Latest news with #BruceMiller
Pink Villa
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Did Taylor Swift Make a Cameo in The Handmaid's Tale Finale? Showrunner's Cryptic Reply Sparks Buzz
Fans of The Handmaid's Tale are buzzing with one question: Did Taylor Swift make a surprise appearance in the final season? The speculation started after Episode 9 featured Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version). Swifties quickly spotted a character shown only from behind in the same scene and started guessing it could be the singer herself. The way the character walked and the deliberate camera angle fueled the theory. Some viewers believe the use of Taylor's re-recorded track and the mystery figure are not a coincidence. When asked about the possibility of Taylor Swift appearing in the episode, showrunner Bruce Miller gave a carefully worded response. 'I can't say anything. I'm not allowed to say anything,' he told Variety. The interviewer stated that this only adds fuel to the fire, to which Miller replied, 'All right, I'm good at making things worse - that's how I make all of my money.' While this doesn't confirm anything, the lack of denial and the teasing tone have left fans convinced that there may be more to the story. Aside from the Swift cameo speculation, Bruce Miller shared how The Handmaid's Tale finale was always planned. 'Well, if you go back and watch the pilot, at the beginning of the pilot, you can hear her click that tape recorder that she clicks at the end of the series to start recording 'The Handmaid's Tale' in the audio - and we didn't go back and put that in, that was there,' he said. The final scene shows June (Elisabeth Moss) beginning to record her story in the Waterfords' destroyed home, tying back to her first voiceover monologue as Offred. Although The Handmaid's Tale has ended, the world of Gilead will continue in Hulu's upcoming adaptation of The Testaments, based on Margaret Atwood's 2019 sequel. Bruce Miller is leading the new series and working closely with Elisabeth Moss, who will return as a producer. Miller confirmed that June's story ends with The Handmaid's Tale, but The Testaments will explore what happens after.
Pink Villa
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Will The Handmaid's Tale Return for Season 7? Decoding What Series Finale Means for Elisabeth Moss' Future
The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 marks the end of Hulu's long-running dystopian drama. Fans who are still wondering about Season 7 can now get a clear answer. Here's everything we know about the future of the series, the spinoff, and what's next for Gilead. The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 Episode 10 is the series finale. The final episode was released on Hulu on May 27, 2025, at 12 a.m. Eastern Time. This final episode will conclude June Osborne's journey after years of survival and resistance in Gilead. Will There Be The Handmaid's Tale Season 7? Hulu confirmed that The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 is the final season. There will not be a Season 7. The creators decided to end the show rather than risk a cancellation. Creator Bruce Miller originally planned a five-season arc. Later, he expanded the story to six seasons. In an interview, co-showrunner Yahlin Chang said, 'We were doing a little retreat before the beginning of the season five writers room…Bruce was like, 'I think we have two more seasons.'' Season 6 wraps up major storylines, especially June's arc, which evolved from a handmaid to a key resistance figure. Eric Tuchman and Yahlin Chang, who led the show in later seasons, shared insights about the finale. Tuchman told ScreenRant, 'Fans who followed June from the start will understand her journey.' He added, 'Although the show had dark moments, it also showed strength and hope.' Tuchman believes the finale will leave fans with a sense of hope. Chang shared that the writing team managed to close many plots, but left a key cliffhanger that will be resolved in the sequel series The Testaments. While The Handmaid's Tale ends with Season 6, the universe will continue in The Testaments. This spinoff is based on Margaret Atwood's 2019 novel and is set 15 years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale. Bruce Miller left his role on The Handmaid's Tale in 2023 to focus on The Testaments, which began filming in April 2025. Ann Dowd will return as Aunt Lydia and new characters include Agnes (Chase Infiniti), Daisy (Lucy Halliday), and Becka (Mattea Conforti). Hulu describes The Testaments as a coming-of-age story with a completely different feel and vibe. Elisabeth Moss, who played June, will serve as an executive producer. A 2026 premiere is expected.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Elisabeth Moss on 'The Handmaid's Tale' finale moment that gave her chills
