What is The Handmaid's Tale season 6 release date? The Handmaid's Tale, based on the Margaret Atwood novel of the same name, captured the attention of audiences with its eerily relevant themes when it was first released in 2017. Now, six years later, the show is finally drawing its dystopian tale of abuse and power to a close.
The Handmaid's Tale followed the story of June (AKA: Offred), as she found herself living in a radicalized world where women are possessions and humanity has become unable to produce children, save for a select few. All this makes The Handmaid's Tale not only one of the best drama series on Hulu, but one of the best TV series, period. Here's everything you need to know about season 6.
The Handmaid's Tale season 6 release date speculation
The Handmaid's Tale season 6 will likely drop in late 2024, based on delays that have impacted production.
Filming was slated to begin in August 2023, however, this was delayed by the ongoing Actors Strike, which only ended in November 2023. At the time of writing, production hasn't yet resumed.
We know that, in the past, seasons of The Handmaid's Tale have taken up to six months to shoot, so if things get back on track by early 2024, then a late 2024 release date could still be on the cards if we're lucky.
Since the sixth season will mark the finale of one of TV's best thriller series, bringing the years-long story to a dramatic conclusion, it's likely the production team will be pushing to get out the final installment of the tale for fans ASAP.
Who's in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 cast?
All major cast members are expected to return for The Handmaid's Tale season 6, including Elisabeth Moss as June and Yvonne Strahovski as Serena.
However, we're sad to say that Gilmore Girls legend Alexis Bledel won't be returning to the show as Emily, after her screen time was reduced in season four and having been written out of the show entirely in season five. (In-show, it was revealed that the character of Emily had returned to Gilead.)
Here's the expected cast list for The Handmaid's Tale season 6:
- Elisabeth Moss as June Osborne
- Yvonne Strahovski as Serena Waterford
- Madeline Brewer as Janine
- Ann Dowd as Aunt Lydia
- O-T Fagbenle as Luke
- Max Minghella as Nick
- Samira Wiley as Moira
- Bradley Whitford as Commander Lawrence
- Amanda Brugel as Rita
What will The Handmaid's Tale season 6 be about?
We expect The Handmaid's Tale season 6 to build on the relationship between June and Nick, and feature a final confrontation between June and Serena.
June and Nick's relationship has been building up across the seasons in a tantalizing way. Plus, season five ended with the implied breakdown of Nick's marriage to Rose. It's pretty clear that he's not quite over June. We doubt that's going to go well for him.
The finale will no doubt also be a tremendous confrontation between June and Serena, especially after June brutally murdered Serena's husband (and June's former employer). After Serena is forced to confront the mutilated body of Fred, we doubt she's going to forgive and forget.
The closing episode of season five ends with June and Nicole managing to catch a ride on a train after Luke realizes he won't be able to get past the police looking for him, and he hands himself in. Of course, everything comes to a head when it's revealed that Serena and Noah are on the same train as June…yikes.
Is there a trailer for The Handmaid's Tale season 6?
We don't expect to see a trailer for The Handmaid's Tale season 6 until at least mid-2024, considering all the delays to production.
Filming hasn't finished (or started) yet, and with editing also needing to happen, we can confidently say that there will be no footage ready for a trailer for several months.
But for a reminder of the state of things, watch the trailer for season 5 below, and be sure to bookmark this page since we'll be keeping you up to date with any trailer drops.
Where can I watch The Handmaid's Tale season 6?
The Handmaid's Tale will stream on Hulu upon release for all our US readers.
If you're looking to catch up in the meantime, the first five seasons are available to stream on Hulu in the US and Amazon Prime for every fan in the UK.
You can also buy digital copies of past seasons via Apple TV and Amazon if you fancy owning a copy of the award-winning series.
Is The Handmaid's Tale season 6 the final season?
The Handmaid's Tale season 6 will be the final series, as confirmed by the series' previous showrunner Bruce Miller in September 2022.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Miller (who's writing and producing season 6) said the team was pleased to be going out on their "own terms." "I'm very glad we're being able to do it on our own terms because I know how lucky that makes us," he said.
"All the actors and creative people who put their hearts and souls into it — to close up the play the way you want. Dropping the curtain the way you want is such a huge privilege."
But before we all start crying, don't worry. The Handmaid's Tale may be ending with season 6, but there's already a spin-off series in the works.
Hulu has confirmed that a new show, The Testaments, is coming. The Testaments takes place 15 years after the end of The Handmaid's Tale and will focus on more fights for freedom. So stay tuned!
How many episodes of The Handmaid's Tale season 6 will there be?
We expect The Handmaid's Tale season 6 to consist of ten episodes.
This would follow the show's pattern since all seasons (with the exception of 2 and 3) contained ten episodes. Unless, of course, they decide to spring some extras on us. You know, for the drama.
If that's not enough to tide you over until the show returns, find out about how The Handmaid's Tale season 5 finale featured 500 extras for one scene. And for more small screen adventures to come, take a look at our guides to Wednesday season 2 and Yellowstone season 5 part 2.
To see what else is out there, you can also take a look at everything new on Disney Plus and new on Netflix this month!