The Hulu series The Testaments brings viewers back to the world of Gilead, and among the standout performers is Lucy Halliday. She plays Daisy, a Canadian teenager pulled into the fight against the oppressive regime.
Halliday recently opened up about how she got the part. She described it as a “linear audition process,” but getting the role came with some big surprises along the way. The young actress also shared her honest reaction to discovering major changes between the show and Margaret Atwood’s original book.
How Lucy Halliday Landed Her Role as Daisy
When Lucy Halliday first tried out for the part, she knew something big was happening, but not exactly what. The production used a fake “code name.” The characters also had completely different names in the audition scripts. This is a common trick to prevent leaks on major shows.
Despite the secrecy, Halliday figured it out quickly. She is a big fan of Margaret Atwood’s novel The Testaments. She recognized the clues and realized she was auditioning for the sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale.
The process involved sending in a self-tape. After that, she had a conversation with showrunner Bruce Miller. Halliday explained that even though the road to getting hired was straightforward, she had no idea the show was actually being made until she was deep into the auditions.
The ‘Stab in the Heart’ Change From the Book
Many fans of the book noticed a major difference while watching the show. In Margaret Atwood’s novel, Daisy is revealed to be baby Nicole, the daughter of Elisabeth Moss’s character, June Osborne. However, the TV series changed this detail.
Lucy Halliday was honest about her feelings regarding this change. She admitted that learning Daisy would not be baby Nicole felt like a “stab in the heart.” Halliday knew the original storyline from the book. She loved the connection to June’s history.
The actress even fought “tooth and nail” to convince the writers to keep the original plot. She wanted to bring that part of the book to the screen. In the end, the showrunners reassured her. They told her that even though the lineage changed, Daisy’s personality and spirit remain exactly like the book version.
“I knew I never wanted her to lose her tenacity, regardless of how much she’s having to assimilate in Gilead.” – Lucy Halliday on playing Daisy
Working With Elisabeth Moss and Chase Infiniti
Lucy Halliday is 22 years old, and The Testaments is her biggest job yet. She admitted to feeling in “awe” of her co-star Elisabeth Moss. Halliday did not know Moss would be in the show when she first signed on. When she found out, she was completely blown away.
Moss returns as June Osborne in the sequel series. Halliday watched Moss closely on set. She paid attention to how Moss talked to the crew and how she carried herself. Halliday joked that she probably watched Moss in a “creepy” way from a distance because she wanted to learn everything she could.
Alongside Moss, Halliday credits Chase Infiniti, who plays Agnes, for helping her survive the big production. Infiniti had just finished a major movie with Paul Thomas Anderson. She taught Halliday how to speak up for herself in a large working environment. The two leads became close, along with castmates Mattea Conforti and Rowan Blanchard. They held weekly dinners to help each other get through the intense filming days.
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Where You Can Watch The Sequel Series
The Testaments is available to stream right now. The series serves as a direct follow-up to The Handmaid’s Tale. It takes place 15 years after the original story. The plot follows Agnes, a girl raised inside Gilead, and Daisy, a newcomer from outside the borders.
Alongside Ann Dowd returning as Aunt Lydia, the show explores what happens when these two young women meet at Aunt Lydia’s school. The first three episodes dropped on April 8, 2026 on Hulu in the United States. New episodes arrive every Wednesday.
Release Information:
- USA: Streaming now on Hulu
- UK: Available on Prime Video
- Australia: Streaming on Disney+
- Canada: Available on Crave
- India: Streaming on Disney+ Hotstar
The Meaning Behind Daisy’s Fight
For Lucy Halliday, the story is bigger than just the dystopian setting. She believes the friendship between the young girls is the heart of the show. Daisy remains fierce even when the system tries to break her down. Halliday fought to keep that spark alive in her performance.
She noted that young women often feel they have to shrink themselves to fit in. She wanted Daisy to be the opposite of that. Even when forced to wear the gray dresses of Gilead, Daisy keeps her rebellious Canadian spirit. Halliday hopes viewers connect with that sense of survival and sisterhood.
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