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[Thisstorycontainsmajorspoilersforthepenultimateepisodeof[ThisstorycontainsmajorspoilersfromthepenultimateepisodeofCovenants“Marat prevailed.”]
when Covenants Started by Bruce Miller — innovator The Handmaid’s Tale Supplemental Series – She told us that “there is nothing in the world stronger than a 14-year-old girl.” The penultimate episode certainly proved that theory.
In “Marat Sade,” the hour before next weekend, Becca, played by Mattia Conforti, takes justice into her own hands, just as the Peaches (teens training to marry leaders) were trained to do by Gilead’s aunts. After discovering that her father (Randall Edwards) sexually assaulted her best friend Agnes (Chase Infinity), along with more of her friends, she stabs her father to death while in the shower. She runs to Agnes to tell her what she did – an action that proves how her feelings for Agnes run much deeper than just a friend. But when Agnes tells her parents, the eyes come and take Becca away.
“A lot of the reasons she does what she does is for Agnes; because of the love she has for her and as a way to protect her,” she says. Hollywood Reporter Becca and Agnes’ relationship. “It’s a spiral. I don’t even recognize that version of Becca anymore [when she shows up to Agnes’ house]”.
Below, Conforti delves into the episode’s violence while discussing how they handled Becca’s feelings for Agnes differently than in the Margaret Atwood book on which the show is based. She also reacts to the season 2 renewal and teases next week’s finale, leaving questions lingering.
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So that was just announced Covenants Returns for season two!
I’m so excited. I’ve been waiting for them to be released [the news] And I’m very happy.
How long did you know you were officially coming back?
I literally discovered this a few days ago. There were whispers. I was asking if there would be a second season. And they were saying: “Maybe, we don’t know yet.” Then they finally told us a few days ago.
It’s not a surprise, given intentions and expectations The Handmaid’s Tale Sequel series. I spoke with your creator Bruce Miller and executive producer Warren Littlefield about when the show was released setting up Season 2 and beyond, and building more of the world of Gilead. Did you feel confident when pitching the show that you would get a multi-season series?
I think we all knew this show was very strong while it was being filmed. You can definitely feel it behind the scenes, but I don’t think anyone could have really expected the amount of love and support we would all truly receive. It was so amazing and so appreciative.
I remember finishing the finale and saying, “I have to know what happens next. I want a second season… I want to know.” There is a lot of excitement and many open questions that I have. But I don’t think I realized how amazing everything was until the show came on.
Especially with the weekly drop and this show’s ability to build an audience, what was it like to be in this huge franchise, having fans approach you or seeing the reactions online?
It was really surreal. I use TikTok and Instagram, which is kind of weird. On my For You page, I’m scrolling, and I just see an edit of myself, or I see videos of the show. Even people would approach me on the street, I would hang out with girls [on the cast] In New York last week, people were coming up to us. This has never happened to me before, and it’s absolutely amazing. I love it all, and I have so much love for our fans. There would be a show without them, so it’s much appreciated.
In this week’s wild episode… Becca’s feelings for Agnes (played by Chase Infinity on the series) were more apparent in the book than they were on the show, so far. Her actions make her feelings clear to everyone – to the viewers and to Agnes. What were your conversations like with Bruce Miller about wanting to handle her feelings differently on the show?
When I first arrived in Canada, I sat down with Bruce and with him [director] Mike Parker on how we wanted to portray a different element found in Gilead; This different role that Gilead hasn’t really seen or had a role in the character and brings this new perspective. They wanted to show how much love Becca can divide into different categories. She has a lot of strong platonic love for Agnes, but she also has a lot of strong feelings for Agnes. We really wanted to show that when you’re a young teenager, and you have these strong feelings, it can be either.
There is constant tension and constant noise everywhere. We wanted to have that play out and progress throughout the entire season, and for it to ultimately lead to the turning point, which is what we saw in this episode. A lot of the reasons she does what she does is for Agnes. For the love you have for her and as a way to protect her.
right. There’s being a good friend, and then there’s being protective of someone you love. Do you feel like this is what made Becca snap and kill her father – when she found out he had assaulted Agnes?
I think so. At first, when Daisy [Lucy Halliday] She tells Becca that there are already initial feelings of jealousy and envy towards Daisy and her relationship with Agnes. So it’s easy for Becca to take out her frustration on Daisy. We know what Daisy says isn’t true [she lied about Dr. Grove touching her]But even if that were true, I don’t think Becca would have trusted Daisy at her word.
