Presumed Innocent, the critically acclaimed series on which American actor Chase Infiniti got her start, was lauded for its progressive update to the original’s outmoded depiction of women. Her next project, best-picture winning One Battle After Another, was both praised and criticized for its fiery politics.
And now The Testaments, the Margaret Atwood adaptation, which is releasing its first three episodes on Disney+ today, looks to expand on the chillingly regressive future predicted in The Handmaid’s Tale.
So what’s been her strategy to decide which projects to go for?
“I’m like, ‘Am I still thinking about it three or four days later? Did I get butterflies when I read it?'” she explained in a recent interview with CBC News.
It sounds simple — perhaps too simple for how weighty the topics each of her projects deal with have been. But according to Infiniti, when it came to her decision to sign on as lead Agnes in The Testaments, it was just about looking for that same emotion she’s felt ahead of all of her projects so far.
“It feels almost like when you’re younger and you have a crush for the first time. That’s the feeling that I get when I read something that I’m like, ‘Oh, this is really special.’ “
For co-star Lucy Halliday, there were also butterflies. And as with Infiniti, they also sprang from the hype around The Testaments. Set 15 years after the events of The Handmaid’s Tale, the theocratic Gilead is still in control of what was once America. Its rulers still institute regressive, deplorable authority over the women living there — forcing them to give up virtually all rights and live in service of the patriarchal society.
But, as Canadian author Atwood wrote, cracks have begun to show. Resistance to Gilead’s atavistic way of life has started to take hold, and Agnes (a favoured, high-ranking “plum” girl) and Daisy (a recent “pearl girl” transplant from Toronto) are right in the middle of it all.
While she also felt those butterflies reading the script, Halliday says her nervousness didn’t just come from the story. Instead, it was the prospect of working with Handmaid’s Tale star Elisabeth Moss (now executive producer on The Testaments) and, of course, with Atwood herself.
Author Margaret Atwood talks to Adrienne Arsenault about the catalysts for The Testaments, the loss of her husband, a top-secret project and turning 80.
Stepping into Gilead — and Toronto
“Stepping into this world, we were, of course, very apprehensive in the sense that we want to do it justice and we didn’t want to let any of the fans down,” Halliday said.
“Margaret Atwood, you know, she came to set and it’s the most I’ve ever fangirled over anyone in my life … like genuinely, hyperventilated in this lady’s face.”
“She’s not exaggerating, by the way,” Infiniti said.
Beyond the Atwood of it all, there were other crash-courses in Canadiana for the stars of the Toronto-shot — and partially Toronto-set — series. Immediately after the arrival of Halliday, who is Scottish, Infiniti schooled her on the city’s food offerings: “I took her to K-town and we got sundubu-jjigae,” she remembered.
But they both said most of that education came from the Canadian crew working on the show.
“It was so fun because they’d always be telling you little tidbits or secret info about Toronto or about Canadianisms,” Halliday said. “Things like that, I think, really informed us massively.”
Atwood’s influence
When it comes to guidance though, creator Bruce Miller and executive producer Warren Littlefield said Atwood’s influence is felt throughout.
Though as with The Handmaid’s Tale series, Atwood did not write the show itself, she once again offered advice during filming.
That, Littlefield said, is most evident from the stark warning that resonates through the text. He said that warning was clear when they worked on The Handmaid’s Tale, and still is today.
“Margaret has this brilliant worldview that, sadly, remains relevant. It remains relevant today. So audiences … will say ‘I recognize some of this. I have fear of this,’ ” Littlefield said.
“The plight of women and women’s rights — that’s still a major, major issue. That doesn’t feel like it’s gotten better, right? So we’re relevant because of Margaret’s vision and wisdom.”
From Miller’s perspective, Atwood’s input also started early. The collaboration had already begun back when he was still writing for The Handmaid’s Tale at the same time that Atwood was planning her sequel.
“When she started to think about The Testaments, there were phone calls out of nowhere to say ‘Don’t kill this character,’ or ‘Name this person this.’ And she wouldn’t explain and I wouldn’t ask and I would just do what she said,” Miller said.
“She was putting her pins down on certain things and saying ‘Don’t change these.’ ”
Both Miller and Littlefield said they were more than happy to comply with the suggestions the author offered.
“We’re afraid of Margaret. We wouldn’t do anything to cross Margaret,” said Littlefield, laughing. “She’s too tough.”
