Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Handmaid's Tale season 5!
The Handmaid's Tale season 5 surprised audiences by revealing that Commander Blaine now has a wife named Rose - but who is Nick's new wife really? Although the character is new, it has already been confirmed that she knows about some of the illegal activities Nick is involved in, with her mentioning his involvement with June and the killing of Commander Waterford. Typically, a wife wouldn't be knowledgeable about these secret details, leading to two different theories regarding the true identity of Nick's wife in The Handmaid's Tale season 5.
Starting out as a Guardian and driver for the Waterfords, Nick Blaine has been a key character in The Handmaid's Tale since season 1. Through his time serving Fred Waterford, Nick developed a relationship with June Osborne, attempting to help her escape and even becoming her lover. Nick is the father of June's daughter Nicole, with Nick acting as a contact once June and Nicole escape Gilead and flee to Canada. In season 2, Nick marries a child bride named Eden, entering an unhappy marriage. Later, Eden falls in love with a new Guardian named Isacc, and they attempt to escape Gilead together. The two are caught and executed, with Nick feeling immense guilt over Eden's death. After her death, Nick becomes more involved with helping Handmaids escape, while also being promoted to the rank of Commander, giving him more influence in Gilead's political world. While Nick is still very active in the show after June's escape, nothing about a second wife is ever mentioned - until The Handmaid's Tale season 5, episode 1, "Morning."
Nick's new wife, Rose, doesn't get a lot of screentime in the premiere of The Handmaid's Tale season 5, but she has already had a massive impact. Previously, Nick has been very secretive about his involvement with Mayday, an underground Handmaid resistance against Gilead's control. If Nick's illegal activities were to be found out, he would most likely be executed, so the fact that Rose knows is quite shocking. Nick even kept his business secret from Eden, which contributed to the strain in their relationship. Nick's guilt could explain why he is more open with Rose - but two other theories about Nick's wife are even bigger. While it is possible that Rose could simply be a wife that is in on Nick's resistance activities, these theories state that Rose may actually be more than she seems.
Theory 1: Nick's Wife Secretly Works For Mayday
The first of the two prevalent theories regarding Rose Blaine is that she is a member of Mayday. Throughout the course of the show, the Mayday resistance group has grown to consist of an uncountable number of Handmaids, wives, and Marthas in Gilead. Rose being a member of Mayday makes perfect sense, as this would explain why she is keen to the inner workings of June, Nick, and the anti-Gilead forces. How Nick and Rose met isn't known, but Nick presumably chose his wife due to his rank as Commander. In Nick's position, he would probably choose a wife that he knew was a member of Mayday, as it would give him someone to confide in and plan with. With June and Rita escaping to Canada, Emily missing, and Janine and Esther possibly dead, the number of main character women still living in Gilead has gotten pretty slim in The Handmaid's Tale season 5. Rose could be the show's answer to this problem, acting as Nick's wife and another significant Mayday member residing in Gilead.
Theory 2: Nick's Wife Is Spying On Him For Gilead
The second major theory about Rose is that she's a Gilead spy, possibly even an Eye. Nick's relationship with Commander Lawrence and June has definitely put him in conflict with other higher-ups in Gilead, as June is the number one person on Gilead's hit list. It is possible that Gilead wants to keep its enemies close, and planted Rose as a Gilead spy. Knowing that Nick is in a bad emotional state with the loss of Eden and the escape of June, Gilead may have gotten to his new wife, with Rose now reporting her findings back to Gilead. Rose seemed awfully set on getting information about Fred Waterford's killing out of Nick, and this could be something that comes back to bite him by the end of season 5. Whether Rose is working for Mayday or for Gilead, Nick's wife is clearly hiding something that will either hurt or help him in The Handmaid's Tale season 5.
New episodes of The Handmaid's Tale season 5 release Wednesdays on Hulu.