‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ Finale: Serena Joy Almost Had A Dark And Disturbing Ending

In the penultimate episode of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ show based on Margaret Atwood’s classic novel, we saw Yvonne Strahovski’s Serena once again without an identity, home, or country. She is a refugee whose only refuge is her son, Noah. This is all she wanted. Sure, Serena was in the same position before, but June rescued her. And now, as Gilead burns and the great America is restored, no one wants her. 

She doesn’t know her future. She is told she has everything she needs – “a chair, table and a bed.” This is reminiscent of what she gave Offred when she joined the Waterford household as their handmaid.

Elisabeth Moss, who plays June and also directed the finale, told The Hollywood Reporter that she loved Serena’s ending the most. Why? For the emotional gut punch. “That scene kills me. I can’t watch it without crying. Yvonne’s performance is magnificent. And she did it in one take. That whole speech when she’s talking to the baby. Yvonne had the idea that she wanted to get to this place of acceptance… You see this peace on her face where she realizes [son] Noah is all she needs. That’s all Serena ever wanted: Having a baby. It’s so perfect,” she explained.

However, creator Bruce Miller initially had a different fate planned for the former Gilead wife. “I wanted to kill her. Because I think she was such a horrible person and being dead on the side of the road completely anonymously [after she was pushed from the train in the beginning of the final season] would have been a fitting end. I had to be convinced not to throw her off that train, along with the kid,” he said.

But Season 6 showrunners talked Miller out of that plan, especially due to the brutality and the potential of transforming her. They felt Serena’s arc could be explored further. Hence, she survived and her storyline will be remembered for its haunting beauty. Maybe we can afford Serena this punitive closure, especially as she was the catalyst that helped kill Gilead’s High Commanders. June forgave her, maybe we can try to see humanity in it.

Did Serena Deserve To Die?

From a moral standpoint, Serena Joy deserved every atrocity that was coming to her. But would death have served justice? Maybe, but Noah certainly deserved a chance.

Yvonne  Strahovski was aware of the conversations surrounding Serena’s death. What she cared about was: “Is she going to die in a blaze of glory? Or is it going to be super sad and lonely?” This is how she mapped Serena’s trajectory. The woman was always calculative and did what she thought served her ambitions: be it power or family. The actress thought the death would be “appropriate.”

She revealed, “If it was dramatic and awful and painful and tragic, I thought the audience would feel really satisfied while also feeling those complex feelings around rooting for her to join ‘the good side,’ as I’ve heard so many people say. I certainly felt like she had it coming, but where we actually end up is in a space that holds a lot more hope and maybe inspiration while also being really thoughtful and meaningful and really heartbreaking.”

Finally, Serena’s journey ended with just one mission – motherhood. It’s a full circle, really. She committed every heinous act to have a baby of her own – from writing about women’s traditional roles and reproducing as their sole purpose to supporting a system that assigned handmaids as vessels to carry children for the elite.

Well, Serena lived. But there was a darker spin on the ending we got anyway. Serena was supposed to be repeating “It was worth it. It was worth it. It was worth it” like a mantra while cradling her son. That swing between hope and devastation was to be her true punishment. But, Serena’s acceptance mattered. As per Moss’s vision, “Serena was going to hold onto this baby for dear life and sit in gratitude in this one moment where we say goodbye to her.”

On one hand, Serena’s ambiguous fate tied up with her child, on the other hand, June wasn’t reunited with Hannah, who is still in the clutches of Gilead. So, the fight isn’t over. Blessed be the resistance and rebellion. To be continued, in the sequel, ‘The Testaments.’