‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Star Speaks About Their Series Finale Return

[This story contains specific spoilers from The Handmaid’s Tale series finale, titled “The Handmaid’s Tale.”]

While looking into a window marked with the words, “Freedom,” June (Elisabeth Moss) and viewers of The Handmaid’s Tale heard a familiar voice.

“Blessed be the fruit.”

The voice belonged to Alexis Bledel, who returned as Emily in the series finale of the Hulu series, which began streaming Tuesday.

Her arrival was as much of a surprise to June (Elisabeth Moss) as it is to the audience who hasn’t seen the OG handmaid since Bledel left the series after season four. Bledel, an original star who earned four nominations for her role on the Hulu dystopian series, departed without a specific explanation.

While the fifth season was in production, Bledel had said, “After much thought, I felt I had to step away from The Handmaid’s Tale at this time. I am forever grateful to [showrunner] Bruce Miller for writing such truthful and resonant scenes for Emily, and to Hulu, MGM, the cast and crew for their support.”

The series then explained her character Emily’s absence in the fifth season premiere, when June is told by Emily’s wife, Sylvia (Clea DuVall), that Emily decided to go back to Gilead to fight and find Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd), and that she called to say goodbye to her family, which included a young son. When June pushes to go save Emily, Sylvia tells June not to go after her, convinced they’ll never see Emily again. “It’s what she needed to do,” says Sylvia. “She’s gone.”

Bledel spoke to The Hollywood Reporter for a recent oral history on the series and about her return, which was an idea from series creator Bruce Miller, who wrote the final episode, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” which was directed by Moss.

“It was an immediate yes,” she says of coming back for the series ending cameo. “It felt right to bring closure to Emily’s journey and offer the audience a sense of completion. Bruce put together such a kind and talented group, and so many of the original crew were still there in season six. The production runs like a well-oiled machine — everyone brings their best. I’m excited to see what they create in [sequel series] The Testaments.”

In Emily’s return, she and June continued the full-circle theme of the final season by walking — in two — through the streets of a freed Boston after an embrace that called back their very first scene of the series (when, in voiceover, June called Emily a “pious little shit”). Long gone are their red cloaks as their city is now out from under Gilead’s rule after success from the guerrilla resistance Mayday movement to take down the (fictional) fascist regime.

Emily filled in the lost time, telling June she was a Martha for a Commander who was a friend and that she kept in touch with Sylvia and her son. “So, you weren’t just gone?” says June. “Of course not,” says Emily. “They’re the reason I’m fighting.”

The friends stopped in front of the wall and Emily pointed out the miracle of them being alive, together, to read the hopeful and inspiring words before them written by women who are now free from Gilead. Next to the messages are two hanging guardians — instead of the familiar sight of two hanging handmaids, or Marthas, or “traitors.”

Emily urged June to adjust her definition of “impossible,” and Bledel’s cameo then ended with a dream sequence where June imagined if there never was a Gilead. June, Emily, Moira (Samira Wiley), a two-eyed Janine (Madeline Brewer), Rita (Amanda Brugel) and killed handmaids Alma (Nina Kiri) and Brianna (Bahia Watson) are seen laughing, embracing and singing Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” in a karaoke bar.

“I hope viewers take away to keep hope alive when things seem impossible,” Bledel adds to THR of her cameo. “Even if it seems like seeds you plant couldn’t possibly grow, plant seeds of hope anyway. You never know; they might find a way.”

When speaking to THR about the series finale, Moss said that once Miller shared his early idea of bringing Bledel back for the final episode she was seton making it happen. Turns out, Bledel agreed. “I said to him at the time, ‘You realize now that you’ve told me that, we have to do it.’ It’s not the easiest thing in the world to call an actor and be like, ‘Can you come back for this one episode?’ They’re busy. … And she wanted to do it from the beginning. She didn’t need convincing at all. My first official scene on day one [on set] was with Alexis. So it meant a lot to get to work with her again,” said Moss.

Miller added that her day back on set was a hug-fest. “She cried and hugged people every four feet,” he said, adding that “it was wonderful to see her and Lizzie get right back into it after all that time. It’s like watching the fucking Yankees bullpen every day with these guys. They’re so good.”

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The Handmaid’s Tale finale is now streaming on Hulu. Read THR’s series oral history with the cast, creator and more, and our full series finale explainer with Bruce Miller and Elisabeth Moss.