Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham’s First Joint Interview for “Ride or Die”: How Their Bond Shaped the Series (Exclusive)

Deirdre DurkanMon, June 1, 2026 at 4:58 PM UTC

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Hannah Waddingham and Octavia Spencer in 'Ride or Die'
Credit: Courtesy of Prime Video -

Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham star in the new series Ride or Die, streaming on Prime Video July 15

The actresses tease the betrayals and twists that test Debbie and Judith’s decades-long friendship in the show

The duo also share how they became close off-screen — and debate Spencer’s drink of choice: wine mixed with Diet Coke

When Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham first got on a Zoom call together about Ride or Die, neither actress followed the usual Hollywood playbook. Instead, both essentially signed on before their agents had the chance to weigh in.

“I did the thing you’re not supposed to do, I got married on the first date,” Spencer, 56, tells PEOPLE of hearing creator Tessa Coates’ pitch for the Prime Video action-comedy.

“It was such an amazing pitch. I’ve heard hundreds of pitches throughout my career and none like that one. It just had you spellbound, on the edge of your seat. I loved that it was centered around two women — two women of a certain age, two brilliant, highly capable women — doing action and comedy. And the show had a lot of heart.”

“As soon as she finished giving the pitch, I said, ‘Well, my agents are going to be upset, but I’m in,'" adds the Oscar winner.

For Waddingham, 51, the experience was nearly identical. “I’m laughing because it was exactly the same thing with me,” says the Ted Lasso star.

Hannah Waddingham in 'Ride or Die'
Credit: Dušan Martinček/Prime

After receiving an email informing her that Spencer and Coates wanted to speak with her, Waddingham says she was already a bit starstruck.

“My jaw first dropped at an email that said, ‘Octavia Spencer and Tessa Coates would like to get on a Zoom call with you,' " she recalls.

After hearing the pitch, Waddingham assumed she was simply being asked to help cast the role opposite Spencer. “I just went, ‘Oh my God, whoever gets to play this character opposite Octavia is getting a dream role,' " she says. “I said, ‘What, do you want me to advise on casting? Why am I on this call?’ And they said, ‘We want you to do it, you dummy.' "

“It made Tessa and Octavia laugh because that’s exactly what Octavia had done,” Waddingham says. “Neither of us had gone through the correct channels with our teams. We just knew immediately.”

Premiering globally July 15 on Prime Video, Ride or Die follows Debbie Claybourne (Spencer), a seemingly ordinary woman whose world is turned upside down when she discovers her best friend, Judith Burton (Waddingham), is secretly an international assassin. After a mission goes disastrously wrong, the two women find themselves fleeing across Europe while dodging criminals, killers and law enforcement.

Despite the action-packed premise, both stars say the show’s real heartbeat is the friendship at its center. “We were both fans of each other’s work,” Spencer says. “You don’t become a fan of someone without appreciating who they are and the choices they make as actors.”

Spencer also felt an immediate personal connection after learning more about Waddingham. “I knew she was a single mom. I grew up with a single mom, and that made all the bells ring for me.”

The actress says the role required someone who could embody Judith’s combination of strength, glamour and vulnerability. “The role called for this glamorous, strong, beautiful woman, and I don’t know how many other women out there fit the bill.”

For Waddingham, the friendship between Debbie and Judith was impossible to resist from the moment she read it.

Octavia Spencer in 'Ride or Die'
Credit: Dušan Martinček/Prime

“If you look at Tessa’s writing, even if you just read the treatment, you’d have to not have a pulse to not see it,” she says. “We’ve all been sent so many scripts, and I find myself getting what I call ‘the lazy hand,’ just scrolling through an iPad. But this one exploded off the page straight out of the gate.”

The actress was especially drawn to how quickly the story moves beyond its action-comedy setup and into something deeper.

“You have the explosive introduction of Judith, then the comedic explosion of Debbie, and then suddenly you’re dropped into this very real friendship,” she says.

One of the show’s most compelling emotional threads explores whether a friendship can survive betrayal.