Red cloaks. Stiff white bonnets. Bent heads. If there's a single image that Hulu's "The Handmaid's Tale" leaves audiences with as it ends its six-season run this week, it's this one: That of women in a dystopian anti-America called Gilead, evolving from anonymous sexual slaves into rebels, warriors and, sometimes, survivors. But for "Handmaid's" creator Bruce Miller and star Elisabeth Moss, who also directed several episodes in the final season, the series, based on the 1985 book by Margaret Atwood, was never about what the women wore. It was about the women inside the color-coded uniforms. "June started out as a normal person, a mom, a wife," says Moss, whose other long-running roles include 'The West Wing' and 'Mad Men.' She won an Emmy for playing the "Handmaid's" title character in 2017, the same year the show took home the first drama series prize for a streaming show. "Then [June] had to shut down and become something that I don't think she wasn't proud of," Moss continues. "But I feel she comes out of that into a place of true heroism, where she is able to be herself, be generous, forgive, inspire other people, lead — but also be vulnerable, ask questions, not know everything." Miller, who stepped back from showrunning duties for the final season, with Eric Tuchman and Yahlin Chang taking over, especially wanted to ensure that as a man, he was telling a female-forward story from the female point of view — both in the writers' room and on camera. Read more: Commentary: From 'The Last of Us' to 'Handmaid's Tale,' women are angry and vengeful. Good "I'm very mindful of the fact that I'm a boy, and who do I think I am?" he says, adding that winning the Emmy boosted his confidence in being a man telling a story about women's rights. (The series has 15 Emmys total.) "Definitely, when you win an Emmy it helps you feel a bit less like you have one penis over the limit." Knowing that, Miller says he centered the story on June and Moss alike, adjusting camera angles to focus on her point of view — but lowered to an eye level that corresponded with the actress' 5-foot-3 height. "The crowd scenes get much more scary" when you do that, he says. "I want to see the world not just through June's eyes — but also Lizzie's eyes, as much as she's able to show me those things." Meanwhile, Moss used roles as executive producer and director to focus on the show's look and how June came across on camera. Frequently, she's shown smoldering with fury or dark intent, gazing up from under her brows with a lowered chin, something Moss says she lifted from Stanley Kubrick's films. "That is 'Clockwork Orange,'" she says. "I am certainly not the first person to do that look." But she might be one of very few actresses to convey it onscreen. "It's definitely not something women do [on camera]," she says. "Women aren't allowed to get angry. [June] uses her anger and weaponizes it at so many points during the show — and by the final season, she knows when to do that and when not to." The journey June, Elisabeth and "Handmaid's" have been on began at an uncomfortably synergistic time in American politics: Amid the airing of a series about women subject to state regulation of their bodily autonomy, real-world politicians were successfully rolling back women's reproductive rights. In 2018, protestors began showing up at real-world events in those handmaid-red cloaks and white bonnets, putting the show in an unexpected spotlight. "Art does have an impact," says Moss about that kind of a response, but suggests that repurposing the show's images, outfits or story in service of real-world politics misses a key element of the series. "I don't think any of us necessarily set out, when you're making a TV show, to [make a political statement], because that's the wrong way to go about it. You're telling this one woman's story. … It's always been 'The Handmaid's Tale,' her story." Read more: Under her eye: The blessings of Ann Dowd as Aunt Lydia in 'The Handmaid's Tale' That's one reason why after six seasons the series chose to end as it did: With June back in the house where it all began, starting her memoirs — "The Handmaid's Tale." When Miller pitched that final episode script, Moss says it made her cry. "I love the idea that at the end is when she starts to tell the story that is the book, and the circular nature of that gives me chills," she says. "The fact that she realizes that she has to tell it because it wasn't all bad." But the ending also does one more thing: It shows how little is truly resolved. June's daughter Hannah is still trapped in Gilead, for example. And fans of the series know the action will pick up 15 years later when "The Testaments," based on a 2019 sequel by Atwood and now in production, begins airing. (Moss won't say whether she'll cameo.) So this is an ending — just not the ending. Now, the story leaves off, still focused on the woman who escaped the bonnet and cloak and not about the trappings of her enslavement. "For me, the ending is perfect," says Moss. "I also don't feel like it is an ending. The war is not over. June's journey is not over." Get the Envelope newsletter, sent three times a week during awards season, for exclusive reporting, insights and commentary. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Elisabeth Moss Breaks Down ‘The Handmaid's Tale' Series Finale
Elisabeth Moss breaks down the series finale for 'The Handmaid's Tale' on Hulu. This article contains spoilers. Elisabeth Moss was all smiles in an in-person interview before the sixth and final season of the award-winning Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale, when she promised fans a 'wild ride.' She kept her word. Just when you think June Osborne has been pushed beyond the point of no return, she's tested in ways even she couldn't have seen coming. The ten-episode season certainly delivered and stayed true to Margaret Atwood's bestselling novel and Bruce Miller's television adaptation. Throughout the seasons, Miller has ardently stayed true to Atwood's book, saying before this season premiered that the show's ending would not be what he felt the audience wanted, but what he thought June would get. "I tried to be as realistic about how far June could get if she pushed. We've followed June for so long, and we want to see what the Handmaid can achieve before her tale ends.' Elisabeth Moss breaks down the series finale for Hulu's 'The Handmaid's Tale.' Executive producer Warren Littlefield told me there were many discussions on how to end the beloved series. 