Hulu’s breakout series The Handmaid’s Tale has been officially renewed for a second season, the network confirmed at its upfronts presentation early on Wednesday. Over two weeks, the series has released four episodes, quickly establishing itself as one of the best—and most uncomfortably, urgently resonant—new shows of the year.
The renewal announcement comes on the heels of laudatory comments made about the series made by none other than Hillary Clinton. The former secretary of state made a direct reference to the series’ vitality in a speech to Planned Parenthood, as she discussed the current debate over reproductive rights.
Just ask those who have been watching The Handmaid’s Tale, a book I read and was captivated by years ago. I’m not suggesting dystopian future is around the corner, but the show has prompted important conversations about women’s rights and autonomy. In The Handmaid’s Tale, women’s rights are gradually, slowly stripped away. As one character says, “We didn’t look up from our phones until it was too late.” It’s not too late for us, but we have to encourage the millions of women and men who support Planned Parenthood’s mission to keep fighting.
Clinton’s public appearances in the wake of her election defeat last November have mostly been in support of women’s organizations. (Earlier on Tuesday, she spoke with Christiane Amanpour at a Women for Women International event, where she also spoke about reproductive rights and equal pay.) In her comments about The Handmaid’s Tale, she succinctly dismantled the myth that because the show takes place in a dystopian future, far from where we literally are now, it doesn’t speak loudly and directly to the current moment, in all its messiness. It’s been a point of criticism for many on the right, but as Clinton nicely puts it, The Handmaid’s Tale doesn’t tell us where we are, exactly—it shows us where we could end up.
New episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale are released Wednesdays on Hulu.
