Hulu's brand-new drama series Dying for Sex premiered all eight episodes on the streaming service on April 4, 2025. The series, which is based on a podcast series of the same name, follows the life of a woman named Molly Kochan, played by Michelle Williams, as she tries to fulfill her various s*xual desires after being diagnosed with a terminal illness.
Dying for Sex is based on a true story in which Molly Kochan left her husband to explore her desires. However, the show's adaptation of the podcast makes a significant alteration to Kochan's narrative. While Kochan's story was ultimately intended to be set in Los Angeles, the show relocated its setting to New York City, where all the filming occurred.
Dying for Sex was primarily shot in New York City, United States of America
Most of Dying for Sex was primarily filmed in New York City, one of the biggest cities in North America. The location is known for being the home to many of Hollywood's biggest films and shows, and has constantly held many productions there. With the show primarily taking place in New York too, it creates one of the biggest deviations from the source material.
The show was originally set to be in California as that's where most of Kochan's experiences took place as well, but they decided to film everything in New York. This was due to lead star Michelle Williams wanting to be closer to her kids as she kept the mantra of keeping family first. The filming for the show took place in the city in March 2024.
Talking about the film being shot in New York in an interview with Glamour on April 4, 2025, Williams said:
"After that, I ran into Liz (creator), who said that she was moving to Brooklyn. And then I thought, oh, this is totally viable for me. Because if she’s going to be here, it makes sense for the show to shoot here and then I can stay home with these kids, and it’s not going to feel like as much of an upheaval to make this show New York City-based."
What is Dying for Sex about?
As previously stated, the show is heavily inspired by the life of Molly Kochan, a woman who was diagnosed with cancer and then decided to leave her husband to fully explore her s*xual desires before she passed away. The official logline for the series, as per FX and Hulu, reads:
"FX’s “Dying for Sex” is inspired by the story of Molly Kochan, originally shared on a Wondery podcast created with her best friend, Nikki Boyer."
It continues:
After Molly receives a diagnosis of Stage IV metastatic breast cancer, she decides to leave her husband Steve, and begins to explore the full breadth and complexity of her sexual desires for the first time in her life. She gets the courage and support to go on this adventure from her best friend Nikki, who stays by her side until the very end.
Alongside Michelle Williams, the show also stars Jenny Slate, Rob Delaney, David Rasche, Jay Duplass, Kelvin Yu, and more.
Dying for Sex is currently available to stream on Hulu.