The Handmaid’s Tale is coming to an end after six seasons — and the series finale won’t sugarcoat the story.
During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, coshowrunners Yahlin Chang and Eric Tuchman teased the final two episodes of the show.
“I think we can expect an honest conclusion to the story. We keep using the word honest because we try our best to be realistic,” Tuchman noted. “What would happen in real life — and what we hope people take away — is this feeling of hopefulness and resilience that June and many of the other characters have demonstrated and will demonstrate in the last couple of episodes.”
With June (Elisabeth Moss) finally leading the resistance, viewers should expect genuine twists and turns, with Tuchman adding, “When you’re up against an oppressive regime and when your rights are stripped away, you just never stop fighting. You keep going. Hopefully people will draw some optimism and feel empowered by what plays out.”
Chang, meanwhile, specifically praised the ninth episode of the season.
“It is really the most epic episode of the entire series. It’s incredibly satisfying because we’ve teased even in the marketing that the revolution is here,” she explained. “You really get that in episode 9 and it comes to the forefront. It is so emotional and amazing.”
After wrapping the series, Chang told Us she found herself rewatching that specific episode as a way to “pump myself up.”
” It is really like a tour de force. We wanted audience members to be jumping out of their seats and so excited, so happy and to feel so good,” she added. “It’s amazing. Our fans are amazing that they have stuck with us through a lot of bad moments. So they, more than anyone, deserve some feel good moments. That really gets delivered in episode 9.”
Based on Margaret Atwood’s novel of the same name, The Handmaid’s Tale takes place in a dystopian future where low fertility rates have resulted in women being forcefully assigned to men for the sole purpose of bearing children. In addition to Moss, Samira Wiley, Yvonne Strahovski, Madeline Brewer, Ann Dowd, O-T Fagbenle, Max Minghella and Amanda Brugel have led the cast since the show’s premiere.
Executive producer Warren Littlefield also called the show’s finale “really satisfying,” sharing with Us in April, “Living in the world of Gilead for our audience is sometimes a tough journey. But I think their patience will be rewarded because this final year is ordinary women doing extraordinary things. The revolution is here and they’re highly effective. There’s joy. Is there still a Gilead? Yeah. But we celebrate what they accomplish and I think it’ll be very satisfying for the audience.”
Viewers, however, shouldn’t expect to get all their questions answered.
“We are going to begin a journey right away with The Testaments. That is still a world that has Gilead. But it’s a completely different point of view,” he teased. “We will satisfy and really deliver triumphantly for our audience who’s been with us through six seasons of The Handmaid’s Tale. They will want and be curious to see more and see where The Testaments goes.”
The Handmaid’s Tale airs Tuesdays on Hulu.
