Elisabeth Moss Explains Why She Initially Passed on Starring in 'The Handmaid's Tale' - Watch Now!

It’s hard to imagine The Handmaid’s Tale without Elisabeth Moss!

For her role as June Osborne on the Hulu dystopian thriller series, the 42-year-old actress has won two Emmys, a Golden Globe, and a Critics’ Choice award.

But did you know that Elisabeth almost didn’t star in the show?!

While appearing on The Jennifer Hudson Show on Tuesday (May 20), Elisabeth explained why she initially passed on playing June in the show.

Keep reading to find out more…“I’m so glad I [took it], obviously,” Elisabeth said. “Thank God that worked out the right way.”

She went on to say that she was offered the role “less than a year” after finishing her eight-year run on the AMC series Mad Men, so she was hesitant to sign on for another “five or six” year commitment for a new show.

“I wasn’t quite sure if I was ready to make that commitment again, so I actually passed the first time they offered it to me,” Elisabeth recalled. “I know, it seems insane now. I’m so glad I’ve corrected that. Then they came back, and they very nicely offered it again, blah, blah, blah.”

She continued, “Then the thing that clinched it was … they leaked it to me who they were going to offer it to if I didn’t take it, and I was like, ‘Over my dead body.’”

While she didn’t reveal who the other candidate to play June was, Elisabeth said, “It was the thing that made realize that I needed to do it.”

“I couldn’t stand the idea of anyone else playing that role, you know what I mean?” Elisabeth admitted. “That was the thing that made me realize how badly I wanted to do it.”

Ahead of the series finale of The Handmaid’s Tale that will be released on Tuesday, May 27, three major characters killed off in the penultimate episode.