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Woman of the Hour is a crime thriller based on the notorious serial killer Rodney Alcala, also known as 'The Dating Game Killer.' The film was written by Ian McDonald and directed by Anna Kendrick in her directorial debut. It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2023, and is set to release on Netflix on Friday, October 18, 2024.
Woman of the Hour recounts the real story of how serial killer Rodney Alcala met Cheryl Bradshaw on the hit game show The Dating Game in 1978. The film's official logline, as per Netflix, reads:
"The stranger-than-fiction story of an aspiring actress in 1970s Los Angeles and a serial killer in the midst of a yearslong murder spree, whose lives intersect when they’re cast on an episode of The Dating Game."
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Woman of the Hour stays mostly true to the real story of Rodney Alcala's brief encounter with Cheryl Bradshaw on The Dating Game in 1978. However, the film takes certain creative liberties and includes a few fictional sequences to tell the story effectively.
Woman of the Hour: Fact vs Fiction
Woman of the Hour is set in the 1970s and revolves around the serial killer, Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto). He kidnapped, ra*ed, and murdered close to 130 women and young girls from 1968 until his arrest in 1979. Alcala went on a killing spree between 1977 and 1979 in California.
During this time, he appeared as a contestant on an episode of The Dating Game in 1978. The episode's bachelorette, Cheryl Bradshaw, was introduced to three eligible bachelors, including Rodney Alcala. The audience and public at large, were unaware of his true identity at that time.
What questions did Cheryl ask contestants on The Dating Game?
In the film, while getting to know the three men, Cheryl ignores the innuendo-based questions written on her cue cards and instead asks the men, “What are girls for?”
In real life, the question Cheryl posed to Rodney (Bachelor #1) was, “What’s your best time?” He answered cryptically, “The best time is at night.....night time is when it gets really good.” In hindsight, his reply may have been in reference to his crimes.
Cheryl then asked Rodney, “I’m serving you for dinner. What are you called and what do you look like?” Rodney quipped, “I’m called the banana and I look good,” and followed it up with, “Peel me.” Feeling impressed at Rodney's bold answers, Cheryl picked him as the episode's winner.
The truth behind Cheryl and Rodney's date in Woman of the Hour
The film's scene where the two characters meet up for a date, followed by the sequence in the parking lot, was completely fabricated.
Cheryl did not go on a date with Rodney in real life. The show's producers had planned a tennis date followed by a trip to the Magic Mountain for them the day after their television appearance. However, Cheryl canceled their date after feeling creeped out by Rodney.
In 2021, The Dating Game's contestant coordinator, Ellen Metzger, told the news show 20/20 that Cheryl called her to see if she could cancel their date by saying:
“I can’t go out with this guy, there’s weird vibes that are coming off of him. He’s very strange. I am not comfortable.”
Thanks to her gut instinct, Cheryl narrowly escaped becoming one of Alcala's victims.
Rodney was arrested a year later, in July 1979. He spent the rest of his life in jail and died from natural causes at the age of 77 on July 24, 2021.
Plot summary and the cast of Woman of the Hour
Woman of the Hour offers a grim portrayal of women's safety issues in 1970s California.
It stars Anna Kendrick as Cheryl Bradshaw and Daniel Zovatto as the serial killer, Rodney Alcala. They meet in 1978 on The Dating Game show, hosted by Tony Hale's Ed Burke, and are set up on a date. During their date, Cheryl starts feeling very uncomfortable with Rodney's creepy behavior.
Things stand to get much worse for Cheryl, as she is unaware that Rodney is a serial killer on the loose looking for his next victim. In addition to the lead stars, Nicolette Robinson appears as Laura, Pete Holmes as Terry, Taylor Hastings as Melanie, Autumn Best as Amy, and Jessie Fraser as Lisa in the film.
Other supporting cast members include Kathryn Gallagher as Charlie, Dylan Schmid as Mario, Michael Jonsson as Harold, Matthew Kevin Anderson as Mark, Darcy Laurie as Marty, Jedidiah Goodacre as Arnie, Kelley Jakle as Sarah, and Max Lloyd-Jones as Ken.
Lastly, the movie features Matt Visser Josh as Bachelor #1, Jedidiah Goodacre as Bachelor #2, Jason Simpson as the announcer (voice), and Marc Gaudet as the head mover.
Stay tuned for more updates on Woman of the Hour and other trending news of 2024.
