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Well, that was an unexpected turn of events forThe Handmaids Tales Commander George Winslow.
(Major spoilers for this weeks episode,Liars,ahead.)
Not that Winslow didnt deserve it.
One of the blows leaves him gasping for air and pleading My children!
before June clocks him in the head.
Did you know the full arc of the character when you agreed to be on the show?
No, you never know.
They just give you kind of the broad strokes.
Hes a commander from Washington, D.C. Hes a very powerful guy.
And they would say, Oh my God, its so good.
It was so nice having you on the show.Im like,Oh boy, the die is cast.
You do hear stories about painful calls between producers and actors when a characters demise is imminent.
This didnt happen for you?No.
Well, it was definitely a shocker.
What did you think of the story?The setting I understood: Jezebels.
It feels as though thats what my character represented the heart of Gilead.
I was representing the federal government of Gilead.
I thought it was very satisfying that sexual violence is met with violence.
And I liked that his last words were my children.
I felt that was poignant.
I loved going through all of the stunt work and figuring out the dance of it all.
Man, this feels so good!
The Marthas!Yeah!The girlfriends are banding together.
They have had enough.
Did you think June had that in her all along?
Shes been forcedinto a certain way of behaving just so you can get through life.
To navigate cleverly in this environment, youre going to start losing things.
I think the dam finally broke and she is not going through this again.
You know, just as much as the Aztecs killed virgins for the sun god or whatever.
And why do we do this?
For the greater good.
Sacrifices must be made.
Thats how we can put children in cages to protect ourselves.
And whats cringe-y is the discomfort of the women.
And how Ive seen it played is that the men dont feel that discomfort.
They are pretending to connect, but its always disconnected.
The wife has to be there.
So, when youre doing it, you build up your own rules and it becomes a character thing.
I know that sounds so actor-y.
And, by the way, Ill probably be aroused watching the proceedings.So did it bother me?
Speaking of Commander Winslows excitement, he is definitely the most fertile person in Gilead.
Six kids!You know what the writers were saying to me?
They said he stole many of his children from other commanders that he killed.
What?I know!
I was like,No, youre wrong!In my mind, those are all Winslows.
Well, maybe one he stole.
I was like,You got that wrong.Winslow is very fertile.
Thats how I felt about it and about him.
Thats what he is supposed to project.
He was the biggest running bull in the herd.
I think it was intentionally left, or at least I intentionally left it, ambiguous.
This is a guy with many appetites.
Take that for what you will.
Tell me about filming your final scene.
The stunt people had blocked it out pretty clearly and cleanly.
And then Elisabeth and I got to it and it took a day.
We had a stunt person for Elisabeth but not for much of it.
On the first take and it almost always happens adrenaline was ripping and Elisabeth popped me with that pen.
It was like,Wow!
So it was a real pen that you used?
Who knew you could cause that much damage with a pen?It was!
Yeah, the whole thing we were going for is that she punctured a lung.
Its kind of this cat-and-mouse, and then she hits something and she catches me between the ribs.
Thats why hes [gasps for air].
His last words imploring her to save him for his children can be viewed in different ways.
But also valuein Gilead is all wrapped up in children.
If you dont have children, you have no future.You dont have a stake in the future.
So theyre really a coin of the realm hence why I have so many children.
So it could be that what you have read into his psyche is But Im so rich!
This cant be happening because Im rich and powerful.
I have all my children.
Its a way to look at it.
Thats what hes thinking about.
Are you sad that youre not going to be on the show anymore?Yes.
I want you to start a campaign.
Bring back Winslows brother his identical twin.
Cause we definitely cant bring him back.