But Becca has a lot of love for Agnes. Everything she says is her bible. She trusts her with all her heart. So when you find out [that her dad touched Agnes]It’s earth shattering. But also, one of the reasons Becca does what she does is because this is what the aunts have been teaching them for a long time, which is that this is the right course of action and the right punishment for the sins these men are committing.
We saw the hanging bodies in the first episode. This was the reward they deserved for touching a girl. So this, in a way, is the right measure of justice and the right thing to do to protect Agnes and also to protect Gilead.
Interestingly, in a world where rape has become commonplace, this does not worry these girls. Don’t they really understand what life is like as a maid, and how their fathers and husbands rape maids?
right. But they don’t, because they are the most devout girls of Gilead. They are the group of girls responsible for becoming the divine mother figure and wife to these leaders. Even if they are aware of what men do to maids, unfortunately, this is the treatment that maids receive. They are not held in the same caliber. So it wouldn’t be seen as abnormal, really. What’s more, when these girls get hurt before they get married, it makes them evil or unworthy of becoming the divine mother figure for these men one day.
Disney/Steve Wilkie
Do you think at that moment when she killed her father that Becca was having a mental break? Or is this her action based on her belief, as I said, that an eye for an eye?
I think it’s both. She’s been confused about where she is or what her place is in Gilead, and when she finds out, I feel like this is her calling, where she’s going to make her mark and show the aunts that she belongs here. She’s having a bit of a mental spiral and breakdown because this is her father. You have to strip away everything that Gilead preaches and really focus on the relationships that you have with each person in this situation. It’s spirals. We see that even when she comes to Agnes’s house afterwards and says, “I did this for you,” and when she’s in the bathroom. I don’t even recognize that version of Becca anymore.
How did you feel when you entered the world of this episode, and how did you feel when you left it?
It was intense. I didn’t read the script at first because we were shooting a bunch of episodes at once, but then we got to episode nine and people were texting me: “Did you read it?” When I read it, as an actor, I’m very happy to take on that challenge and be able to put myself somewhere I’ve never been before. It was easy to get into a state of mental madness just because we were working long hours late into the night in a dark, confined studio. I wanted to leave those days exhausted, because I wanted to give everything I could. I wanted to know that I showed up to prepare and gave 110% of my energy, and… I leave tired and left wondering if I should have done more.
But after I got rid of that mentality, I grew a lot. My family visited me a lot during that episode and I spent a lot of time with the girls off set as well.
There’s this moment of betrayal at the end of the episode when Becca realizes the Eyes are coming for her. At that moment, she didn’t know that Agnes didn’t make eye contact, and she probably thought that Agnes was involved in it. In this last moment, does she feel that her love is not returned, and how much her heart breaks?
She’s confused, you know? She truly believes that she and Agnes will run away, and she shows Agnes her love for her and what she is willing to do for Agnes. “Yes, I’ll run away with you. We’ll make this work,” Agnes says, and Becca actually believes her. What’s really difficult about this situation is that Agnes is doing what she thinks is the right thing to do. She really wants Becca to get some help because she’s not okay and she’s not in a good mental state. But in fact, Agnes’s father, Commander Mackenzie, is the one calling the eyes. Agnes is not aware. I think Becca knows Agnes didn’t make eye contact. I think she really thinks she’s going to see a doctor, which is why she keeps calling Agnes. But I think regardless, even if Agnes was the one who caught her attention, Becca would still call Agnes because she has so much love for her and she’s her own person.
What can you say about the consequences that will come for Becca in the end? How did her fate surprise you? Was it what you expected?
It’s Gilead. You can’t trust anyone in Gilead. We know that. We know that Gilead is not a happy place. It’s not a great place. There are a lot of difficulties behind many situations and scenarios. So we can expect to see the Gilead we know and have known ever since The Handmaid’s Tale. I just want Becca to finally find some peace.
How would you say this changes her relationship with Agnes after this moment?
Becca was clearly confused, and had been thrown off her feet for the past 24 hours. But Agnes is the type of person who, in Becca’s opinion, can do no wrong. And if she could do this whole series of events to protect her, I honestly think Becca would because Agnes is her girl. She would protect her no matter what.
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Covenants The season finale will be released next week on Wednesday, May 27.
