Prime Video’s new action-comedy Ride or Die pairs Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer and Emmy winner Hannah Waddingham in an unlikely friendship that quickly turns into a globe-spanning adventure. While the series delivers action, espionage and comedy, both stars say the emotional bond between their characters is what made the project impossible to turn down.
Speaking during a global press conference and an exclusive interview with Asian Journal, Spencer and Waddingham reflected on producing and starring in the eight-episode series, which is now streaming on Prime Video.
The series pushed both actresses outside their comfort zones
In Ride or Die, Spencer plays Debbie, the wife of a British Member of Parliament whose life changes after discovering her best friend, Judith (Waddingham), has secretly been an elite assassin for years. Forced to flee dangerous enemies, the pair must rely on decades of friendship while confronting long-buried secrets.
Spencer said the role appealed to her because it allowed her to portray a woman reinventing herself later in life.
“She gets to reinvent herself. I also think it demonstrates how vital, capable, beautiful and inherently different all women are,”
Spencer explained.
Waddingham echoed that sentiment, revealing both actresses deliberately chose roles unlike anything they had previously done.
“We are both seen as actors in a very different way in this. Octavia gets to really stretch her comedic legs. For me, I get to do action,”
she said.
“We left it all on the screen.”
Although audiences may assume the two stars had known each other for years, Spencer revealed they only met virtually before production began.
“Hannah and I met for the first time over Zoom. We just clicked,”
Spencer recalled.
Waddingham joked that a lunch and an unexpected spa visit helped cement their friendship before filming. Both actresses agreed that because the story revolves around lifelong friends, building genuine trust off-screen became essential.
Their chemistry is evident throughout the series as Debbie and Judith navigate betrayals, criminal conspiracies and emotional revelations together.
Female empowerment remains at the heart of Ride or Die
Beyond its action sequences, Ride or Die explores friendship, trust and female solidarity. Spencer described Debbie’s ability to love as both her greatest strength and greatest weakness, while Waddingham said Judith ultimately discovers that her real strength comes not from being an assassin but through the people she trusts.
The actresses also praised creator Tessa Coates, saying preserving her original vision became one of their biggest priorities as executive producers.
“We wanted to preserve her unique comedic timing, but there was also so much drama,”
Spencer said, adding that the series works as
“an action dramedy.”
Filmed across Prague, Karlovy Vary, and parts of Austria, Ride or Die combines scenic European locations with action, comedy and heartfelt character moments. According to its stars, however, the friendship between Debbie and Judith remains the true engine of the series.
