The Testaments: Release date speculation, cast, plot and latest news

The Testaments, which was first announced six years ago, shortly after the publication of Atwood's novel, will transport viewers back to Gilead, but will pick after the events of The Handmaid's Tale and follow three women — Aunt Lydia, Agnes (June's daughter), and Daisy — whose lives become intertwined as they discover the secrets of Gilead and the rebellion against it.

"For these young women, growing up in Gilead is all they have ever known, having no tangible memories of the outside world prior to their indoctrination into this life," Hulu said about the series. "Facing the prospect of being married off and living a life of servitude, they will be forced to search for allies, both new and old, to help in their fight for freedom and the life they deserve."

So, wondering what's next after the finale of The Handmaid's Tale? Read on for everything you need to know about The Testaments.

The Testaments release date speculation: When could it air?

Production on the show only kicked off on 7th April, so we wouldn't expect it to arrive until mid-late 2026.

But that's just an educated guess. There were two and a half years between seasons 5 and 6 of The Handmaid's Tale, so don't be surprised if it falls in 2027.

For now, The Handmaid's Tale is available to watch on Channel 4 and Prime Video in the UK and Hulu in the US.

The Testaments cast: Who is returning from The Handmaid's Tale?

Ann Dowd will reprise her role as Aunt Lydia in The Handmaid's Tale sequel The Testaments.

She is leading the cast alongside Chase Infiniti as Agnes (June and Luke's biological daughter Hannah) and Lucy Halliday as Daisy (June and Nick's biological daughter Nichole).

The cast of The Testaments also includes:

• Rowan Blanchard as Shunammite - "a teen from an important Gilead family whose status affords her a certain level of respect and power amongst her peers".
• Mattea Conforti as Becka - "a girl from humble origins who attends school with Gilead’s elite. As she comes of age, she starts to question whether she wants the life she’s being groomed for".
• Mabel Li as Aunt Vidala - "a stern disciplinarian and the heir-apparent to the women’s sphere of Gilead".
• Amy Seimetz as Paula - "her recent marriage to a high-ranking Commander has raised her social status, but her perfect life is complicated by her new step-daughter".
• Brad Alexander as Garth - "a young Commander who becomes involved in the personal lives of the girls he’s sworn to protect".
• Zarrin Darnell-Martin as Aunt Gabbana - "a firm proponent of Gilead values and right hand to Aunt Vidala, she is a strict and uncompromising educator".
• Eva Foote as Aunt Estee - "the youngest Aunt whose energy and kindness earn her “cool Aunt” status amongst her students".
• Isolde Ardies as Hulda - "a guileless girl, full of excitement at the prospect of womanhood. Her frank observations and optimism have earned her loyal friends".
• Shechinah Mpumlwana as Jehosheba - "a competitive classmate from a respected family who is relentless in her pursuit of a high-status marriage".
• Birva Pandya as Miriam - "a girl on the cusp of womanhood who struggles under the pressure of marriage season".
• Kira Guloien as Rosa - "a caring and dedicated Martha, Rosa is a maternal figure to Agnes and a much-needed source of love in an otherwise cold household".

Is Elisabeth Moss in The Testaments?

The Handmaid's Tale actress Elisabeth Moss is confirmed to have a behind-the-scenes role in The Testaments, serving as an executive producer on the series.

However, it has yet to be announced whether she will reprise her character June for the sequel.

Deadline previously reported there was "hope" she would be back in front of the camera but that it was "uncertain" whether that would actually happen.

We will update you as soon as it's confirmed whether or not she will be acting in the series.

The Testaments plot: What's it about?

The Testaments is set in Gilead – in the book it picks up 15 years after the events of The Handmaid’s Tale, but Dowd has said it will be "four to five years" in the TV series – and follows three central characters: Aunt Lydia, Daisy and Agnes.

"Handmaid's Tale is about the life of a handmaid," showrunner Bruce Miller previously explained (via Entertainment Weekly). "This woman who was pulled from her life and pushed to the absolute bottom in Gilead and told she was worthless. She wasn't even a woman anymore, she was just a uterus, and seeing her fight back and keep her humanity.

"[Testaments] is about someone on the top in Gilead... the daughter of a high commander who is the top of the food chain for women in Gilead, and it's still awful. That's what we find out, is that being on the top of a food chain in a misogynistic society doesn't make it any better. It just puts more of a target on your head."

In another interview, Miller said of the plot (via Deadline): "It’s about growing up Gilead. It feels like exactly the opposite world. These are… the most precious girls in Gilead.

"And yet, you start to realise they’re walking a plank as well, just like the Handmaids. Hannah has to deal with the June inside of her [and] all of a sudden she starts to feel mighty, mighty, mighty rebellious."

Miller also said that through Agnes, we learn more about June.

"You really get to know June from what are the parts of June in Agnes that she can't repress? So you really start to get to know our June even better, because in the end, Handmaid's Tale is a fuse that June lights, but the girls explode," he said (via EW).

"Her daughter and her daughters' friends are the ones that, with her help, end up bringing down Gilead, as the Testaments [tells us]."

As for Aunt Lydia, she is not technically part of the rebellion in The Testaments, but is working against the regime.

“I think that her level of control is kind of getting sapped by herself," said Miller (via Deadline). "She’s undercutting herself and saying, ‘I want to control these women, but I can’t, because I feel like that’s wrong,’ and she’s a very right and wrong person.

"But I think that what she does, what this season brings her to, is the idea that that — what happens to someone who enjoys control when they realise they have nothing? They don’t just fold under. What happens as we move forward and as we move into The Testaments is she tries to get more control.

"What becomes someone like Lydia, who has not just desire to be in control, but confidence and actual competence in being in control? What happens to someone like that? Well, they don’t just sit by the wayside. They actually, if you tell them no and beat them up, they take your country.”

Is there a trailer for The Testaments trailer?

Not yet. Trailers usually arrive in the month leading up to the premiere, so once we know that, we’ll have a better idea.

But there could be some teaser footage and stills prior to that.

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