Coming as no surprise, Hulu announced today that its dystopian series The Handmaid’s Tale will be returning for a third season. That show was one of Hulu’s most-watched originals in its first season, and the streaming service has said that last week’s second year premiere doubled the audience of the first season. That would make sense considering the awards the show earned which have certainly driven plenty of new viewers to the service. Considering that the show counts as Hulu’s biggest hit and has brought plenty of prestige to the streaming service after clearing up during awards season, I would expect this one to stick around for several more years. Series star Elizabeth Moss is contracted for at least five years and up to seven. I usually do not put the streaming shows at higher than the Renewal Possible status because they do not share their viewing numbers, making it hard to gauge how well a show is performing. But I started out The Handmaid’s Tale at Renewal Likely status, knowing that it has plenty of buzz propping up, and the renewal announcement came only a week after its second season premiere.
The Handmaid’s Tale takes place in a near-future dystopia where religious extremists have taken control of most of the United States and women have very few rights in a world where men dominate. Due to the low fertility rate across the world, the few women who still can give birth most submit to the ruling class in order to produce children for the country’s leaders. It is based on the Margaret Atwood book of the same name and stars Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Yvonne Strahovski, Alexis Bledel, and Madeline Brewer.
Expect more renewal and cancellation announcements as we head toward the May Upfronts, and be sure to follow this site and the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for updates and breaking news.
