Created by Tessa Coates
CULVER CITY, California – December 19, 2023 – Today, Prime Video announced it has ordered an eight-episode untitled series with Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer (Truth Be Told, The Help, Hidden Figures) and Emmy winner Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning: Part Two, The Fall Guy) set to star and executive produce. The series is created by executive producer Tessa Coates (Feel Good, Ladhood) and produced by Skydance Television, as well as Andy and Barbara Muschietti’s Double Dream and Spencer’s Orit Entertainment. The untitled series is set to stream exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
The series, based on an original pitch from Coates, follows two best friends, Judith (Waddingham) and Debbie (Spencer), who know everything about each other … well, almost everything. Judith has been living a double life that Debbie knows nothing about: she is a highly trained assassin. When a hit goes horribly wrong, Judith and Debbie must go on the run together and work to repair their broken friendship – all while being targeted by a mysterious enemy who wants them dead. And only together, can they solve this layered mystery.
“I was in as soon as I heard Tessa’s stunning pitch. To be able to dive into a role like Debbie is rare, and working with Hannah to bring this unique friendship to life is a dream,” said Octavia Spencer. “We knew we had something special with Skydance and Double Dream, and now that we have a home at Amazon, our vision has become a reality.”
“I’m not gonna lie, a few expletives fell out of my face at the prospect of working with the magnificent Ms. Spencer, Tessa Coates’ hugely energetic, exhilarating script, Skydance and Double Dream,” said Hannah Waddingham. “To then see the immediate excited response from a mighty beast like Amazon! It’s all just incredibly exciting, and I can’t wait to get our collective teeth into it!”
“We were blown away by this one-of-a-kind comedy. Tessa’s pitch delivered it all – fantastically original characters, a great story, the amazing creative talents of Octavia and Hannah and so much fun,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon MGM Studios. “We are over the moon to work with them all plus the dream teams at Skydance, Double Dream, and Orit Entertainment.”
“The process of developing this series has been one of the most joyous of our careers, starting with the inimitable Tessa Coates. Tessa’s voice and vision lured our incredible producers, Barbara and Andy Muschietti, who were instrumental in developing the project, as well as the dream casting of Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham,” said Matt Thunell, president, Skydance Television. “We are so proud to be making this show with Amazon; this team has created a series that will make audiences around the world laugh, cry, and cheer.”
Tessa Coates will executive produce the series alongside Octavia Spencer, Brian Clisham, and Stephanie Kluft for Orit Entertainment; Hannah Waddingham; Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, and Irene Yeung for Double Dream; and David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, and Matt Thunell for Skydance Television. Mark Mikutowicz and Blair Bigelow developed the project for Skydance.
The series marks another Skydance Television project with Amazon MGM Studios and Prime Video, following the hit series Reacher and Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, as well as the upcoming Cross.
This is the first project from Skydance Television’s first-look deal with Octavia Spencer’s production company Orit Entertainment.
Tessa Coates is a writer, performer, stand up and co-host of the critically acclaimed podcast Nobody Panic. She recently finished her nationwide tour of her third sold-out Edinburgh Fringe Festival solo show, Get Your Tessa Coates You’ve Pulled. Her second show, Witch Hunt, was adapted into her Radio 4 Stand Up Special, Resting Witch Face, and her debut show, Primates, was adapted for US television and sold in a competitive situation to ABC, with Greg Daniels and Howard Klien (The Office) attached to executive produce. Coates has previously been seen on Starstruck, Feel Good, Ladhood, Smothered, Comic Relief, Birds of a Feather and Damned. She was one third of cult sketch group Massive Dad, alongside Stevie Martin and Liz Kingsman, and was tour support for Nish Kumar: Your Power, Your Control, and Nick Mohammed: The Very Best and Worst of Mr Swallow.
Hannah Waddingham is an Emmy-winning television, film, and theater actress and singer. She was recently nominated for her second Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress, Television for her role as Rebecca Welton in the award-winning Apple TV+ series Ted Lasso. Waddingham has garnered Emmy, Critics Choice, SAG, and HCA Awards, as well as Golden Globe and TCA nominations for this role. Most recently, she premiered her Hannah Waddingham: Home For Christmas special to rave reviews. Waddingham is also known for her work in Game of Thrones, Krapopolis, Hocus Pocus 2, Tom Jones, and Sex Education. Waddingham’s other projects include the upcoming feature films The Fall Guy, Garfield and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two.
In 2019, Octavia Spencer launched her production company, Orit Entertainment, which she runs with partner and producer, Brian Clisham, and Head of Production and Development, Stephanie Kluft. Projects under the Orit Entertainment banner include the scripted series Truth Be Told and Self-Made: Inspired by The Life of Madam C.J. Walker. In November, Orit premiered two docuseries, Lost Women of Highway 20 and Feds, as part of their partnership with ID and October Films.
Double Dream is led by Argentine filmmakers and siblings Andy and Barbara Muschietti. The company is currently producing Welcome To Derry for MAX, a television series set in the universe of It (2017), and It Chapter Two (2019), the box office sensations that Andy directed and Barbara produced. The Flash (2023) was the most recent theatrical release under the Double Dream banner, with Andy directing and Barbara producing. The Muschietti siblings made the jump to Hollywood with their original film Mama (2013) which caught the attention of horror fans and studios alike. The company’s upcoming projects include The Brave & The Bold, Attack on Titan, and The Doubtful Guest.
Source
Prime Video
