Disney executive Craig Erwich provides an update on the spinoff The Testaments from The Handmaid’s Tale. The Handmaid’s Tale, an award-winning Hulu series based on Margaret Atwood’s 1985 futuristic novel, centres on Offred, a teenage handmaid who must deal with becoming a parent after an oppressive regime that enslaves women seizes control of the United States.
Following the show’s enormous critical and economic success, speculations were circulating that a successor series was being developed.
After months of rumours, Hulu finally revealed that The Testaments was in development and would debut following the conclusion of The Handmaid’s Tale. In a recent interview with Deadline, Erwich disclosed that The Testaments spinoff show is still very much in the works, despite several months of radio-quiet regarding its production.
The Disney executive also disclosed that viewers may anticipate a full slate of original programming from the corporation in the upcoming months and years. See his entire response below: We’re quite thrilled about the Dan Fogelman show.
This summer, The Handmaid’s Tale will go into production, with a 2025 premiere. Our highly anticipated lineup of scripted content includes The Testaments, an expansion of The Handmaid franchise, which is now in development.
Once more, our approach—which applies to the entire organization—is to prioritize quality above quantity, both in terms of the production of the shows and their marketing.
What Else Do We Know About The Testaments?
In 2019, rumours began to circulate that Hulu and MGM TV were adapting Atwood’s most recent book into a television series. When the streaming service announced in 2022 that the show was coming, it addressed all of the rumours before then.
Bruce Miller, the lead showrunner of The Handmaid’s Tale at the time, resigned after the confirmation so he could concentrate on creating the much-awaited spinoff series.
The Testaments, which, in contrast to the popular Hulu series, will follow the perspectives of three women—Aunt Lydia, Agnes Jemima, and Daisy, also known as Nicole—will hopefully tell viewers what happened to Gilead after Offred was abducted by the Eyes.
The story is anticipated to take place fifteen years after the events of The Handmaid’s Tale. Ann Dowd, who plays Aunt Lydia in The Handmaid’s Tale, is the sole cast member confirmed to appear in The Testaments as of the time of writing.
The Handmaid’s Tale is expected to wrap up several loose ends and unresolved stories, so it’s quite probable that many of the show’s characters will make an appearance in The Testaments.
It seems unlikely that The Testaments will be released anytime soon because The Handmaid’s Tale is still in production, but if it can live up to the high calibre of its predecessor, it will undoubtedly be worth the wait.
