The Handmaid’s Tale hints baby Nichole will be adopted by surrogates under false identity in crushing blow to June
JUNE Osborne has worked tirelessly in The Handmaid’s Tale to get her daughters out of Gilead.
The defiant protagonist, played by Elisabeth Moss, succeeded in smuggling baby Nichole out of the theocratic state at the end of season 2 with the help of Emily and ever since has endeavoured to unite herself with first born Hannah and flee to Canada.
She even managed to get a message to husband Luke on a Dictaphone, explaining that Nichole wasn’t born of one of the sick rituals in which Handmaids are raped and urging him to look after her.
Unfortunately if Margaret Atwood’s sequel novel The Testaments is anything to go by, Nichole’s life will pan out rather differently to June’s wishes.
The book is written from the perspective of three characters, one of them being Nichole, who is raised by a surrogate family.
The decision was made by Canadian authorities for her to be brought up with no knowledge of her politically inflammatory past.
Nichole became a martyr for Gilead after Canadian officials refused to return her to her birth country, where she was being raised by high-profile couple Commander Waterford and Serena Joy after being seized from June, as is customary for Handmaids.
As such, her identity made her a target for Gilead agents operating undercover in Canada, or even Pearl Girls, Gilead’s female missionaries who seek to conscript women overseas.
As time passed, Nichole became aware of her family history, which was being taught in schools as a political turning point between the superpowers.
This subsequently drove her to become a part of the Mayday project – a collective looking to topple Gilead’s oppressive patriarchy.
It has already been confirmed that The Testaments will be adapted for TV, so no doubt June’s legacy will continue on screen, albeit not as she would’ve wanted.
The news was announced by Steve Stark, president of television production of MGM earlier this year.
“Margaret Atwood is a literary icon who continues to delight and challenge readers through her provocative and compelling prose,” he said.
“She has been an incredible creative partner and resource to MGM throughout the production of Handmaid’s and we look forward to working with her on the story’s exciting new chapter.”
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Viewers were left on tenterhooks throughout season 3 as Nichole was used as a pawn in meditations between Canada and Gilead.
In the end, Switzerland was brought in as a neutral party to help temper negotiations and June pushed for a plea deal with officials with limited assurances.
Ultimately Nichole was pivotal in the arrest of Fred Waterford, as she formed the basis of Serena’s deal to turn him in in exchange for visitation rights.
The Handmaid’s Tale season 4 is expected to air on Channel 4 in 2020.