The Testaments Timeline: How Long After The Handmaid’s Tale, Agnes’ Age & Identity Explained

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The Testaments continues the story of The Handmaid’s Tale, starting long after the events of the Hulu series finale in 2025. This new story was made possible by Margaret Atwood’s 2019 novel, which served as a sequel to her original book, The Handmaid’s Tale, published 34 years prior. Because the TV show went beyond the original book’s ending, some changes were made when adapting The Testaments. Please be aware that the following contains spoilers for both The Testaments book and the first three episodes of the series.

A major change in the TV adaptation involves the story’s timeline. The book jumps between multiple timelines and follows three main characters – Aunt Lydia, Agnes, and Daisy – with a significant time gap before Daisy’s story begins, as Agnes is already grown up. The Hulu series simplifies this by keeping the characters roughly the same age and unfolding their stories together, rather than separately. This isn’t the only adjustment to the timeline, however.

The Testaments Is Set 4 Years After The Handmaid’s Tale

The first few episodes of The Testaments establish that about four years have passed since the Handmaids freed Boston from Gilead’s control, an event that happened at the end of Season 6 of The Handmaid’s Tale. This time jump provides some distance from the original series without drastically altering the world – Gilead still holds power over much of the United States and continues to affect Canada, with ongoing conflict. It also allows for a guest appearance by Elisabeth Moss as June Osborne.

The new story, The Testaments, takes a different direction from the original book, but this change feels right. It begins 15 years after The Handmaid’s Tale ends, and you really notice the time that has passed. However, the TV series The Handmaid’s Tale went much further beyond the book’s ending—the first season concludes where the book stops—and even more years passed in the show. So, the story had to bridge that gap. Between the end of Season 1 of The Handmaid’s Tale and the start of The Testaments, about six or seven years pass, and that’s mostly reflected in the age of the character Agnes.

Agnes Is Around 14 Years Old In The Testaments (& Is She Hannah?)

As a longtime fan of The Handmaid’s Tale, I’ve figured out something the show seems to be hinting at but not quite confirming: Agnes MacKenzie is definitely June and Luke’s daughter, Hannah Bankole! Anyone who remembers the early seasons or has read the books will recognize her. We know Hannah was around five when she was taken by Gilead and about eight during Season 1. Now, Chase Infiniti, who plays Agnes, told THR that Agnes is 14 in The Testaments Season 1, and will be going through all the things a teenager experiences. It’s so exciting to see where they take this storyline!

As a fan, I get why the story of The Testaments fits into the overall narrative, even if the timing feels a little off. In Season 5 of The Handmaid’s Tale, June says Hannah would be twelve, but The Testaments takes place four years after the end of Season 6, so the ages don’t quite match up. Honestly, it’s not that surprising, though. The show has always been a bit loose with its timeline! Baby Holly/Nichole is a perfect example – she barely seems to age, even though several years should have passed by then.

It’s possible Infiniti’s estimate of the timeline isn’t completely precise, and the show allows for some flexibility. As Agnes mentions in the first episode of The Testaments, the characters weren’t permitted to use calendars, and she doesn’t even know the exact year, which gives the writers room to adjust the timing as needed.

The TV adaptation of The Testaments makes one significant change to Daisy’s backstory. Unlike the book, where Daisy is the daughter of June Osborne and Nick Blaine, the series establishes a different parentage due to timeline constraints. Daisy’s age is also closer to Agnes’s in the show, rather than being much younger as depicted in the novel. While the overall storyline will remain true to the book, this change is the biggest adjustment made to accommodate the passage of time.

New episodes of The Testaments release on Wednesdays on Hulu.

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2026-04-09 15:40