Margaret Atwood, the source novel's author, makes a cameo as an Aunt in Offred (S1E1). She is the one who slaps June when she is reluctant to join in the group shaming circle.
Joseph Fiennes said that his wife does not watch the show, knowing the disturbing nature of Commander Waterford's character.
Margaret Atwood has said that she was greatly inspired by George Orwell's classic dystopian novel, "1984".
The actresses have said that the head coverings they wear when they go outside are like blinders, completely cutting off their peripheral vision. The actresses can't see each other unless they're looking directly at each other. They have to act largely based on what they can hear.
In an April 2018 interview with "Salon" writer Mary Elizabeth Williams, Amanda Brugel (Rita) said that as the self-described "lone Canadian in the cast," the book changed her life long before she won a role in the show. She was assigned Margaret Atwood's novel as a 15-year-old high school student and subsequently wrote some short stories based on it. Later she wrote her university application thesis on the novel and received a full scholarship on that basis. Brugel said that the main focus of that university application essay was Rita, the character she now plays on the show.