Exclusive Interview
Ian Harding Weighs In on ‘Ripple’ Romance Twist & What Could Be Next for Nate
What To Know
- The Netflix series was originally headed to Hallmark+
- Leading man Ian Harding shares with Swooon his own connection to one of his costars.
- A second season would find the characters in a “very organic” new chapter in their lives.
[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers from Ripple Season 1.]
If you’re looking for a holiday break binge, Netflix’s Ripple needs to be on your list. Because as Ian Harding fittingly puts it, the entire experience “was such a gift.”
Originally slated for Hallmark+, the drama from Michele Giannusa (The Dead Girls Detective Agency) about four New York strangers brought together by fate eventually wound up on Netflix. And to be honest, it’s a way better fit, given Ripple‘s grittier themes, as well as the risky move to give Harding’s character a less-than-happy ending.
“The fact that it was able to see the light of day and land on Netflix is just…I’m so happy,” he admits. “I’m so proud of it and grateful that people seem to be connecting with it.”
In the deeply emotional, addictive drama, the Pretty Little Liars alum — who recently gave millions of PLL fans the best present ever by reuniting with Lucy Hale for a 2026 Christmas movie — shines as Nate, a charming of wine bar owner struggling to keep his venue afloat while dealing with a sinking marriage to wife Claire (Vanessa Smythe). “Then he gets hit with this cancer diagnosis, and he is feeling the weight of the world on his shoulders…I can immediately relate to that, being at this stage of my life,” he offers. “And Michele weaves it brilliantly between these different storylines.”
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Set off by what would seemingly be a simple mishap in the opener, Nate is drawn into the same orbit as Walter (Frankie Faison), a big-hearted widower trying to find his footing amid crushing grief, Aria (Sydney Agudong), a singer-songwriter desperate for a family, and Kris (Julia Chan), a former music exec who winds up helping her deal with a traumatic turn of events. Kris also finds herself slowly falling for Nate, lending Ripple its own one-degree-of-separation energy: Harding’s PLL love interest Hale costarred on the woefully underrated Katy Keene with Chan.
“She’s amazing,” Harding raves about the captivating Chan. “We have this one scene where, without giving anything away, but it’s kind of heartbreaking. And I watched the scene and went, ‘I know exactly how this scene would go in less capable hands.’ Julia is able to just work with a moment and play with it and hit this nuanced note that, if you didn’t understand these characters, if you didn’t understand the complexity, other actors might not have been able to reach.” Their clear chemistry only serves to complicate matters more after Claire’s steadfast support during his chemo treatments leaves him (and viewers) wondering who he should be with. “There was nothing simple about it,” Harding agrees. “It’s not a simple story.”
Over its eight bingeable episodes, Ripple refuses to take the easy route with any of the characters, actually. As Nate and his new friends weather a steady flow of life-changing challenges and triumphs, the show explores how even minor moments can immensely alter the course of someone’s fate and what we owe to the people who not only chose to uplift us but also reflect our best selves. By the season finale, the quartet has forged a bond as unexpected as some of their choices, including Nate’s decision to hit pause on both a reconciliation with Claire and a romance with Kris to explore an experimental treatment out of town and spare them each a potential loss.
“I think he should be with himself,” contends Harding, a genuinely charismatic performer who delivers some of his best work the worse things get for Nate. “Obviously, not to sound narcissistic or anything like that, but I think he’s [had] this wild journey where he has to address so much about himself. Illness will hold a mirror to your life, and I think he is at this place where it’s not fair, in his mind, to drag either of these people with him through this experience when it’s not guaranteed what the outcome is going to be.”
“What he’s doing is something that’s very healthy…and not to ruin it, but the beautiful message is that all of these people [found] themselves at the end of the show,” he continues. “There were feelings of insecurity and loss and confusion for everybody at the top, and they come to a place where the issues are still real — things are still tough — but they’ve all come into themselves, in a way. And I think that’s really beautiful.”
A renewal has yet to be announced, but Harding reveals that he’s already inquired about what could be next for Kris and Nate. “I know, having talked with Michele about if there is a Season 2, knock on wood, that they’re going to meet again in this sort of new landscape that they find themselves in. And I think it’s rich. The next chapter of their lives will make total sense and be very organic.”
So it’s your move, Netflix. Why not follow your own show’s theme and do something that could possibly make countless lives better?
Ripple, Season 1, Streaming Now, Netflix
