Netflix’s newest addition, Woman of the Hour, has all the makings of an instant hit – but did you know the film actually deals with the truth? Woman of the Hour has generated significant buzz since it landed on the streaming giant in recent weeks, in large part thanks to its A-list lead Anna Kendrick (who also makes her directorial debut with the project). But while the actress typically lends her talent to comedies and musicals, this time, she’s giving voice to a very sinister – and true – turn of events. Whether you’ve inhaled the story and want answers to your most burning questions, or have yet to stream the film, we’ve got you covered. Below, all the important details about the true story behind Woman of the Hour.

How much of Woman of the Hour is true?

Woman of the Hour borrows its plot from the gruesome crimes of serial rapist and murderer Rodney Alcala. The film is set in 1978 when Alcala, a typesetter, was in the midst of a killing spree through New York, California, and Wyoming. But in an unlikely turn of event, partway through the murders, Alcala wound up appearing on – and ultimately winning – the then-popular game show, The Dating Game. 

Kendrick plays Sheryl Bradshaw, a version of Cheryl Bradshaw, the real-life game show contestant who came face-to-face with the notorious killer, and even wound up selecting him as her final date. 

Even more shockingly, by the time he appeared on The Dating Game, Alcala had already served two jail sentences for molesting girls under the age of 13. However, producers of the show had failed to conduct the appropriate background checks, and so were unaware. 

Did Rodney Alcala and Cheryl Bradshaw date?

Unlike in the Woman of the Hour, the real Cheryl Bradshaw never actually went on a date with Alcala. According to Forbes, she expressed concerns to contestant coordinator Ellen Metzger after filming the episode, 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.”

Kendrick also expressed that much of the character was altered for the film. "Sheryl is the most fictionalised piece of the movie," she explained in Netflix's press notes. "There’s very little public information about the real person, so our Sheryl’s life before The Dating Game is basically an imagined version of a woman in the 1970s." 

How many people did Rodney Alcala kill?

Alcala was only convicted of killing seven women, but many believe his actual number of victims could be as high as 130. 

His first recorded murder charge was in 1979 for the death of Robin Samsoe, a 12-year-old girl who went missing on her way to a ballet class. Her remains were discovered two weeks later in the Los Angeles mountains. 

What happened to Rodney Alcala? 

As in the film, Alcala was arrested shortly after his appearance on The Dating Game, when a teenager managed to escape his grips and called for help. However, in real life, Alcala went on to kill again, after his mother paid his bail and he was released back into society.

After he was eventually convicted, Alcala died in hospital in California on July 24, 2021, while he was awaiting execution. He was 77 years old, and had previously been held in a jail in San Fransisco.