WOMEN UNDER SIEGE
‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ depicts a desperate future
THE HANDMAID’S TALE Wednesday, 8 p.m., Hulu
WOMEN have no rights in the land of Gilead, the dystopian state seen in “The Handmaid’s Tale,” a new series based on Margaret Atwood’s 1985 bestseller.
Facing a plunging birthrate, Gilead is ruled by a fundamental-ist regime that treats women as property. As one of the few remaining fertile women, Offred (Elisabeth Moss) is a Handmaid in the Commander’s (Joseph Fiennes) household; she is forced into sexual servitude while trying to stay on the right side of the commander’s barren wife, Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski).
Bruce Miller, who adapted the novel for Hulu, spoke to The Post about working with Atwood, and how he put together his impressive cast, which includes Alexis Bledel, who plays the subversive Ofglen, and Ann Dowd, who will send shivers down your spine as Aunt Lydia, the battle-ax who supervises the Handmaids.
Why is the character of Serena Joy portrayed as a younger woman than she was in the novel or 1990 movie?
I wanted Serena Joy in greater and more current opposition to Offred. She is fulfilling a desire to have children. Serena [in the book] is not in normal childbearing years. And she is so despicable in the book but Yvonne brings empathy and humanity [to the role]. There’s an element in the show that these women might be friends or have plenty to talk about.
Are you faithful to the novel?
Are we changing it? Yes. There are sentences turning into whole episodes. We expand the book. It has been adapted many times and Margaret’s been involved. She understands the parts of the story that are malleable. We are very true to the book and sometimes go into different directions.
Why did you cast Elisabeth Moss as Offred?
She has a huge range. Over the years I was always impressed with how precise she was in putting on the clothes of another character.
Aunt Lydia is one of the most frightening characters on TV. What made you think of Ann Dowd from “The Leftovers”?
She’s so fearless. Offred, with very good reason, hates her and thinks she’s a sadist. I wanted to bring out why Lydia is doing this. It all comes from the belief that the human race is on its way out.
The script has contemporary references such as Tinder and salted-caramel ice cream. Why did you include them?
Those are things I changed from the book. It’s all supposed to make it scary and this world is only scary if it’s real.
Are you ready for the identity-politics police who say a man can’t make a TV show from a woman’s point of view?
Probably not. I just look at it as Offred’s story. I’m mindful of the fact that I am a man. Anytime you work on a show you shore up your weaknesses. I surrounded myself with extra-ordinaray female writers, actors and directors like Reed Morano, who know that if there are things I don’t understand [will] explain them to me. I also think you’re in every script you write. And I hope people enjoy the show.