would be for Rita.
There was also Serena (Yvonne Strahovski), who continued to bond with Rose’s (Carey Cox) father, Commander Wharton (Josh Charles). A meaningful conversation over pie led to a late night stroll which led to a romantic dance. Serena and Commander Wharton’s flirtation was interrupted, however, by Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd).
Speaking of Aunt Lydia, her conversation with Commander Lawrence (Bradley Whitford) and Naomi (Ever Carradine) about Janine clouded her view of the regime. She believed handmaids would be rewarded after bearing children, and that’s clearly not the case.
Commander Lawrence had his own run-in with Janine while visiting the Jezebels with Commander Bell (Timothy Simons). While Bell clearly has an interest in Janine (he’s a repeat visitor), Lawrence is sent off to a room with Janine to have his way with her. Instead of having sex, they spoke about how Commander Lawrence was watching over Janine’s daughter, Angela, but she was still worried about her future once the little girl got older. It didn’t help that Commander Lawrence’s place in Gilead is shaky at best.
The final season of The Handmaid’s Tale isn’t expected to wrap up every story line but will presumably set up The Testaments. Based on Margaret Atwood’s novel of the same name, The Testaments has already been ordered to series at Hulu as a spinoff.
“There are people who return and the same thing in the Testaments. We’re gonna bring characters from The Handmaid’s Tale to that world as well,” creator Bruce Miller exclusively told Us Weekly earlier this month. “So there are people who show up — but to tell you who they are will take away all the fun.”
Miller noted that there would be some major surprises during The Handmaid’s Tale to The Testaments transition.
“I hope [the audience has] questions when the show ends. I think this book is way too complicated to tie up neatly, and when I read the book I had a million questions at the end,” he added. “So I hope if we’re doing justice to the story we told in the book, certainly you’ll have questions at the end.”
Not every cast member is interested in returning for more. Wiley, 37, confirmed to Us in March that she wouldn’t reprise her role as Moira, saying, “Probably not. I feel like I’ve had enough of Margaret Atwood’s trauma for a while.”
Wiley noted she was “looking at another direction” when it came to future projects. After playing Moira since 2017, Wiley was proud of the character she helped create for Hulu’s hit series.
The Handmaid’s Tale fans have watched the cast change on and off screen since the series first debuted. The hit Hulu series, which premiered in 2017, is based on Margaret Atwood’s novel of the same name about a dystopian future. Due to low fertility rates, women were assigned to men for bearing children after a […]
“It’s bittersweet. I have never had the pleasure of playing a character for eight years and never had a character whose journey that I’ve been able to tell this story from the beginning all the way to the end,” she shared. “I’ll miss my cast mates very, very much. But I’ll also miss her [Moira]. I’ll miss the fictional character of Moira that I was able to create.”
Fagbenle, 44, meanwhile, joked to Us he would consider coming back as Luke “if they ask really nicely.” As for Sam Jaeger, he showed support for more scenes with Mark in the spinoff.
“It was so funny when I learned how they were creating The Testaments. Originally in the book, it was so much further in the future,” he noted. “I just assumed that it was different, and they would have a different actor come in. But it doesn’t seem they’ve shifted things in a way.”
Jaeger continued: “So if they want me back, I would probably willingly do that. It’s such a great group of people. And to see the next iteration — I’m excited to see it as just a fan.”
The Handmaid’s Tale airs Tuesdays and new episodes will be streaming on Hulu.
