Did The Handmaid’s Tale Alter Nick’s Storyline from the Book Prior to His Death?

The Handmaid’s Tale has eliminated a character who was not originally slated to die — at least not in the way the book depicts it — and the alteration hasn’t pleased everyone.

In the episode aired on Tuesday, May 20, June (Elisabeth Moss) partnered with Commander Lawrence (Bradley Whitford), who consented to sacrifice himself to dismantle the remaining Gilead leadership. Lawrence aligned with Commander Wharton (Josh Charles) and other officials as they planned to fly to Washington D.C., fully aware that he wouldn’t make it.

In a surprising turn of events, June’s romantic interest Nick (Max Minghella) decided to board the plane at the last moment, even though he hadn’t intended to go. June painfully watched as her former lover entered the aircraft, knowing it was destined to explode shortly after takeoff. The episode concluded with June witnessing the wreckage.

While the shocking ending left viewers in disbelief, not everyone was pleased with how it deviated from the original narrative.

“After five seasons of Nick oppressing Gilead yet plagued by his past, they villainize him in three episodes & kill him off,” one user expressed on X. “HE WAS A SPY WHO DESPISED GILEAD IN THE BOOKS & WORKED ALONGSIDE MAYDAY. WHAT WERE THE WRITERS THINKING, WTF🤬🤬#TheHandmaidsTale.”

Many viewers may have forgotten Nick’s storyline in Margaret Atwood’s novel. Another response noted, “He recognized Gilead for what it was and acknowledged the monstrous nature of the Waterfords. He became a spy, relaying information to them. This was hinted at through the show, but I suppose they scrapped it for a shocking final season🙄.”

In Atwood’s sequel, The Testaments, currently being developed at Hulu, Nick was portrayed as “deep undercover” within Gilead. “Having read the book, and knowing his character was aligned with Mayday, it feels like being gaslit for five seasons! 🤬,” a user shared on X.

However, not every viewer disagreed, with one social media user stating, “In the show, he was always a Nazi.”

For those unfamiliar with The Handmaid’s Tale, the most significant divergence occurred post-season 1. In season 2, Hulu’s adaptation embraced plotlines that expanded on the world and characters beyond Atwood’s original dystopian vision, enabling the series to continue for six seasons.

“None of this was ever under my jurisdiction,” Atwood remarked during the Hay literary festival in 2018 regarding the acquisition of the book’s rights by the distributors of the 1989 film version of The Handmaid’s Tale. “Even if I had thrown a fit and insisted they couldn’t do this, it wouldn’t have had any legal weight.”

Despite lacking creative control, Atwood has expressed support for the show, stating, “It would be quite foolish to resent it since things could have turned out much worse. They’ve done an excellent job; the acting is superb and they’ve adhered to fundamental premises.”

She concluded: “It’s a television series. You can’t eliminate the central character, nor can you allow the central character to escape to safety in the season 2 premiere. That’s just not feasible.”

Nick’s demise arrives ahead of the eagerly awaited series finale. He betrayed June prior to his death, a topic that coshowrunners Yahlin Chang and Eric Tuchman discussed exclusively with Us Weekly.

“People aren’t exclusively good or entirely bad; they don’t always make the right decisions,” explained Chang earlier this month. “That was the driving force for Eric and me all along: to honestly portray the full spectrum of these characters this season.”

The executive producers were uncertain about how to “conclude” the June and Nick storyline.

“We understood we wanted to really delve into it and approach it honestly. That’s when we realized they needed to reach this critical turning point,” Tuchman revealed to Us. “Moving forward, there’s always hope for someone to choose wisely and do the right thing.”

He continued: “June has been Nick’s guiding light throughout. His moments of bravery and right action have been motivated by June. So perhaps this tense scenario serves as a significant wake-up call for him.”

New episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale are available every Tuesday on Hulu.