You probably think reality TV has gotten weirder lately, but honestly, nothing on Netflix today compares to the sheer, skin-crawling reality of what happened on a soundstage in 1978. It’s the kind of story that sounds like a Hollywood fever dream. A charming bachelor wins a date with a beautiful woman on national television. The audience cheers. The music swells. But there’s a catch: the bachelor is actually a prolific serial killer in the middle of a multi-state murder spree.
This isn't a "true crime inspired" script. It’s what actually happened to Cheryl Bradshaw.
The film Woman of the Hour, which marks Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut, finally brings this surreal nightmare to the screen. It centers on the appearance of Rodney Alcala on The Dating Game. While the movie takes some creative liberties with the timeline to make it punchier for a 90-minute runtime, the core of the story is factually devastating. Most people know Alcala as the "Dating Game Killer," but the movie tries to shift the lens. It’s not just about the monster; it’s about the systems that let him walk onto a brightly lit stage while the police were looking for him.
Who was the real Rodney Alcala?
By the time Alcala auditioned for the show, he wasn't just a "troubled guy." He was a convicted child molester. He had already been on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. Think about that for a second. In 1978, the background check process was basically non-existent compared to today’s digital deep dives. They looked at his headshot, saw a guy with a "Tom Selleck" vibe and a quirky personality, and shoved him under the studio lights.
Alcala was highly intelligent—a former student of Roman Polanski at NYU. He used that intellect to manipulate everyone around him. In the movie, Kendrick plays Cheryl Bradshaw as a struggling actress who is just trying to get through a degrading experience on a cheesy show. In reality, Bradshaw was a smart, intuitive woman who sensed something was "off" almost immediately.
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The contrast is jarring. You have the kitschy, 70s aesthetic—all oranges, browns, and feathered hair—clashing with the predatory darkness of a man who had already murdered at least four people by the time he sat behind that partition.
The Bachelor Number One nobody wanted to win
On the show, Alcala was "Bachelor Number One." If you watch the actual archival footage (which is still floating around YouTube and is genuinely hard to sit through), his answers aren't just creepy in hindsight. They were aggressive. When asked what he was like, he responded with lines about being "deep" and mentioned "the nighttime" being the best time. It was predatory posing as "edgy" 70s bachelor talk.
Interestingly, the show’s contestants were supposed to be vetted. But the 1970s were a different world. Databases weren't linked. Fingerprints took weeks to process. If you had a charming smile and a decent suit, you could be whoever you wanted to be.
What the movie gets right (and what it changes)
Anna Kendrick’s film leans heavily into the tension of the "date" that never really happened. In the movie, there's a chilling scene in a parking lot after the taping. It’s tense. It’s quiet. It captures that specific female intuition—the "gift of fear," as Gavin de Becker calls it—where your brain is screaming that you're in danger even if the person is smiling at you.
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- The Timeline: The movie condenses Alcala's crimes. In real life, his spree lasted years and spanned from New York to California.
- The Decision: In the film and in reality, Cheryl Bradshaw refused to go on the date. This is the part that usually gets glossed over in true crime podcasts. She didn't just "get lucky." She actively listened to her gut.
- The Tone: Woman of the Hour isn't a slasher flick. It's a psychological thriller that focuses on the "male gaze" and the casual sexism of the era that allowed a killer to hide in plain sight.
The real Cheryl Bradshaw reportedly called the show’s contestant coordinator, Ellen Metzger, the day after the taping. She told her, "I can’t go out with this guy. There are weird vibes coming off him." Metzger didn't fight her on it. That phone call likely saved Bradshaw's life.
Why we are still obsessed with this story in 2026
It’s been decades, but the "Dating Game" incident remains the gold standard for "stranger danger" stories. It taps into our collective fear that the person sitting across from us—whether it's on a TV set or a Tinder date—might be wearing a mask.
Alcala was eventually caught in 1979. He was sentenced to death multiple times, but due to various appeals and legal technicalities, he died of natural causes in prison in 2021. Authorities believe his actual victim count could be over 100. He often took photographs of his victims, and to this day, police are still trying to identify women in his massive "trophy" collection of photos.
The movie works because it doesn't treat Alcala like a genius mastermind. It treats him like a byproduct of a society that didn't take violence against women seriously. When you watch Kendrick navigate the gross comments from the show's host and the creepy banter of the bachelors, you realize that Alcala didn't have to work that hard to blend in. The "weirdness" was just part of the landscape.
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Lessons from the "Woman of the Hour"
If there is anything to take away from this specific intersection of pop culture and true crime, it’s the importance of boundaries. We often feel pressured to be "polite" even when we feel unsafe. Cheryl Bradshaw wasn't polite. She was firm. She walked away from a free trip and national exposure because something felt wrong.
That’s the "actionable" part of this whole dark story.
How to apply these insights today
Don't ignore the "creepy" factor for the sake of social norms. Whether you're watching a movie about it or living your life, these patterns are real.
- Trust the "Vibe Check": Modern dating apps have verification, but they aren't foolproof. If a person's energy feels aggressive or "off," stop the interaction immediately. You don't owe anyone an explanation.
- Verify, then Trust: Use public records or even simple Google searches. In 1978, Cheryl couldn't Google "Rodney Alcala." You can.
- The "Safety Call": Always have a third party who knows where you are. Bradshaw had the studio as a buffer, but she still had to make the final call to opt out.
- Listen to Patterns, Not Just Words: Alcala was great with words. He was a photographer. He was "artistic." But his history was one of violence. Look for the history, not the pitch.
The film Woman of the Hour serves as a stark reminder that the most dangerous people don't always look like monsters. Sometimes they're just Bachelor Number One, waiting for the red light to turn on so they can start their act.
To truly understand the gravity of the case, look into the Cold Case files associated with Alcala's photography collection. Many of those photos have been released by the Huntington Beach Police Department in hopes of identifying other potential victims. It’s a sobering look at the scale of his crimes beyond the 1978 TV appearance. Seeing the faces of the women he photographed puts the "entertainment" aspect of the movie into a much needed, albeit somber, perspective.