The Testaments Cast & Character Guide: Which Handmaid’s Tale Stars Could Appear?
Ann Dowd confirmed she is part of The Testaments cast. But which other Handmaid’s Tale characters could feature in the series?
Like its predecessor, The Handmaid’s Tale, The Testaments sees many talented stars join the cast to help bring Margaret Atwood’s complex characters to life. Based on the 2019 novel of the same name, The Testaments is set 15 years after The Handmaid’s Tale and follows the lives of three women: Aunt Lydia, Agnes Jemima, and Daisy, who all band together to help the resistance bring Gilead down from the inside. Although Aunt Lydia is considered to be one of the biggest villains in The Handmaid’s Tale, her true allegiances are shown as The Testaments novel revealed that she had secretly been a spy for Mayday all along.
Helmed by The Handmaid’s Tale showrunner, Bruce Miller, and set to be released on Hulu, the writers involved in The Testaments will likely add their own artistic liberties to the show given that The Handmaid’s Tale series has either expanded some characters’ roles from the novel or invented brand-new ones. Given that this is a spinoff to the main series, viewers should also expect some of The Handmaid’s Tale actors to appear in the sequel as several character stories will not be resolved by the time season 6 finishes.
Ann Dowd As Aunt Lydia/Lydia Clements
One of the first people confirmed to be joining The Testaments cast was Ann Dowd, who is reprising her role as the strict and pious Aunt Lydia. While Aunt Lydia is considered to be one of her most successful roles, with the actor winning her first Primetime Emmy Award in 2017 for her performance, Dowd also starred in several other highly acclaimed movies. Along with playing Tom Hanks’ on-screen sister, Jill Beckett, in Philadelphia, Dowd provided memorable performances as Congressional representative Becket in The Manchurian Candidate, the protagonist Sandra in Compliance, the antagonistic Joan in Hereditary, and conflicted parent Linda in Mass (which earned Dowd her first BAFTA nomination).
Dowd’s TV credits are just as impressive as she earned a Primetime Emmy nomination for her performance as Patty Levin in the supernatural drama, The Leftovers, and received acclaim for playing Sister Mo in Nothing Sacred, Estabrook Masters in Masters of Sex, FBI Agent Rhonda Lashever in Good Behavior, and Sister Margarita in Lambs of God. Dowd has also explored voice acting, lending her voice to play Zeron Omega in 3Below: Tales of Arcadia and several characters in American Dad! and Teenage Euthanasia.
Other Main Characters In The Testaments
Agnes Jemima/Aunt Victoria (aka Hannah Bankole): Agnes Jemima is the adopted daughter of two high-ranking officers in Gilead and one of the three main protagonists in The Testaments. While living in Gilead, she ends up training to be an Aunt after she discovers the horrific truth surrounding Gilead’s terrifying rules and that her parents were going to force her to marry Commander Judd (the leader of the Eyes who helped the totalitarian regime rise to power).
After learning that her mother was a Handmaid (and that she also had a half-sister living in Canada) Agnes eventually uses her role to help Mayday take Gilead down from the inside. In The Testaments series, Agnes Jemima will likely be replaced by Hannah Bankole (June and Luke’s biological daughter). However, there is no confirmation as of yet as to who will be playing the older version of her character.
Daisy (aka Nichole Osborne): In The Testaments, the third protagonist in the novel is a 16-year-old girl called Daisy, Agnes’ half-sister who lives in Canada with her foster parents. Although she is unaware of her origins, she soon discovers the truth when her foster parents are killed by Gilead agents, and she is recruited by Mayday to help bring down the totalitarian government. Given that June and Nick’s daughter shares the same name in The Handmaid’s Tale series, it’s highly likely that Nichole Osborne will be a main character in The Testaments. However, a new actor will be cast in the role given that she is still a baby in the main series.
Becka Grove/Aunt Immortelle: Becka Grove is Agnes’ close friend and an Aunt in training (also known as a Supplicant). Although she only has a supporting role in The Testaments novel, it’s likely the writers will expand Becka’s role in the TV series as she helps Agnes/Hannah and Daisy/Nichole with their Mayday mission. No actor has been confirmed to have joined The Testaments cast to play her just yet.
What Characters From The Handmaid’s Tale Could Appear In The Testaments?
While it will depend on how season 6 ends, viewers can expect to see a few The Handmaid’s Tale characters join The Testaments cast based on who appears in the novel (and what creative liberties the writers took with the series). Along with Ann Dowd, there’s a chance that Edie Inksetter (Coroner, Spiral: From the Book of Saw) may reprise her role as Aunt Elizabeth since she is confirmed to still be working at Ardua Hall in the novel. Jason Butler Harner (Ozark, Scandal) may return too since Commander McKenzie is Hannah’s adoptive father in The Handmaid’s Tale show.
There’s also a possibility that Elisabeth Moss’ (Mad Men, The Invisible Man) June, O-T Fagbenle’s (Black Widow, Maxxx) Luke, and Max Minghella’s (Babylon, Spiral: From the Book of Saw) Nick may join The Testaments cast since the end of the 2019 novel revealed that Daisy/Nichole and Agnes/Hannah are reunited with their mother and fathers in Canada. Even if they are killed off in season 6, there’s always a possibility that they could be seen in flashbacks as well.
