The Handmaid’s Tale star Elisabeth Moss explains why they chose Taylor Swift’s re-recorded song in the show

The Handmaid's Tale star and executive producer Elisabeth Moss opened up about debuting Taylor Swift's Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version) in the penultimate episode of the show's sixth season. Titled Execution, the Handmaids marched to take down Gilead in The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9 in the beat of Swift's re-recorded version of her Reputation album's lead single.

Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version) opened the new episode as the Handmaids stage the Gilead uprising led by Elisabeth Moss' June Osborne against the Commanders. The song's theme of betrayal and vengeance fits right into the scene as the women walk in formation, setting off bombs in their wake, as they try to destroy and escape Gilead.

During a conversation with Billboard, Moss revealed why it was the "perfect" song for that particular scene and episode in The Handmaid's Tale.

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"There could not be a more perfect song:" Elisabeth Moss on Taylor Swift's song in The Handmaid's Tale

In her post-episode interview with Billboard, published on Tuesday, May 2025, after the release of The Handmaid's Tale season 6 episode 9, Elisabeth Moss talked about why Taylor Swift's song was the perfect choice for the episode. She admitted to being a Swiftie and that the pop star has been "such an inspiration' for her.

Moss also said that she had always wanted to use one of Taylor Swift's songs in the series for some time, but was glad that she waited until the penultimate episode to do it. She told Billboard:

"I've been wanting to use a Taylor song for many years on the show and we finally found the perfect spot for a track from her, and I'm so glad we waited because there could not be a more perfect song for a more perfect moment."

Elisabeth Moss further mentioned that she considers it "such an honor" to be able to use Swift's song in the final episodes of the series. She also gave credit to The Handmaid's Tale editor Wendy Hallam Martin for picking Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor's Version) for season 6 episode 9's opening scene. She said that they both agreed that the song and the show's opening scene were "meant to be."

Hallam Martin also shared her comments about incorporating the particular Swift song in the opening sequence of season 6's penultimate episode with Billboard. She said:

"When I laid the song up against the scene, it just landed perfectly thematically, rhythmically, and magically hit all the edit points which sometimes happens if it's meant to be."

She also said that the song "couldn't have been more on point," because during the opening scene, Elisabeth Moss' character was "saying 'look what you made me do.'"

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One more episode left in The Handmaid's Tale

After six successful seasons of The Handmaid's Tale, the hit dystopian series on Hulu will air its series finale on Tuesday, May 27, 2025, only on the streaming platform. Creator, showrunner, and executive producer Bruce Miller shared the news way back in 2022 during the announcement that the Margaret Atwood adaptation would be renewed for season 6, saying that it would also be the last season.

Titled The Handmaid's Tale, season 6 episode 10 marks the final chapter of Elisabeth Moss' character's journey in pursuit of freedom and justice. As teased in the synopsis, the finale will see June reflect on her experiences and figure out what she wants to do next. Series co-showrunner Yahlin Chang teased what the finale will be like in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, published on May 20:

"[Episode] 10 returns to a sense of that quiet realism of like, well, what happens the next day, and that feeling that we're just dropping in on this moment."

The series finale will follow the events of the plane explosion that killed Commander Lawrence and Nick, among other Commanders.

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Catch previous episodes of The Handmaid's Tale streaming on Hulu.