Elisabeth Moss is set to don the iconic white bonnet once more for the final chapter of The Handmaid’s Tale, premiering on Hulu today, April 8. The streaming giant will drop the first three episodes of the sixth season, with the remaining seven to follow weekly.

UK viewers will have to hold their breath a bit longer, as the Emmy-laden series is slated to hit Channel 4 and Prime Video at an undisclosed future date.

While Moss, now 42, initially broke through with Mad Men and soared with Top of the Lake, it’s her riveting performance in The Handmaid’s Tale that has truly enshrined her in the pantheon of acting legends.

Her role as June Osborne, grappling with the horrors of a dystopian society in Margaret Atwood’s haunting tale, has garnered her top honours, including Best Actress trophies at both the 2017 Emmys and Golden Globes.

Yet, Moss’ off-screen life has been no less compelling, marked by its own share of drama, reports the Mirror US.

Elisabeth Moss’ ‘traumatic’ marriage

In her personal life, Moss was once wed to actor, comedian, and musician Fred Armisen. Their paths crossed in 2008 during an SNL episode hosted by Jon Hamm, Moss’s co-star from Mad Men.

Armisen, then part of the SNL ensemble, encountered Moss when she appeared in a sketch parodying their acclaimed show.

The two were engaged by 2009, with Moss confirming the engagement but keeping details under wraps, only revealing to People that the proposal was “perfect”.

Sadly, her brief marriage to Fred Armisen ended in divorce with the actress citing “irreconcilable differences” only eight months post-wedding. Reflecting on the breakup with the Los Angeles Times in 2014, Moss shared: “It was extremely traumatic and awful and horrible. At the same time, it turned out for the best.”

She expressed relief that the split occurred early in life before children entered the picture.

Armisen himself admitted his shortcomings in relationships when discussing his divorce from Moss in 2013 with Howard Stern, stating candidly, “I think I was a terrible husband. I think I’m a terrible boyfriend.”

He confessed to a pattern of hastiness in relationships and the eventual onset of commitment fear: “I want it all – fast. I want to be married … the amount of girls I’ve lived with right away … and then somewhere around a year, two years, I get freaked out … I feel bad for everyone I’ve gone out with.”

Elisabeth Moss’ pregnancy and baby news

After past troubles, there’s joyous news for Moss as she recently confirmed that 2024 saw the birth of her first child, putting her in a much more pleasant and positive chapter of her life.

Moss has kept the identity of her baby’s father private, but she didn’t hold back on expressing her joy about becoming a mother. The acclaimed actress felt “so fortunate” to have her little one accompany her on set.

Describing it as “beautiful synergy”, Moss told The Hollywood Reporter: “This coming together of art and life that was undoubtedly, incredibly meaningful.”

She reflected on her role in the final season of The Handmaid’s Tale, stating, “I’m really glad that I got to have this last season playing June with a little bit more of a visceral emotional experience of some of the things that June is talking about or fighting for. I’m really happy that I got to have that experience.”

Moss feels her new maternal status brought an added layer of depth to her performance in a show centred on fertility and motherhood.

Elisabeth Moss’ broken back injury during filming

In a stark contrast, Moss faced physical challenges when she previously revealed she broke her back while shooting her new series The Veil. The espionage-filled thriller from FX had her busy hopping across countries and dodging danger at every turn.

Speaking to Variety, Moss recounted the painful incident occurring during a rooftop fight scene in episode two of The Veil. She recalled, “The first time we shot it I hit a wall the wrong way, let’s just say, and ended up lying on the roof for a couple hours.”

Moss recounted: “We actually shot the next day at the airport, those are the Paris airport scenes you see [in the episode], and I actually have, like, a broken back.”

She joked about her injury: “I tried to get them to put a green blanket over me, and just VFX [visual effects] me out. I was like, ‘Look, just put the green blanket over me and you can scrub me out in post.'”.

Thankfully, Moss has recovered from her ordeal, and the horizon looks promising with a full slate of projects on her hands, including She Will Rise, Last Night at the Lobster, and Imperfect Women.

Buzz is also building around the possibility of Moss making a cameo in The Handmaid’s Tale sequel series The Testaments, although that remains unconfirmed for now.

The Handmaid’s Tale season 6 will be coming to Prime Video on May 3 in the UK and to Channel 4 in 2025