Exclusive: Aisha Tyler and Angourie Rice on the Badass Women of The Last Thing He Told Me

Aisha Tyler (Archer) has a lot to share about The Last Thing He Told Me, the new Apple TV+ limited series she stars in alongside Jennifer Garner (Party Down), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Game of Thrones) and Angourie Rice (The Daily Bugle). The Criminal Minds star begins by crediting the conviction of the female characters in the twisty thriller adapted from Laura Dave’s bestselling novel and praised Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine production company for bringing it to life.

“These women are super badass, right? From Jennifer Garner being the lead to the prestige of Hello, Sunshine,” beamed Tyler. “That was a big part of why I wanted to be in this. I loved telling a story about women supporting women, and kind of fighting for their own autonomy and their own agency.”

Here’s to that. In fact, Jennifer Garner recently told The Hollywood Reporter that “all women in Hollywood owe a debt of gratitude” to Witherspoon for producing female-led projects. The Last Ting He Told Me drops on Apple TV+ April 14. Tyler and costar Angourie Rice shared more with MovieWeb.

Angourie Rice on Jennifer Garner and Universal Themes

The Last Thing He Told Me keeps many creative plates spinning. Hannah (Garner) is distraught over the mysterious disappearance of her husband Owen (Coster-Waldau). Then the feds raid his startup. Something’s up. If that’s not enough to rattle her nerves, suddenly she must attempt to bond with Owen’s 16-year-old daughter Bailey (Rice) as she uncovers the truth about her husband.

“Jennifer Garner and I really became a team in exploring Hannah and Bailey’s journey together,” shared Rice. “We worked hard on making those moments in the shifts in Hannah and Bailey’s relationship believable. We kept track of that progress.”

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It wasn’t that easy. As Garner’s Hannah uncovers one layer of deception after another, the two characters are forced to flee for safety, leaving both of them questioning who Owen really is.

“The majority of the show takes place over a short period of time, and Bailey is dealing with this completely unexpected trauma in her life. It’s so present and so visceral in the moment, She never gets a second to breathe,” said Rice of her character’s trajectory. “That was challenging for me, thinking about everything that’s running through her head. She was running through every single possibility, every single reason, every single outcome. That’s a hard headspace to get into because she’s so on edge the entire time. So, to maintain that over five months of filming was a big challenge.”

She went on to say that she appreciates playing characters that go through a big change in their lives and points out that viewers will relate to many of the themes in the limited series.

“Trust is a big theme. So is ‘found family,’” added Rice. “What really connected with me with Bailey’s story was the idea that home and family can change over time.” She’s referring to Hannah and Bailey being forced to form new bonds, of course. “It can be upsetting and painful, but people come together in times of crisis. So, even if that bond is founded on something painful, it can grow to a relationship that is meaningful and hopeful and gives value to your life, even if it’s different from the life you thought you would have.”

Aisha Tyler’s Empowered Character

For Tyler, The Last Thing He Told Me was a great opportunity to change gears. Tyler has lent her directing talents to several projects over the years — from The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead: World Beyond to episodes of Criminal Minds.

“Because I spend a lot of my time directing, it’s always nice to be back in front of the camera and throw yourself into the hands of other really capable, talented women. It was just a blast,” she said of the Apple TV+ production. “Jennifer’s character is a complex, flawed, yet fully formed women. She’s not a perfect mother, she is a very reluctant mother. And a lot of this is about leaning into what you’re able to do without striving for perfection. I loved that about the series.”

Related: Aisha Tyler Reflects on Joining the Cast of Friends: ‘It Was a Big Deal’

Tyler plays Jules, a journalist, in The Last Thing He Told Me. She’s Hannah’s comrade, but she also knows the complexities of Owen and Bailey’s backstory. With Jules’ help, Hannah hopes to uncover the truth. But viewers can expect a major shocker by the final episode.

“I really wanted to create a character that felt of that place — San Francisco,” explained Tyler. “Having grown up there, I wanted to create someone who was capable, accomplished, and effortless in her self-awareness. Jules knows who she is.

“Without giving away spoilers, for people who haven’t read the book, I think they’re going to be thrilled with the experience because the production was really able to take those characters from the book and build the world out in a rich way and add more layers and texture,” continued Tyler. “The series really affirms the idea that you can love someone in their entirety. We don’t ever really know everything about the people that we care about, right? We fall in love with … what’s the old Chris Rock line? When you meet someone, you meet their representative.”

The Last Thing He Told Me premieres on Apple TV+ April 14.