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look what you made me do handmaids tale
look what you made me do handmaids tale
Taylor Swift via YouTube; Hulu
Culture > Entertainment

Here’s The Story Behind That “Look What You Made Me Do (TV)” Drop In ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’

After months of teasing, theorizing, and trying to predict when reputation (Taylor’s Version) would finally arrive, Taylor Swift finally dropped concrete evidence that the album is coming soon. In the new episode of The Handmaid’s Tale that premiered on May 20, fans finally got a snippet of the new recording of one of the most popular songs from the original album: “Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version).”

Spoiler warning: Spoilers for The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6, Episode 9 follow. The use of “Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version)” was masterful, kicking off the penultimate episode of the show, which will be ending this month after six seasons.

Elisabeth Moss, star of The Handmaid’s Tale, told Billboard the story of how the show came to use this unreleased track. “I’ve been wanting to use a Taylor song for many years on the show and we finally found the perfect track from her,” she said. “As a Swiftie myself 
 it’s such an honor to be able to use her music in the final episodes of our show.” Notably, Moss attended the Eras tour in Toronto last year with her Handmaid’s Tale co-star, Bradley Whitford, so you know her fandom is the real deal.

“All the credit goes to Wendy for picking this track for this moment!” Moss added in the interview, referencing The Handmaid’s Tale editor Wendy Hallam Martin. Hallam Martin elaborated to Billboard, “Our badass main character June in this scene, really was saying, ‘Look what you made me do,’ and the song couldn’t have been more on point. A perfect pairing. 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.”

This unexpected drop comes as Swift has been releasing hints that the album release (or at least the album release announcement) may happen on May 26 during the American Music Awards. Considering the “Look What You Made Me Do” snippet in The Handmaid’s Tale was only about a minute long, with the first two verses and choruses, fans are all the more eager to hear the full song — and the full reputation (TV) album — like, ASAP.

Jordyn Stapleton

CU Boulder '22

Jordyn Stapleton has been a National Lifestyle Writer for Her Campus since February 2023. She covers a variety of topics in her articles, but is most passionate about writing about mental health and social justice issues.

Jordyn graduated from CU Boulder in December 2022 with Bachelor’s degrees in music and psychology with a minor in gender studies and a certificate in public health. Jordyn was involved in Her Campus during college, serving as an Editorial Assistant and later Editor-in-Chief for the CU Boulder chapter. She has also worked as a freelance stringer for the Associated Press. Jordyn is currently working towards a Master of Public Health degree from the Colorado School of Public Health.

Jordyn enjoys reading, bullet journaling, and listening to (preferably Taylor Swift) music in her free time. If she isn’t brainstorming her next article, you can usually find her exploring Colorado with her friends and silver lab puppy.