“Complete departures”: Hannah Waddingham and Octavia Spencer on playing roles of a lifetime in ‘Ride or Die’

Author: Georgia Thorne ,
Publish Date: Wed, 8 Jul 2026, 10:57am

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Hannah Waddingham (L) and Octavia Spencer attend the "Ride Or Die" London Photocall in Trafalgar Square on June 24, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Dave Benett/WireImage)

Two powerhouse actresses are leading one of Prime Video’s next big TV shows.

‘Ride or Die’ is an action comedy about a couple of best friends who have to go on the run after one of them is revealed to be an international assassination.

It stars Hannah Waddingham, of ‘Ted Lasso’ fame, and Octavia Spencer, Academy Award winner for ‘The Help’, as Judith Burton and Debbie Claybourne.

Though this is the first project the two have worked on together, Spencer says the way they fell into a rhythm was seamless.

“We were the only two people thought of for our roles, and then we both are active producers,” she told Hosking.

“We are vested in this from different vantage points, so it was easy.”

Waddingham agreed, telling Hosking they didn’t have to think about that bit at all.

“There was no kind of work required to find the chemistry – it was just there in spades.”

Waddingham was approached directly for the role by Spencer and the show’s creator Tessa Coates, Spencer saying they knew she was going to be as committed as she was.

“There’s nothing about that role that no one thought that Hannah would not be able to do."

“I mean, it’s a role of a lifetime, and my character is a role of my career,” Spencer told Hosking.

“And we both are playing characters that we've never, they're complete departures from anything that we've done.

Unsurprisingly, ‘Ride or Die’ is filled with action sequences and stunt work – none of which, Waddingham says, is CGI.

“I’ve got the bruises to prove it.”

“If I was going to get on board with this woman [Spencer] and with Tessa Coates, with this glorious piece of work, I wasn’t going to be the weak link.”

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