The Testaments: we don’t have long to wait to watch the sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale

Seven months after the end of the final season of The Handmaid’s Tale, we’ve finally learned when we can expect The Testaments, the long-awaited sequel based on Margaret Atwood’s 2019 novel of the same name. 

Set 15 years after the events of The Handmaid’s Tale, The Testaments follows a new generation of young women in dystopian Gilead. The sequel is told from the perspective of three women living in the state, which still holds its grip on the former America, but looks as though it could be starting to crumble. Two of the women know nothing but Gilead, having been born since the Republic took over, while the third uses secrets as a currency to survive.

The Handmaid’s Tale showrunner Bruce Miller will also lead this series, and has assembled a brilliant cast to bring Atwood’s Booker Prize-winning novel to life. Ann Dowd reprises her role as Aunt Lydia, who used brutal force to survive the regime and is now questioning the men in control. She’ll be joined by Chase Infiniti (check out her Bafta-nominated turn in One Battle After Another alongside Leonardo DiCaprio if you haven’t already) as Agnes (known in the series as Hannah, the daughter of June) and Lucy Halliday as Daisy, a teenager who discovers her chilling connection to Gilead.

“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,” reads the description. “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.”

Fans of the original show will be pleased to hear that series regulars Amy Seimetz, Brad Alexander and Mabel Li have joined the cast of The Testaments, while Elisabeth Moss will be an executive producer. From what we know, Seimetz plays Paula, the hard-shelled homemaker and fearsome stepmother to Agnes. Alexander plays Garth, a young commander who becomes involved in the personal lives of the girls he’s sworn to protect. And Li plays Aunt Vidala, the stern heir-apparent to the women’s sphere of Gilead.

Also joining the cast are Zarrin Darnell-Martin as Aunt Gabbana, Eva Foote as Aunt Estee, Isolde Ardies as Hulda, Shechinah Mpumlwana as Jehosheba, Birva Pandya as Miriam and Kira Guloien as Rosa, alongside previously announced cast members Mattea Conforti, who will play Becka, a girl from humble origins who begins to question the regime and Rowan Blanchard as Shunammite, who hails from a privileged Gilead family. 

The girls attend school together, where they are trained to be wives, and must wear clothes to match their status. Pink is for young girls, purple is worn by those entering wife-training and blue is for established wives.

By now, you’re probably wondering when you can dive in? Thankfully, we don’t have too long to wait as the show will premiere on Disney+ on 8 April 2026. 

Images: Hulu