Perhaps the best thing the Super Bowl gave us (aside from endless memes skewering Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine) was the trailer for the upcoming season of The Handmaid's Tale.
Spoilers below.
Hulu's hit series (which won its lead actress Elisabeth Moss two Emmys in 2017) returns in the spring, and it's clear from the beginning of the new trailer that life for June/Offred and the handmaids of the Republic of Gilead are going to be grimmer than ever.
The trailer lampoons former President Ronald Regan's 1984 "Morning in America" political campaign television commercial.
"It's morning again in America," you hear over a soundtrack and images that resound with boundless optimism. Things turn dark from there. Soon the camera freezes on Moss's face: "Wake up, America," she says.
You can watch the trailer below:
The Handmaid's Tale: Season 3 Teaser (Super Bowl Commercial)youtu.be
When we last saw June, she had decided to leave baby Nicole with Emily (Alexis Bledel) and remain in Gilead to save her older daughter Hannah. She walked away, her red cloak blazing against a torrential rainstorm. The finale made for startling imagery and gave us a cliffhanger for the ages.
Fans are pretty thrilled.
Just watched the trailer for the third season of The Handmaids Tale and I don’t think America is ready for this sea… https://t.co/JngXj9Fafx— Kailey Neesen (@Kailey Neesen) 1549327601.0
Tbh...the most important part of the Super Bowl was the trailer for the third season of The Handmaids Tale.— Em (@Em) 1549315036.0
SOLID trolling making opening the Handmaid’s Tale ad with a Reagan quote.— Ian Millhiser (@Ian Millhiser) 1549237366.0
Once again, #TheHandmaidsTale shows how brilliant it is at weaving its dramatic story with political and social rel… https://t.co/My6rzopLg5— Kelechi 🍿 (@Kelechi 🍿) 1549237772.0
The only reason I turned on the Super Bowl was for the Handmaids Tale trailer. Now that that’s over I can go play R… https://t.co/37fJdGK5lX— Mary (@Mary) 1549239976.0
the handmaids tale really just premiered a trailer for season 3 during the super bowl telling america to wake up...… https://t.co/FloGJH48v3— sam (@sam) 1549237986.0
@HandmaidsOnHulu SOON!?!? SOON! I need a date please, make it a date that is VERY SOON please lol!!!!— Megan (@Megan) 1549237895.0
hulu hitting us with “coming soon” on the handmaids tale trailer?? give me a date, you cowards— jess (@jess) 1549260008.0
Margaret Atwood's novel was written at the height of the Reagan administration and satirized political, social, and religious trends of the 1980s. A sequel, The Testaments, will be released in September 2019. TheTestaments is unconnected to Hulu's adaptation and will feature the testimonials of three female narrators from Gilead.