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The Handmaid's Tale season 6 brought audiences some of the show's most emotionally powerful and action-packed episodes to date, and episode 9, Execution, was no exception.
After the airing of the penultimate episode in the concluding chapter of Hulu's dystopian drama, the show quickly went viral on the internet, especially among Swifties, upon the appearance of a cryptic figure on screen as Taylor Swift's, Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version) played at a climactic scene.
Fans immediately theorized that the singer may have secretly cameoed, triggering a flood of questions as to whether The Handmaid's Tale season 6 had somehow managed a shock nobody expected.
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The theory caught on due to the timing, tone, and overall effect of the episode. The dark figure emerging from a car to aid the rebellion sparked guesswork on social media. Viewers pointed out that The Handmaid's Tale season 6 was filmed in Toronto, the same city where Swift performed one of her Eras Tour concerts in November 2024, which cast members, including Elisabeth Moss and Bradley Whitford, attended.
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With Swift’s rerecorded song opening such a powerful scene, many believed the show had snuck her in for a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo. But is there any truth to the rumor? No, Taylor Swift did not secretly appear in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9, as confirmed by Elisabeth Moss.
Did Taylor Swift show up in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9?
Despite the hype, Taylor Swift was not seen in The Handmaid’s Tale season 6 episode 9. Speculation was fueled mainly by a brief moment when a member of the Mayday resistance organization got out of a car to assist the Handmaids in their escape. The individual's face was not shown, but the silhouette looked similar to Swift's. This was sufficient to ignite a frenzy of fan theories.
Adding to the intrigue, the episode featured Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version) prominently, so its inclusion in The Handmaid’s Tale season 6 seemed intentional and possibly symbolic. Nonetheless, any expectation of a Taylor Swift appearance was quickly dashed by Elisabeth Moss, lead actress, executive producer, and director of the episode on the series, in an interview with TVLine.
What did Elisabeth Moss say about Taylor Swift being in The Handmaid's Tale season 6?
In a recent TVLine interview, Moss was questioned over the viral hypothesis that Taylor Swift had secretly made an appearance in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9. Her answer was good-spirited and unambiguously clear.
"God, I love them," she said of Swift's devoted fan base.
When the interviewer explained the scene in question, Moss laughed and answered the question.
"That's amazing! Of course it's not [Swift]. Of course it's not her. Oh my God, that's hilarious. I love that idea, though."
She continued to debunk the theory further.
"I'm afraid that's not Taylor. She's pretty busy. I feel like if she was going to come do our show, we would've made sure we saw her face," she said.
Moss added that a number of cast members, herself included, had been at Swift's concert in Toronto while filming, which she thought might have created the rumors.
"[It's] partially why Taylor was very top of mind for me," she said.
Moss further confirmed that Swift had influenced The Handmaid’s Tale season 6. She said the plan to include one of the Lavender Haze singer's tracks had been in the making for years.
"It's been a long mutual love affair between her and a lot of our cast," Moss explained, citing actor Josh Charles' cameo in one of Swift's music videos.
She said, however, that they were waiting for just the right time to add Swift's music to the show, which happened to be in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9.
What happened in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9?
In The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9, Execution, tensions in Gilead boiled over after the brutal climax of episode 8. Following the rebel Handmaids' coordinated attack during Commander Wharton and Serena Joy's wedding, most of them, including June and Aunt Phoebe included were arrested and put next in line to be executed.
In the meantime, the resistance faction Mayday and the US government hatched a desperate scheme to undermine Gilead's command by placing a bomb on a military aircraft set to ferry the main Commanders to Washington DC in The Handmaid's Tale season 6.
Things turned out otherwise when Commander Lawrence, who was supposed to surreptitiously drop the bomb onboard and depart the aircraft, found himself trapped by the premature return of his fellow Commanders.
With no exit route available to safety, he decided to get on the plane, willing to sacrifice his life in order to guarantee the success of the mission. Commander Nick also got on the flight, unaware of the fatal scheme. June observed from afar and quietly witnessed the explosion of the plane mid-air, with little doubt that Lawrence, Wharton, Nick, and several senior Commanders were dead.
The fatalities represented a turning point within the series, as they signified a significant setback for Gilead's totalitarian government. The episode also saw the turn of Serena in terms of her allegiance. Upon witnessing Wharton's true character and realizing it was impossible to achieve genuine reform in Gilead, Serena assisted Mayday by informing them of the Commander's itinerary.
Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version), which is about regaining power and identity after betrayal, was reflective of the characters' journey, particularly June's. Moss told Billboard she had been holding out for the right time to utilize a Taylor Swift song and that the opening to this episode was it.
"There could not be a more perfect song for a more perfect moment," she said.
The song's themes of revenge, metamorphosis, and retaliation reflect the storyline's climax as the women of Gilead stood up to reclaim their power.
Taylor Swift's song itself holds an extra meta-layered symbolism. Initially dropped in 2017 as part of Swift's Reputation album, Look What You Made Me Do was popularly construed as a reaction to public shaming and betrayals that Swift has experienced over the years.
Interested viewers can watch The Handmaid’s Tale season 6 on Hulu.
