‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Star Yvonne Strahovski Says Commander Wharton’s Dark Reveal Left Her Shaking on Set

Note: This story contains spoilers from “The Handmaid’s Tale” Season 6, Episode 8.

“The Handmaid’s Tale” star Yvonne Strahovski, who plays beloved anti-hero Serena Waterford, said Commander Wharton’s (Josh Charles) dark and appalling decision to bring in a handmaid their big wedding night sent shivers down her spine.

“I, personally, and Serena, haven’t been in this space, in like that Gileadian kind of a household for a really long time, and to walk back into the space — not even do the scene, just stand in the space with the office and see a handmaid kneeling in the office was so enraging to me,” Strahovski, who said devastating scene was one of her favorites to film, told TheWrap. “It was so enraging that I was almost shaking on the day.”

Just when Serena thought she’d find herself a good man, he turns around and shows his true colors as a devout, pro-handmaid follower of Gilead. It all goes down in Episode 8, titled “Exodus.” Right after Wharton carries his new bride into their home, she’s welcomed by her third roommate: Their handmaid, Ofgabriel/Christina, “the most fertile handmaid in Gilead.” The heartbreaking reveal sends Serena into visible shock.

“He totally love bombed her,” Elisabeth Moss told TheWrap. “He really did. He just came in, love bombed — she didn’t have a chance. “

After refusing the handmaid’s stay and reminding Wharton that she too has the ability to birth children, a dissuaded Wharton cast away his wife’s wishes and tells her Christina will help them fulfill their Godly duties by helping them create a big family as their “vessel.” Completely in tears, Serena tells the handmaid to escape and shares her remorse for trusting another Gilead man.

“I was so stupid to do this again. I was wrong about you. I thought you were a better man, but you’re just like the rest of them,” Serena tells Wharton during the scene. He shoots back that he’ll no longer bend to her “liberal attitude” or turn his back on God.

“You have deceived me,” an angered Wharton tells Serena calmly.

Cries from Serena’s baby boy, Noah, snap Serena and Wharton out of their back and forth. That’s when Serena and her fluffy, purple cloak grab Noah and head toward the front where Wharton’s instructed his eyes to block her. What Wharton is about to learn is that this isn’t the same Serena fans met in Season 1. She’s braver, more confident and isn’t afraid to put up a fight. After everything she’s been through, she’s not willing to give up the independence and freedom she’s gained.

“What are you going to do? Cut off my finger? Beat me with a belt? Because all of it, all that has happened to me before, and I will survive it. And I will survive you,” Serena tells Wharton, adding that he can never be a “good man” because of his role as a Gilead commander. By the end of it, Wharton let’s Serena leave and she rushes out of the house gasping heavily with every step she takes.

“I think Serena’s definitely arrived at the point where the handmaids are not working. I think she’s finally there; it’s not a good idea,” Strahovski said. “To have her face that again, unexpectedly, in her life with someone, a man who she genuinely loves, who genuinely loves and really adores her, and to think that they were on the same page when they really weren’t, and this is his genuine idea of love and in showing up, and the shock of that is so powerful.”

She continued: “It was just there was something about it. You know, the visual, which I think speaks to the show in general, as to how provocative it is, but also how meaningful, and how much this red cloak has become a symbol outside of the show, and what it represents for people and for women in particular, and how much it really moves you…even moves me outside of the role that I play on the show.”

“The Handmaid’s Tale” Season 6 is currently on Hulu.

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