Everything to Know About The Handmaid's Tale Season 6

For five seasons of Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale, viewers have watched with bated breath as June (Elisabeth Moss), Moira (Samira Wiley), Emily (Alexis Bledel), Janine (Madeline Brewer), Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski), and Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) have endured torture (or tortured) in the dystopian world of Gilead. While the show could be difficult and painful to watch at times, the drama became a worldwide hit, garnering Emmy and Golden Globe awards for both the series and its lead Elisabeth Moss. And since the fifth season ended in the fall of 2022, many fans have been wondering when The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 release date will be announced, as it will be the final season in this epic storyline.

While the final season of The Handmaid's Tale is on the horizon, we don't have too many details yet — but here, we outline everything we do know so far, including who will lead Season 6, what the final season might be about, and when to expect it to premiere on Hulu.

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The Handmaid's Tale latest news

Actor Josh Charles, whom you may know as a multiple Emmy nominee for The Good Wife or from Aaron Sorkin's Sports Night, is joining the cast of The Handmaid's Tale for the final season as a series regular, according to Deadline. Details on his role are hush-hush. He should have instant chemistry with at least some of the cast; Charles recently starred alongside Moss in FX's The Veil. 

The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 release date

In January, Moss said onJimmy Kimmel Live that The Handmaid's Tale will return in "maybe 2025." The sixth and final season of The Handmaid's Tale was announced in September 2022, just ahead of the fifth season premiering. The original plan was for Season 6 to premiere in the fall of 2024, but the SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild strikes caused an overall delay. As of July 2024, production has yet to begin — however, earlier in the year, Disney TV boss Craig Erwich revealed to Deadline that it would start production over the summer and the final season would premiere in 2025. 

What will The Handmaid's Tale Season 6 be about?

The Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale is based on the 1985 book of the same name by Margaret Atwood. The book ends without much resolution: Offred (whose real name was never revealed) is taken away in a van. Both she and the readers are unsure if she will be escaping Gilead or be captured for her forbidden relationships with the Commander and his driver Nick. The series followed the storyline of its source material closely in Season 1, but has been expanded significantly over the years — which means the show will need to end differently.

On the show, Season 5 ended with June and Serena Joy en route to Vancouver with their babies. The biggest question fans will be looking to have answered in Season 6 is whether June will be able to truly escape Gilead once and for all.

"June is going to figure out who she is and who she's going to be for the rest of her life," Moss told Elle in November 2022 about her character's potential storylines for Season 6. She added that in the final season, "the fight is not just about one individual." However, she warns that viewers shouldn't expect a picture-perfect resolution: "I don't think we feel an obligation to tie up the entire story of Gilead," she said.

"We are ending our show on our own creative terms," showrunner Bruce Miller told EW when the Season 5 finale aired. "Do I know what happens in Season 6? Yes, I did think about the stuff that happens in Season 6 for a while."

(Of note, Miller stepped down as showrunner, as reported by Variety in March 2023. He will remain as a writer and executive producer for Season 6, but he has passed on his duties to Eric Tuchman and Yahlin Chang, who were previously executive producers.)

Who will be in The Handmaid's Tale Season 6?

It's likely that Alexis Bledel, who played Emily (Ofglen), will not be in the final season of The Handmaid's Tale, as she left the series ahead of Season 5. Ever Carradine, who plays Naomi, was upped to series regular between seasons. We expect everyone else in the main cast to return. 

In late July 2024, Josh Charles was announced as a series regular, though the details on his role were not disclosed. 

The Handmaid's Tale main cast:

• Elisabeth Moss as June Osborne
• Yvonne Strahovski as Serena Joy Waterford
• Madeline Brewer as Janine Lindo
• Ann Dowd as Aunt Lydia
• O-T Fagbenle as Luke Bankole
• Max Minghella as Commander Nick Blaine
• Samira Wiley as Moira Strand
• Bradley Whitford as Commander Joseph Lawrence
• Sam Jaeger as Mark Tuello
• Amanda Brugel as Rita Blue
• Ever Carradine as Naomi Lawrence
• Josh Charles

Where to watch The Handmaid's Tale

Seasons 1-5 of The Handmaid's Tale are available to stream on Hulu.