Samara Weaving Talks Driving, ‘Ready or Not 2,’ and the ‘Eenie Meanie’ Twist Ending: “Metaphorically, It Makes a Lot of Sense”

Before she was cast as an expert driver in Eenie Meanie, a new action comedy that began streaming on Hulu today, Samara Weaving had no idea how to drive.

“I lied to everyone, and said that I could totally drive,” Weaving told Decider in a recent Zoom interview. “But I absolutely could not.”

The 33-year-old Australian actress—best known for her breakout lead performance in the critically acclaimed 2019 horror comedy Ready or Not—got a crash course in the street-racing edition of driver’s ed. As Edie, aka “Eenie Meanie,” she plays a former teenage getaway driver who gets roped back into her shady past thanks to her human disaster ex-boyfriend, John (played by Karl Glusman). The film, written and directed by Shawn Simmons in his feature debut, finds Edie sacrificing everything she’s built thanks to her loyalty and lingering love for, essentially, some guy. But don’t worry: Eenie Meanie comes with a twist ending that spits in the face of the “mothering girlfriend” trope.

Decider spoke to Weaving about defying that trope, her experience learning to drive, and how she’s feeling about the upcoming Ready or Not sequel.

Warning: This interview contains major spoilers for the Eenie Meanie ending. Save it until after you’ve watched the film!

DECIDER: The scene with you and Karl Glusman sprinting through this college campus, and Karl is naked, really sets the tone. What can you tell me about filming that scene?

SAMARA WEAVING: We were filming in the projects in Cleveland, and we didn’t really have a lot of control of the situation. I just remember laughing a lot, because Karl had to be naked, running around. All these little kids are like, laughing at him through the windows. People are just going to work and going, “What is happening?” We just had so much fun hanging out in those areas, getting to know the people, and making friends. It was a lot of fun.

How much driving did you do for the film? How did you prepare?

It was mental. I didn’t know how to drive before this movie. I lied to everyone, and said that I could totally drive, but I absolutely could not. I really do think there’s a reason why you learn how to drive when your brain isn’t fully developed, because it just seems like an insane thing to do as an adult. I quickly learned how to drive, and the next minute I’m in these insane cars with these stunt drivers teaching me how to do donuts, screeching, going a million miles an hour, reversing. It was really fun. On the day, everything was practical. I didn’t do a lot of the driving. Most of it was pod cars, which means I’m pretending to drive the car, but actually there’s a person sitting in a makeshift car, on top of the car, driving it for me, and then I’m just trying to match the movements. 

I’m shocked to hear that you didn’t drive before this one, because you look like a natural! Did it come naturally to you?

It didn’t come naturally at first. Once I learned the basics, and got my driver’s license—what was interesting is the driving coordinators were saying, usually they have to help people unlearn bad habits. Because I hadn’t learnt at all, they could teach me race driving. The specifics of what you would be looking out for, where you’d be putting your hands, because I had no knowledge prior. They say that’s much easier to learn to unlearn. 

[Warning: The next two questions contain major spoilers for the Eenie Meanie ending. Skip to the last question if you haven’t yet watched the movie!]

I have to talk about the ending—did it always end with that big twist? What was your reaction when you first saw what Edie does to John at the end of the film?

That was always there. I don’t know, maybe Sean wrote a different version. I think it’s something that is so shocking, but if we think of this as the extreme toxic relationship, it’s almost something, metaphorically, that you have to do if you’re dealing with that on a smaller scale. You have to kill the relationship in order to move on. There’s no happy medium of, “I’ll stay in their lives, kind of.” Metaphorically, it makes a lot of sense. 

I love the ending, because I feel like there’s this idea that emotionally intelligent woman should take care of their less emotionally intelligent boyfriend. So I love that Edie found a way to free herself. Do you feel similarly?

I think so. As women, this culture and society has definitely brainwashed us to not put ourselves first all the time, and be caregivers and help support other people. They did a study—actually, my sister’s studying this—looking into men and women’s [acceptance speeches] if they win an award. Women often congratulate their team, and thank everyone instead of them. Men often say how hard they worked in order to get this far. You know? Women need to start putting themselves first, being proud of their achievements, and taking credit for it. That’s what I liked about that ending, even though it’s tragic and awful, and I love John. But it’s like finally she’s putting her future and her happiness first.

I love Ready or Not, so I have to ask about the sequel, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, which is set to come out next year. What can you say about what Grace will face in this film?

It’s a tough question. I think as soon as audiences realize where the movie starts, it’s going to be exciting. I just think it’s such a cool in. Whenever I hear there’s a sequel to one of my favorite movies, you do get nervous. Like, “Are they going to fill those shoes?” I think we did. I’m nervous, but I’m excited for people to see it.