Season three of the show saw even more examples of the Gilead residents being treated horrifically; namely, when the handmaids were being hung and shot in public, and with June (played by Elisabeth Moss) watching.
However, the wives and mistresses of the Commanders in Gilead have remained safe throughout the show because they were set apart from the handmaids – who were deemed “sinful” in one way or another.
But now fans have suspected this classification is going to be removed from the country’s rules, as pointed out in the Margaret Atwood novel.
Reddit user and franchise fan Batistasfashionsense recently posited: “An interesting part of the first book: At the end the professor mentions that at first, it was just women like June, on their second marriages, or single mothers, who got their kids taken away and turned into handmaids.
READ MORE: The Handmaid’s Tale: Elisabeth Moss praises crew member who deserves more credit
“But, then, after a few years, Gilead got desperate for new ones and changed the rules again.
“Now it was any woman with kids in a marriage not contracted within the state.”
This would obviously spell a bad time for Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski), and the other wives of the commanders.
If Gilead is striving to bring the population density of humanity back up, they may be forced to induct their own to complete their own goal.
Could season four viewers witness June returning to Gilead and creating a rebellion including the women of Gilead?
Meanwhile one of the showrunners of The Handmaid’s Tale has now spoken out about what could happen after season four comes to an end.
During an interview with TV Guide showrunner Warren Littlefield explained there are no plans to end the series anytime soon.
He explained: “We have not planned season four to be the end [of the series].”
Referencing Atwood’s second instalment in The Handmaid’s Tale’s novels, he went on: “But we also look to Margaret [Atwood]’s book the Testaments and know that that story takes us 15 years into the future.
“We don’t see ending it in [season four], and I can honestly say to you, we don’t have a definitive out.”
Warren went on: “But I think we want to keep the bar high, and it would not be a bad thing to leave the audience wanting more and then we could ideally shift into The Testaments.”
The Handmaid’s Tale season 3 is now available to stream on Hulu.
