Elisabeth Moss calls Taylor Swift’s new version of Look What You Made Me Do the perfect fit for The Handmaid’s Tale’s powerful climax.
The Swiftie revolution has made its way to Gilead — and The Handmaid’s Tale star and executive producer Elisabeth Moss couldn’t be more thrilled.
In a dramatic and action-packed new episode of the long-running Hulu series, a powerful moment of rebellion unfolds as June Osborne, played by Elisabeth Moss, leads a group of handmaids in a gripping uprising. The entire opening sequence is soundtracked by Taylor Swift’s newly re-recorded version of “Look What You Made Me Do”, marking one of the first full glimpses fans have gotten of Reputation (Taylor’s Version).
@m.s.motorcyclemama #HandmaidsTale #LWYMMD #RepTV #EveryLoveStoryIsATragedyIf ♬ original sound – m.s.motorcyclemama 🇺🇸🫶🏻🌎
“It’s such an honor to be able to use her music in the final episodes of our show,” Elisabeth Moss told Billboard exclusively. “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.”
The electrifying scene, which begins The Handmaid’s Tale’s Season 6, Episode 9, captures the handmaids walking in fierce formation as explosions erupt around them. The updated track features recreated synths and drums from Jack Antonoff’s original production, now paired with a new, matured vocal performance by Swift — a blend that elevated the already intense sequence to something unforgettable.
Elisabeth Moss, who attended The Eras Tour in Toronto with co-star Bradley Whitford, said the moment was worth the wait. “There could not be a more perfect song for a more perfect moment,” she said, adding that the show’s editor Wendy Hallam Martin deserves full credit for matching the song to the episode’s opening.
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“I said to my editor, Wendy, ‘I really want to find a place for a Taylor track in the last two episodes of the show,’ and we wanted to find a music queue for the opening of 9,” Elisabeth Moss revealed. “All the credit goes to Wendy for picking this track for this moment!”
According to Hallam Martin, the decision felt destined. “In trying many songs for this specific moment in our series and knowing how much Lizzie wanted a strong female voice and message, Taylor was really the artist that delivered both lyrically and tonally,” she shared. “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.”
The sequence includes the full first and second verses and two choruses of “Look What You Made Me Do,” bringing the bold, vengeful energy of Taylor Swift’s Reputation era to life onscreen.
Originally released in 2017, the song spent three weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, while the Reputation album ruled the Billboard 200 for four weeks. Taylor Swift is currently in the process of re-recording her first six albums, and Reputation is one of just two yet to be officially released in “Taylor’s Version.”
Though she’s only teased bits of the project so far — including brief uses of “Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version)” in The Dynasty: New England Patriots and Prime Video’s Wilderness — this Handmaid’s Tale episode delivers the most robust preview yet.
With 1989 (Taylor’s Version) having dropped nearly two years ago, fans are eagerly speculating that Swift may finally reveal details about Reputation (Taylor’s Version) during the upcoming American Music Awards on Memorial Day (May 26).
Until then, Elisabeth Moss and her fellow Handmaid’s cast members — all self-proclaimed Swifties — are just grateful for the chance to bring Taylor Swift’s music into their world at just the right moment.