“If the friendship is worth maintaining and both people find their way back to each other, and all the secrets are finally exposed, people can learn to trust again,” Spencer explains.

Hannah Waddingham at the 74th Primetime Emmys at Microsoft Theater on September 12, 2022
Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty

While Ride or Die contains plenty of emotional depth, it also delivers massive action set pieces — something Waddingham embraced wholeheartedly, even when her body begged her not to.

“Don’t even get me started,” she says of the demanding stunt work. “It was incredibly demanding on my body.”

The actress spent weeks learning intricate fight choreography and insisted on performing as much of it herself as possible.

“I kind of shot myself in the foot because you can’t enter a role like this and not get involved,” she says. “Well, you can, but I wanted people to see that it was me.”

The result included elaborate fight scenes, skiing sequences and one particularly memorable showdown while wearing an elegant gown. “I’m really proud of it, especially the fight in the gold dress in the bathroom.”

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By the end of filming, Waddingham had developed a reputation among the stunt team for throwing herself into the action. “When my stunt double went to do the wide shot, the director said, ‘Can we just raise the energy a bit? Hannah was literally biting the guy’s hand.’ "

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Spencer was equally appreciative of the stunt performers who helped bring Debbie’s action moments to life. “My stuntwoman actually turned into three stuntwomen,” she jokes. “I couldn’t have done it without them.”

“There were certain things I didn’t do, but I think you’d have a hard time figuring out which ones," she adds. “Even I watched some of it and thought, ‘Wow, I looked really good there.’ Then I realized it wasn’t me.”

Yet for both actresses, their favorite memories came not from the explosive set pieces but from quieter moments together. Waddingham fondly recalls spending long days filming car scenes on a visual-effects stage.

“We’d be sitting in a car all day, talking nonsense, laughing, and not running back and forth between trailers and sets,” she says. “You could really concentrate on the relationship.”

Spencer agrees. “The emotion, the words, our physicality — all of it had to sell those scenes,” she says. “By then we were deeply invested.”

“Thank goodness for all the action because it made everything exciting, but when you get down to it, it was the conversations, the tears, the laughter and the memories.”

Octavia Spencer onstage at the American Cinematheque Awards on November 20, 2025
Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

That focus on female friendship is ultimately what both women hope audiences take away from the series.

“Female friendships are our sisterhoods,” Spencer says. “Early in life you’re chasing boys and focused on relationships. As you get older, you really embrace your friendships and your siblings. And if you don’t have sisters, your girlfriends become your sisters.”

“There’s nothing more beautiful than going through life with your love partner and your sisterhoods.”

Waddingham was equally passionate about ensuring Debbie and Judith’s friendship felt authentic rather than idealized.

“One thing Octavia and I were adamant about was that these women had to call each other out,” she says. “Otherwise it becomes too sweet. It has to be rooted in conflict and potential loss in order for the reconciliation to feel earned.”

The series also tackles aging, particularly through Judith’s struggle to navigate a world increasingly eager to tell women when their best years are behind them.

“I love that you see Judith wounded by words because she’s such a physical character,” Waddingham says of an early scene where she’s dismissed as a “woman of a certain age.”

Spencer believes the season delivers a powerful message about embracing exactly where you are in life. “Unless you’re a woman of a certain age, you don’t really get to say that,” she says. “You don’t know what it took to reach that age and to feel comfortable embracing it.”

“By the end of the season, you’ll see us embracing that. There’s nothing better than loving the skin you’re in and knowing what you’ve endured to get there.”

Off-screen, the actresses developed the kind of friendship that mirrors their characters’ bond. When asked what a real-life girls’ night together looks like, Spencer paints a picture of pizza, laughter and a little wine. At least, until Waddingham interrupts.

“Wait a minute, Octavia. Don’t even say wine. Let’s talk about your actual beverage. Come on," she says.

Spencer proudly reveals her drink of choice is wine mixed with Diet Coke. “Yes, you heard that correctly,” she says after stunned disbelief fills the room.

“That was quite a bone of contention,” Waddingham says.

“It’s so delicious,” Spencer insists.

“It is absolutely rancid,” Waddingham playfully fires back.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”