There's a lot of fans who still don't know about Hulu's new Handmaid's Tale sequel, The Testaments — and for good reason. With spoilers tightly under wraps, star Chase Infiniti is carefully peeling back just enough to introduce audiences to Agnes, one of the series' most intriguing young characters.
Meet Agnes: "The Princess of Gilead"
Infiniti says her character Agnes starts the show living a life of privilege.
The series builds on the world Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid's Tale, created. It takes place in Gilead, a totalitarian regime that has overthrown the United States. The repressive government forces women into reproductive slavery.
Because Agnes is the daughter of a high-ranking Gilead commander, her life is heavily guarded.
"She really is the princess of Gilead," Infiniti told Morning Edition.
But that protection doesn't last forever. Over the course of the story, Agnes experiences a powerful awakening.
"Life starts to move very quickly for her, and thankfully, she has people around her, like her friends, who she loves very deeply," Infiniti said. "You see Agnes have this strong awakening to what reality is like for a young woman in Gilead."
Infiniti said some parts of Agnes' character were "difficult" to wrap her head around.
"She's never walked down the street by herself. She's never gone to buy groceries," Infiniti said. "Those kinds of small things are missing from these girls' lives — not even to mention not even being able to read and write."
Why The Testaments feels so real
Infiniti says the story's relevance is what makes it so unsettling. The actress says Atwood isn't attempting to predict the future in her novels; instead, the author relies on the past.
"She's directly pulling from history, and it's crazy to think that it's still so relevant even today, when The Handmaid's Tale was written in the 80s originally," Infiniti said.
Even though The Testaments can be disturbing, Infiniti hopes that people can understand that there is still a lot of hope in the show.
"It has this sense of resilience and also core elements that I think transcend Gilead, whether that be friendship, whether that be love, whether that be anything in between," she said.
From Apple TV+ to the Oscars in one year
Infiniti's rise in Hollywood has been meteoric. In June 2024, she appeared in the Apple TV+ series Presumed Innocent. Less than two years later, she found herself onstage at the Oscars with the cast of One Battle After Another after the film won best picture.
She said the past year of her career has felt like a "rocket ship ride," and described her experience working on One Battle After Another as akin to a "family road trip."
"The fact that I've gone from that project to campaigning for that movie to now promoting the show — that's the crazy part. Like, I feel like my life has totally changed in even a year," she said.
Working with One Battle After Another director Paul Thomas Anderson left a lasting impression.
"He taught me to never lose the sense of play," she said. "It keeps you on your toes, it keeps you having fun, and not losing that spark."
And what's next for Infiniti?
She said because she's "so new," the things she wants in life are "changing every day."
"Right now … I'm just chasing to continue to do good work, and work that excites me," Infiniti said.
You can watch The Testaments on April 8 on Hulu.
This story was edited by Alice Woelfle and produced by Nia Dumas. The digital story was written by Nia Dumas.
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