Hannah Waddingham’s New Prime Video Action Series Is A “Complete Departure”

Hannah Waddingham is riding into new territory with her upcoming Prime Video action series.

Waddingham is a four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee, three of which are for her performances as Rebecca Welton in Apple TV’s hit sports comedy series Ted Lasso. She has been nominated for each of the show’s three seasons so far and won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for season 1. With Ted Lasso season 4 debuting on August 5, she is returning to the role as the story enters a brand-new chapter focused on AFC Richmond’s women’s soccer team.

Before Ted Lasso season 4 kicks off, Waddingham can be seen in Prime Video’s Ride or Die. The action comedy series sees her playing Judith Burton, an assassin who goes on the run with her best friend, Debbie Claybourne (Octavia Spencer). While they have been longtime friends, Debbie previously did not know about Judith’s double life, but now the two of them must rely on one another as they are hunted by a formidable enemy.

In an interview with ScreenRant‘s Ash Crossan for Ride or Die, Spencer and Waddingham were asked about what they got to do on this project that they’d never done before. Spencer emphasizes how the series and the characters they play are “complete departures” while Waddingham talks about how much they gave to the creative process. Check out their comments below:

ScreenRant: This is the duo that I’ve needed my whole life. What is something that you got to do on this project that you’ve never done before?

Octavia Spencer: Everything! These are departures for both of us. Complete departures, these characters.

Hannah Waddingham: I mean, we really leave no stone unturned. It’s really nice to see each other again and talk about the joys and the traumas, because it was a lot in order to get it right. We both had to give so much of ourselves, and seeing it come to life, you just think, “Man, it was entirely worth it.”

For Waddingham, playing a highly trained and experienced assassin is a far cry from Ted Lasso‘s AFC Richmond owner Rebecca Welton. She has starred in action movies, including The Fall Guy and Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning, but her respective roles as Gail Meyer and Admiral Neely didn’t have her at the heart of the action. This is a far more physically intensive role and for a much longer runtime than a film given the length of eight episodes.

As seen in Ride or Die‘s trailer, Spencer is also at the heart of the action, as her character is forced to adapt while on the run. She has received Academy Award nominations for playing Minny Jackson in The Help, Dorothy Vaughan in Hidden Figures, and Zelda Fuller in The Shape of Water, and she won for The Help. None of these roles are quite like Debbie, though, nor are any of the others she has played in her career.

Joining Waddingham and Spencer in the series are Bill Nighy as The Director, Ed Skrein as Billy, Sylvia Hoeks as Ana, Calam Lynch as Sam, Savannah Steyn as Queenie, Jamie Parker as David, and Jacky Ido as Jacques. In the trailer, Nighy’s character demands that Judith either choose the organization she works for or Debbie. Judith saying, “She’s the most important thing in the world to me,” and the Thelma & Louise-inspired poster leaves no doubt about the choice she will make.

Ride or Die was created by Tessa Coates, who executive produces alongside showrunner Matt Miller and director Peyton Reed, the last of whom directed all three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Ant-Man movies. Waddingham and Spencer are also executive producers, as are IT: Welcome to Derry creators Andy and Barbara Muschietti.

Ride or Die will debut all eight episodes on July 15 on Prime Video.

Release Date

July 15, 2026

Network

Prime Video

Showrunner

Matt Miller