'We wanted to reward the audience who followed this treacherous journey and give them a sense of satisfaction. This show was always about hope and determination.' Their methods worked. Since its 2017 premiere, the show has been nominated for over 75 awards and won 15 Primetime Emmys, including awards for Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actress for Moss, and supporting acting categories. In the finale, the viewer is privy to the beginning of the end of the war as Handmaids and Marthas are finally free in some regions, June reunites with Emily, knows Moira made it out, parts ways amicably with Luke, makes peace with Serena, and sees her beloved friend Janine set free with her daughter, Charlotte. There is, however, a very important loose end: June and Luke are not reunited with their daughter, Hannah. This sets up the perfect lead into the sequel, The Testaments, which will be based on Atwood's follow-up novel of the same name. 'If there wasn't going to be a sequel, we may have ended it differently," admitted Moss, referring to Hannah remaining in Gilead. 'The Testaments is centered around Hannah and her story.' Moss confirmed she will executive produce the sequel, but when we spoke, she said scheduling conflicts prevented her from acting or directing. She did, however, hint that the future isn't written in stone. 'Maybe one day… Hopefully, if we get a second season. June's not dead, and she has a lot of fight left in her, and there's a war to be won. We know that June will never give up on Hannah. She has work to do. She won a battle, but she hasn't won the war. And she has not gotten her daughter out. Her battle will never be over until that happens.' Elisabeth Moss and Max Minghella in 'The Handmaid's Tale' on Hulu. Moss hinted in that initial interview that the love triangle between June, Nick, and Luke would be 'smashed" this season. Episode nine, entitled 'Execution,' written by Eric Tuchman, ends with one of the series' most heartbreaking scenes. When Moss first read the script, she asked to direct the episode. In a follow-up interview, she described killing off two of her favorite characters, Max Mighella's Nick and Bradley Whitford's Commander Joseph Lawrence, in a fiery plane crash, as something that had to happen for a few reasons. 'I know fans would love the version where they all live in Hawaii together and have this blended family, but if you saw that episode, you would tear us apart. We'd never live it down. Fans would kill us. It had to happen. I love that Nick and Lawrence get on that plane for different reasons. They're both examples of June's greatest and worst quality, which is her belief that somebody (Lawrence) will do the right thing. She believes Nick will do the right thing, but he doesn't. There's such beautiful poetry in that writing.' Though her relationship with Nick has a definitive ending, June and Luke left things open-ended. 'I didn't want it to be about which man she ended up with. I wanted it to be about her journey as a woman, a mom, a friend, and a Handmaid. I didn't want her to have to choose which one. I didn't want it to be about that. I think there's a possibility of June and Luke having a future together, but they'd have to start over.' When asked to describe the relationship between June and Serena, Moss explained how similar the two women are. 'They're an incredible example of two women with the same goal: to have a safe future for their children. They somehow wound up on opposite sides of the aisle and the argument. I don't excuse Serena's behavior and the terrible things she's done. They're inexcusable. I don't think it's possible to forgive her, but June's generosity and kindness lie in the fact that she sees that Serena needs that forgiveness more than it costs June to give it away." Moss adds that June also forgives Serena for the sake of her son, Noah. 'I feel they're standing right next to each other in the same boat. I think that they're the greatest friendship on the show. They're also the great hero and villain of the show, but that's not how I view them. I view them as the great love story of the show.' Moss describes their relationship as one of the most interesting in the show. "They do love each other. If love is truly understanding somebody and loving them despite every invitation not to, and understanding who somebody is, that's June and Serena. Nobody knows Serena better than June does. She was able to love her despite everything that she's done. I think that's incredibly beautiful.' Elisabeth Moss discussed becoming a mother and how she always understood June Osborne. When asked how becoming a mom in real life impacted her performance, Moss said that though she felt things on a different level, she always understood June. 'It's been an interesting journey. I've always felt like I understood what June feels and that she needs to survive for her daughters. I've always felt like that was what the show was about from the first episode to the last. I've never felt like I didn't understand her," she explained, adding, 'I had a more palpable emotional feeling I tapped into. Being a mom and having a child undoubtedly added a more visceral feeling.' She was quick to clarify that many actors who aren't parents do a wonderful job portraying mothers and fathers. 'I did it for years. I made a career out of it," she said. "It's about relating to feelings of love, attachment, and wanting to protect someone you love. We can all identify with that. I don't think you must be a mom to understand what that feels like.' Moss described the last six weeks of filming as some of the most intense, physically challenging, and rewarding days of her career. 