‘Handmaid’s Tale’ star Bradley Whitford says Margaret Atwood is actually an optimist

The U.S. seems doomed to spiral into a dystopian nightmare world like something straight out of Margaret Atwood’s novels. But perhaps that’s being too optimistic about the current state of politics in the country — at least that’s what The Handmaid’s Tale star Bradley Whitford thinks.

Speaking to Variety, the actor, who plays Commander Joseph Lawrence on the show, spoke about the dire state of women’s rights in America right now. Whitford claimed that Atwood, the author of the original novel, had actually been too optimistic in her portrayal of an America ruled by religious zealots.

Bradley Whitford addresses the political turmoil in America

Considering how politically charged the show is, it’s a given that the cast are going to have strong opinions about what’s going on today. Whitford does not disappoint as he tears into Trump and his anti-DEI policies and the gutting of abortion clinics. The actor states that there were 65,000 pregnant rape victims without access to abortion last year but “Now it’s way up from that.”

He suggests that the U.S. is slowly morphing into Gilead — the name for the dystopian America from Atwood’s novel. In fact, he goes further and implies the reality is even worse.

“This is not a drill. It’s not a story. This is happening. Margaret Atwood said that she almost scrapped the book a couple of times because it seemed too far-fetched. Turns out Margaret Atwood’s an optimist.”

He has a point, Atwood’s original novel doesn’t seem nearly as dark or far-off as it did when it was first published in 1985. If anything, the world she portrays seems less terrifying than the real world.

Whitford asks people to speak out

Bradley vented his frustrations with those complicit in Trump’s regime. He even calls out his own boss, Jeff Bezos, telling him to “f***ing speak up!” While a few far-right influencers have severed ties with Trump, Bezos has yet to speak out against the president despite the fact he’s funding a TV show that is obviously against everything Trump stands for.

What had seemed far-fetched a few short years ago is slowly turning into the norm. The Trump administration has slowly dismantled women’s rights starting way back in the president’s first term. The reversal of Roe v. Wade saw the constitutional right to abortion removed with the decision returning to individual states. Now the president is removing funding from Planned Parenthood clinics in another blow to women’s rights. 

On top of that, the president is rolling back DEI policies, destroying trans rights, and implementing a much more aggressive deportation policy. Comparisons to the Republic of Gilead seem almost unavoidable.