Who directed the 1990 film adaptation?

Volker Schlöndorff directed the 1990 film adaptation of *The Handmaid's Tale*.

The film was the first screen adaptation of Margaret Atwood's 1985 novel. Schlöndorff, a German filmmaker associated with works such as *The Tin Drum*, directed the English-language production for an American and West German context.

The project had a complicated development. Karel Reisz was initially attached to direct, but he withdrew after disagreements over the scale and feasibility of the production. Schlöndorff then took over, while Harold Pinter received screenplay credit and Atwood was consulted during revisions.

The finished film stars Natasha Richardson as Kate/Offred, Robert Duvall as the Commander, and Faye Dunaway as Serena Joy. Its plot differs from the novel, particularly in its more resolved ending, which is one reason viewers sometimes conflate the film's creative contributors.