Watch An Eerie Trailer For The Handmaid's Tale
The first full trailer for The Handmaid's Tale asks everyone to wake up. Based on the book by Margaret Atwood, the Hulu series follows Elisabeth Moss as Offred, a woman who is forced to act as a breeder for the powerful commander (Joseph Fiennes) in a near future when many women have become barren and the government has been toppled due to a terrorist attack. In the eerie new footage for the dystopian thriller, Offred explains how Gilead, the oppressive regime that replaced the government, came to be before showing how she plans to fight back.
"I was asleep before," Offred says at the start of the trailer. "That's how we let it happen. When they slaughtered Congress, we didn't wake up. When they blamed terrorists and suspended the constitution, we didn't wake up then either. Now I'm awake." The trailer then goes through the methods that the government used to take away freedoms, showing protesters, riot gear, and explosions. "They needed to do it this way," says Moira (Samira Wiley), one of Offred's friends from before she was a handmaid. "All the bank accounts and jobs at the same time. Could you imagine the airports otherwise?" The trailer shows Offred and her husband Luke (O.T. Fagbenle) trying to flee with their daughter before she is captured and taken away.
The trailer then shows Offred's handmaid training at the hands of the overly pious and brutal Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) before moving into her life in the Commander's home, where she is at the mercy of his coldhearted wife Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski). While Ofglen (Alexis Bledel) warns Offred of a government spy in her house, Moira reminds everyone that, if they resist, they risk being sent to the colonies to die. "We only wanted to make the world better," the Commander tells Offred of their goals in creating Gilead's regime. "Better?" Offred questions. "Better never means better for everyone," he responds.
The trailer ends with Offred's call towards resistance, something which appears to be inspired by her desire to survive for her daughter. "Remember your scripture," Aunt Lydia says to her. "Blessed are the meek." Offred responds with a quote in kind, saying, "And blessed are those who suffer for the cause of righteousness."
The Handmaid's Tale, which will premiere on April 26, also stars Max Minghella, Amanda Brugel, Ever Carradine, and Madeline Brewer. While we wait, take a look at the other TV shows that we think will blow everyone away this year.