Creator Reflects on the Final Chapter and the Future of Gilead
After six intense seasons, Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale has come to a close, and fans are still reeling from the final moments.
With Elisabeth Moss’s June finally narrating the tale she’s been living since 2017, the series brings a haunting yet hopeful end to a character arc defined by loss, rebellion, and resilience.
In a detailed conversation, Bruce Miller on The Handmaid’s Tale series finale revealed the creative decisions, emotional turns, and how the story sets the stage for The Testaments, the upcoming sequel series based on Margaret Atwood’s 2019 novel.
June’s Ending: Full Circle, Not a Full Reunion
One of the biggest takeaways from Bruce Miller on The Handmaid’s Tale series finale is the show’s refusal to wrap everything up in a neat bow.
June doesn’t reunite with her daughter Hannah, though she continues to fight for her, and she doesn’t retreat to a quiet life in Alaska. Instead, she returns to Boston — the burned remains of Gilead’s heart — and begins to narrate the story we’ve been watching all along.
“The show is about how to live with the things you can’t get,” said Miller. “It’s not June’s Tale. It’s The Handmaid’s Tale. It ends when she is no longer a handmaid, in any way, shape, or form.”
Moss, who directed the finale, physically and metaphorically walks June back into the Waterford house — the epicenter of her trauma — reclaiming it as a symbol of her strength. This final scene features her voiceover from the pilot, which Moss meticulously matched, even referencing the Hulu app moments before filming to ensure it was word-perfect.
Janine’s Ending: A Rare Moment of Grace
While June’s ending was complex and bittersweet, one character did receive long-overdue closure.
As shown in the final episode, Janine (Madeline Brewer) is finally reunited with her daughter Charlotte.
The scene is subtle but gut-wrenching, as Naomi (Ever Carradine) hands Charlotte to Janine in a moment of quiet defiance against Gilead’s cold rules.
Bruce Miller on The Handmaid’s Tale series finale admitted this moment had been in the works for a long time. “I’m hoping people feel like this is the ending to Janine’s story that she deserves,” he said, adding, “If Janine died, I would never recover.”
Serena’s Fate: Peace or Punishment?
As for Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski), her ambiguous ending leaves plenty of room for interpretation.
No longer a powerful Gilead wife, Serena ends the series as a refugee with her son Noah. In one of the most emotionally layered scenes, June forgives her — not for what she did, but perhaps for who she has become.
Miller confessed, “I wanted to kill her. But in the end, I love the idea that she has to live with what she’s done. You see this peace on her face where she realizes Noah is all she needs. That’s all she ever wanted.”
Strahovski delivered her monologue in a single take, a performance Miller calls “magnificent.”
Emily Returns, Luke and June Flirt Again, and the Future Beckons
Another emotional beat came with the surprise return of Emily (Alexis Bledel), who left the series after season four. Both Miller and Moss were eager to bring her back, and the reunion between Emily and June was kept secret to preserve its impact.
Meanwhile, June and Luke (O-T Fagbenle) share a final moment that feels like a reset rather than an ending. “It felt like they were flirting again,” Moss said. “There’s hope for the two of them, but they have to start again.”
Laying the Groundwork for The Testaments
Bruce Miller on The Handmaid’s Tale series finale also offered insight into the next chapter: The Testaments.
Though Miller won’t be the day-to-day showrunner, he remains deeply involved in developing the spinoff, which will follow Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) and June’s daughter Hannah (now known as Agnes in Gilead).
With Gilead still active, Miller notes, “June is out there, influencing everything. Whether we see her or not, she’s part of the world of The Testaments.”
A Tale Told, A Legacy Continued
For fans of The Handmaid’s Tale, the finale may not have delivered a traditional “happy ending,” but it gave us something more powerful: resolution, growth, and truth. Through the lens of Bruce Miller on The Handmaid’s Tale series finale, we understand that June’s survival and strength were the real victories all along.
As Miller says, “This is the story of a woman who made it this far. If she didn’t make it any further, that’s okay. But what a story.”