'To be at the helm of this has truly changed my life professionally and personally. I became a producer, a director, and then I became a mom. Bringing this show to a close was a level of meta that is difficult to describe.' To prepare for the final scene, Elisabeth Moss rewatched the first episode of Hulu's 'The Handmaid's ... More Tale.' Here she's with Margaret Atwood. Moss was dedicated to getting the finale right, and she followed her gut instincts when it came to that final scene, which involved 15 varying takes. June returns to the Waterfords' burnt-out shell of a house, where she spent years imprisoned as a Handmaid, and goes to her old room. 'I'm a director who likes options. I had a few versions of that ending. Originally, the final scene was written with June walking up to the steps of the house and sitting outside. I asked Bruce if she could go inside and if the house's interior could be rebuilt. I wanted her to go up to her room because that's where The Handmaid's Tale is written. That's where the opening lines of the book and show are said.' June looks directly into the camera defiantly and says, 'A chair, a table, a name is Offred.' The viewer understands she is going to tell her story. Moss rewatched the 2017 pilot episode, in which June says these same words, to ensure she got it exactly right. 'As we set up that final shot, I realized I had to memorize the speech in the cadence I said it in the first episode. I logged onto my Hulu account, watched that scene over and over, and memorized how I said it. There's an eeriness because subconsciously, it felt like I was listening to the original recording.' Moss did several versions. 'In one take, it's a voiceover. There's one where I don't say it at all. There's one where I say it out loud, which is what you see in the show. There were only two takes of the one you see.' Concluding a series of this caliber is no easy feat. As Moss acknowledged, it's impossible to please millions of fans, but she's happy with how it turned out. 'I cannot imagine a more perfect ending. This is what I think makes the most sense. It feels right.'
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Y2K Icon Alexis Bledel Just Shared the Real Reason She Stepped Away From ‘The Handmaid's Tale'
If you ever felt emotionally wrecked after an episode of The Handmaid's Tale, you're not alone — so did its stars. Alexis Bledel, who played the fierce and haunted Emily, is finally opening up about why she quietly stepped away from the Hulu series in 2022 — and the reason will hit home for anyone who's ever had to walk away from something that felt too heavy. The Gilmore Girls alum, who portrayed Emily Malek (aka Ofglen) on the Hulu drama from 2017 to 2021, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter a few days ahead of the series finale. And in the new interview, she didn't hold back about the lasting impact of Emily's brutal storyline. More from SheKnows What Happened in Nine Perfect Strangers Season 1? Getting You Up to Speed for Season 2 'It was deeply upsetting to even imagine Emily going through something like that — being captured, powerless, with no say over her body,' Bledel shared. 'I was actually offered the role and when I read the pilot script, I immediately said yes. Somehow, Bruce [Miller] just knew I had Ofglen in me.' Emily, once a university professor and mother, is arrested for being in a same-sex relationship — a crime in the repressive, theocratic state of Gilead. Renamed 'Ofglen,' she becomes a Handmaid, forced to bear children for powerful Commanders. Her journey is one of the show's most tragic: from genital mutilation to exile in the Colonieas — a radioactive wasteland where prisoners are sent to die — to exacting violent revenge on Commander Waterford one of the series' most pivotal scenes. In May 2022, Bledel confirmed she would not return, telling E! News, 'After much thought, I felt I had to step away from The Handmaid's Tale at this time.' Bledel isn't the only cast member who's ready to get out of Gilead for good, even with the recently announced sequel The Testaments in the works. Moira, played by Orange is the New Black's Samira Wiley, is June's best friend from before Gilead, is a former Handmaid who manages to escape to Canada — where she becomes one of the series' most outspoken and emotionally grounded survivors. While Wiley ultimately stayed, she made it clear she would return for the show's sequel. 'I'm not gonna tease and say maybe or nothing. Nope,' Wiley began. 'I am done with it. I am done with the trauma. I am. I mean it,' she explained to Parade at the Season 6 premiere back in April. 'Margaret Atwood, the way she writes these characters, the depth to all of it, I feel like I have played my part and my story is done.' 'I had to learn some techniques — meditation and mindfulness and all of those things — to consciously take myself out of the world of Gilead,' she said, later adding, 'I often tell people who binge watch the show like, please take care of your mental health.' Now, with Season 6 marking the show's final chapter, Bledel is reflecting with gratitude. 'I am forever grateful to Bruce Miller for writing such truthful and resonant scenes for Emily,' she added. The series finale airs May 27 — and it's sure to be an emotional end for fans and cast alike. Best of SheKnows Get to Know Elvis & Priscilla Presley's Extended Family: Daughter Lisa Marie, Granddaughter Riley Keough, & More 43 Radiant Celebrities Who Posted Makeup-Free Selfies A Look Back at Johnny Depp & Winona Ryder's Relationship in Photos
