Note: This story contains spoilers from “The Handmaid’s Tale” Season 6, Episode 9.
“The Handmaid’s Tale” showrunners Eric Tuchman and Yahlin Chang unpacked the tragic, heartbreaking but “noble” deaths of Commander Nick Blaine (Max Minghella) and Commander Joseph Lawrence (Bradley Whitford).
“It felt like the end of his story,” Tuchman told TheWrap of Nick’s decision. “This was a guy who was trying to straddle two worlds, and he ultimately had to make a decision, and we gave him that pivot. That kind of crossroads point — is he going to get on that plane or not? He hesitates at the top of that staircase, and he has an opportunity to turn around and say, ‘You know what I’m going to call Mark Tuello (Sam Jaeger) and see if I can still get me, Rose (Carey Cox) and my unborn child out.’ He could have done that, but he doesn’t do that. He still decides to go all in and get on the plane.”
Whew … Episode 9, titled “Execution,” was everything but easy to watch. Between June Osborne (Elisabeth Moss) almost being killed to our hearts being torn apart slowly watching the two ally Gilead officials fly out into their deaths.
For those who haven’t watched the episode or just need a reminder, all characters’ endings start with June and U.S. representative Mark Tuella requesting Commander Lawrence’s assistance. After June learned the remaining group of commanders were flying to Washington, D.C. following the massive Mayday-handmaid rebellion, the pair needed Lawrence — a fellow commander — to drop off a bomb on their plane and escape before anyone noticed. Lawrence reluctantly agreed and June tagged along for moral support.
As he was walking to the plane to execute the plan, things took a turn for the worse: All the commanders arrived early, which forced Lawrence to literally make a life or death decision. Again, with much hesitation and a sad, deep, mournful sigh of sorrow, Lawrence chose to board the plane, where he’d soon meet his demise.
But wait, there’s more! Just when we’d accepted Lawrence’s fate, an all-black SUV pulled up. The driver opens the rear car door to let out Nick, who is also joining the commanders on their trip. Though he too shows doubt in his decision as he enters the plane, fans learn in this moment that Nick has chosen to give Gilead his loyalty.
“It seemed like we needed that character to finally to make the choice; it was time to stop walking the tightrope,” Tuchman said. He added that the writers pitched Lawrence’s death to Whitford in early 2023.
“We had already figured out what we wanted to do with Commander Lawrence, and we went out to lunch with Bradley and told him what we were thinking. Not knowing how he was going to react,” Tuchman said. “Fortunately, he embraced the idea. I think he really sparked to it. It felt like an honest ending and a noble ending for this character.”
“He loved it and was relieved,” Chang said. “He was so happy because he was worried about him. He was worried about where we might take Lawrence, and he was afraid that Lawrence might turn out to be more evil. So he loved that there was a like a moment of redemption for him.”
The end of the episode closes with June Osborne looking up to the sky as the plane bursts into flames from the bomb’s explosion as tears fill up her eyes.
“The Handmaid’s Tale” series finale premieres Tuesday, May 27, on Hulu.
