The First Photo Of Alexis Bledel In 'Handmaid's Tale' Season 2 Is Beyond Chilling

Blessed be Hulu for teasing the first photo of Alexis Bledel from The Handmaid's Tale Season 2. Essentially, this photo is a sign of what's to come in the new season, premiering April 25 — or more specifically, where the show is going. This time around, the series isn't just expanding past its source material, it's expanding its location to show what lies beyond the borders of Gilead. With this shot The Handmaid's Tale is giving its first look at the Colonies, and if you can believe it or not, this place looks even scarier than anything from last season.

In the image, Bledel's Emily, formerly known as Ofglen, is seen wearing gray from head to toe. While handmaids wear red, the Marthas wear green, and wives wear blue, gray is worn by the prisoners in the Colonies, a radioactive waste dump where they send convicts. Gray is meant to symbolize how un-important these women are. They're servants only there to work the toxic fields, and then die in them.

Bledel is covered in dirt and grime. She's looking off into the distance, worried about something or possibly everything since there isn't much chance she'll be leaving this place anytime soon. Other gray clad women surround her, digging through the dump, shoveling mud into boxes with hazardous waste symbols on them. For those who thought Gilead was as bad as it gets, welcome to the Colonies, a former handmaid's worst nightmare.

According to Entertainment Weekly, the second episode of The Handmaid's Tale will take place in the Colonies and show what life has been like for Emily. In a nutshell, it isn't good. In an email, Bledel told EW, "Life in the Colonies is a last stop. Emily does not have a great deal of hope for a future there; she knows her days are numbered."

That's because, as Bledel explained, "Everything from the soil the unwomen" — a term for those who get sent to the Colonies — "turn over to the water they use to wash is toxic in the Colonies, so a person’s health begins to rapidly deteriorate as soon as they get there." Getting sent to the Colonies is basically a prolonged death sentence, since they'll either be killed by hard labor or the dangerous living conditions.

Of course, Bledel's Emily isn't there alone. By expanding its universe, The Handmaid's Tale will also expand its cast. Last year, Samira Wiley, who plays Moira, told Bustle that The Handmaid's Tale Season 2 will focus on more women.

"One of the things that we hear so much about in the first season that we don’t see is the women who are sent to the colonies," Wiley said. "We’ve heard of them, but what are they? For a person who’s been classified as an 'unwoman,' what is their life like there? What do they look like? What’s their day to day? So we’re gonna really be able to see that."

One of those women will be Marisa Tomei, who is a guest star in Season 2, playing the wife of a commander from the Colonies, according to Variety. Fans will also get another glimpse of Janine, who was sent away after surviving a near-stoning. Fans will also get to meet Offred's mother in the new season.

Most importantly, the show is going to follow Offred (Elisabeth Moss) as she tries to escapes Gilead with her unborn baby. As of now, it's unclear where she's headed, but it's sure to be a bumpy ride.

This new photo of Bledel should get fans excited for what's to come, but also make them very nervous. After all, those who go to the colonies don't often come back, but knowing Emily, it's hard to believe she'll go down without a fight.