This chilling new Netflix drama is based on the life of a real serial killer

About a year after premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2023, Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut film is now streaming on Netflix. Woman of the Hour is a crime thriller based on the true story of a serial killer in the middle of a killing spree and an aspiring actress whose lives intersected on an episode of The Dating Game in 1978.

The cast includes Anna Kendrick as bachelorette Sheryl Bradshaw and Daniel Zovatto as serial killer Rodney Alcala, as well as Tony Hale, Nicolette Robinson, Autumn Best, Kathryn Gallagher, Kelley Jakle, and Pete Holmes.

Initially, Kendrick only planned on starring in the movie, but she quickly realized that she was just as invested in the big picture as she was in getting a character right. “I really like the complicated journey of a woman who is shrinking herself and being very pleasing and then manages to rebel and take back some power,” she told Netflix’s Tudum.

Woman of the Hour has garnered an impressive 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Financial Times said it was “entertaining and troubling in turns” in its review, the San Francisco Chronicle called it an “insightful directing debut,” and THR dubbed it “undeniably powerful.”

While the reaction has been largely positive, some fans are disappointed that the movie strays so far from the true story. As Vulture explains, “the film practically glosses over the most chilling aspect of his backstory,” which is that he had been arrested multiple times and made the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list prior to his appearance on The Dating Game.

Vulture adds: “Woman of the Hour acknowledges in a postscript that survivors and other private citizens had reported Alcala to law enforcement for a decade, but this after-the-fact treatment almost downplays the sheer volume of his previous crimes.”

Woman of the Hour is now streaming on Netflix.