A June-Versus-Serena Showdown Awaits in the Tense Trailer for 'The Handmaid's Tale' Season Five
Based on Margaret Atwood's novel, this dystopian hit was already stressful, but that vibe looks like it's ramping up in season five.
Saying that anything to do with The Handmaid's Tale is stressful is like saying that Gilead looks like a terrible place to live: blessed be the obvious. Still, tense is definitely the word for the dystopian hit's first sneak peek at its upcoming fifth season, with all signs pointing towards a big showdown between June (Elisabeth Moss, Shining Girls) and Serena (Yvonne Strahovski, Stateless).
If you're up to date on the series — which was renewed for this fifth season before the fourth even hit — you'll know why. You'll also be well aware of the reasons behind Serena's in-mourning getup, too. The end of the last batch of episodes was always going to change the already-complicated relationship between The Handmaid's Tale's two key women, and now the next run of instalments will chart the fallout.
Get ready to see June navigate more than a few consequences, and also try to work out who she now is and what's driving her. She's still fighting Gilead from afar, though, with Luke (O-T Fagbenle, Black Widow) and Moira (Samira Wiley, Breaking News in Yuba County).
As for Serena, she's in profile-raising mode in Toronto, as Gilead's influence creeps into Canada — and Commander Lawrence (Bradley Whitford, Tick, Tick... Boom!) and Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd, Rebecca) are endeavour to reform Gilead.
Also returning among the cast: Max Minghella (Spiral: From the Book of Saw), Madeline Brewer (Hustlers), Amanda Brugel (Snowpiercer) and Sam Jaeger (The Eyes of Tammy Faye).
With all of the above, blessed be the bleak dramas, too, which is exactly what The Handmaid's Tale has been serving up since 2017 now. Of course, on the page, this grim look at a potential oppressive existence has been drawing in fans since the 1985, when Margaret Atwood's book first hit shelves. A film followed in 1990, and opera in 2000 — plus a sequel novel in 2019.
Yes, there have been many ways to dive into The Handmaid's Tale over the years, but only one keeps winning small-screen awards and stars a phenomenal Moss. Thankfully, the wait between the show's fourth and fifth seasons is shorter than the gap between its third and fourth — a year rather than two.
The date to mark in your diary: September 15, given that the show will return in the US on September 14. Down Under, episodes air weekly on SBS in Australia, and stream via SBS On Demand — and hit Neon in New Zealand — at the same time as in America.
Check out the trailer for The Handmaid's Tale season five below:
The fifth season of The Handmaid's Tale will hit start airing in Australia and New Zealand from September 15 — on SBS TV, and to stream via SBS On Demand and Neon, with new episodes arriving weekly.
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