A ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Producer Thinks Season 6 Will Happen If ‘There’s More’ Story ‘to Tell’

Hulu’s hit show The Handmaid’s Tale is based on a novel of the same name by Margaret Atwood. The novel was originally released in 1985, and Atwood published a sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale called The Testaments in 2019.

Since its premiere in 2017, The Handmaid’s Tale has been considered a politically timely series with its focus on women’s rights. In a recent interview with Deadline, Warren Littlefield, an executive producer of The Handmaid’s Tale, discussed whether the show will be renewed for a sixth season.

Season 6 of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ could happen

The Handmaid’s Tale stars Elisabeth Moss as June Osborne, a former Handmaid who escaped a totalitarian society called Gilead. Over the course of the series, the focus has shifted from June surviving in Gilead to becoming a resistance fighter.

Whenever The Handmaid’s Tale concludes, an adaptation of The Testaments is expected to be made by Hulu. Season 5 of The Handmaid’s Tale is set to premiere on Hulu in September, but it has not yet been renewed for a sixth season.

In an interview with Deadline, Littlefield revealed that future seasons of The Handmaid’s Tale are up to the series’ showrunner Bruce Miller and the show’s writers.

“I think from day one the quest has been to have a powerful, dramatic narrative that, with June taking up the fight, we, as an audience, stand united with June, and June gives us hope. Well, she hasn’t given up and we can’t give up,” Littlefield told Deadline.

He continued, “I think it’s a powerful, powerful message that despite all that June is up against in Gilead, there’s a ray of hope in her fight and determinism. I think that’s valuable and important, we are still relevant, and so long as Bruce and the writing staff feel there’s more to tell then that’s what we’re going to do.”

Warren Littlefield thinks ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ has a ‘powerful narrative’

On June 24, the U.S. Supreme Court made the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, overturning the constitutional right to an abortion.

Because The Handmaid’s Tale centers around women’s rights, particularly reproductive rights, Littlefield was questioned if the upcoming season of The Handmaid’s Tale will be affected by the Supreme Court’s decision.

However, Littlefield thinks that season 5 of The Handmaid’s Tale will not be changed to reflect Roe v. Wade being overturned.

“I suspect there won’t be because we have a pretty powerful narrative. I mean, the series echoes what we’re living with today,” Littlefield told Deadline.

The executive producer wishes ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ was ‘less relevant’

Even though The Handmaid’s Tale is based on subject matter that was written in 1985, the series takes place in the present day and is frequently compared to the current political climate.

“We’ve said many times over a number of years we would love to be less relevant, but sadly, the show’s been hauntingly relevant. And today appears even more so,” Littlefield told Deadline.

He continued, “I think we all wish that we were this bizarre, dystopian, no-one-would-ever-believe-this concept. We all wish that we were a made-up graphic novel.”

Season 5 of The Handmaid’s Tale will premiere on Hulu on Sept. 14.