'The Handmaid's Tale' Season 3: Emmys Force Hulu to Up the Production of Flagship Drama Series?

The Emmy award-winning drama series by Hulu, “The Handmaid's Tale,” may be getting more episodes when its third season comes around in 2019. Speculation on Hulu increasing the production value and longevity of the series by increasing the episodes of “The Handmaid's Tale” season 3 is tied to the impressive performance of the first two seasons.

The first season racked up 13 Emmy nominations, winning eight of them, including the Outstanding Drama Series award. It did all this with just 10 episodes under its belt. The unexpected performance of a 10-episode show based on Margaret Atwood's novel from 1985 of the same title secured a 13-episode second season.

The second season, which premiered last April, has already been nominated for 20 Emmys. If season 2 is able to surpass the Emmy performance of the first season, “The Handmaid's Tale” season 3 may be looking at an even longer episode count. The show's nominations include Elizabeth Moss, who portrays June Osbourne, for Outstanding Lead Actress, and the prestigious Outstanding Drama Series award for the series once again.

Should the second season perform as admirably during this round of Emmy Awards, “The Handmaid's Tale” season 3 may give Hulu a reason to take more risks with the series, maybe even expanding its stable of original content.

Some of the developments that we can expect from "The Handmaid's Tale” season 3 can be found in spoilers from Vanity Fair. Bruce Miller, the series's show-runner, mentions that Bradley Whitford's character, Commander Lawrence, will be returning for the third season. Miller has clarified that Commander Lawrence's role in the third season will be highly embroiled in June's quest to save Hannah, her daughter.

“The Handmaid's Tale” season 3 will most likely be released with the same schedule as the first and second season, with a spring release in April 2019.