Anna Kendrick Directs, Stars in Woman of the Hour Trailer About True Story of a Serial Killer on a Dating Show

Anna Kendrick makes her directorial debut with a chilling thriller based on a true story.

Netflix shared the first teaser trailer for Woman of the Hour on Tuesday, Sept. 17, a film inspired by the story of Rodney Alcala, a real-life serial killer in the 1970s. Kendrick, 39, stars as bachelorette Cheryl Bradshaw, who appeared on a dating show called The Dating Game.

The movie, written by Ian McDonald, also stars Tony Hale, Daniel Zovatto, Tony Hale, Nicolette Robinson, Pete Holmes, Autumn Best, Kathryn Gallagher and Kelley Jakle.

A synopsis for the movie teases: "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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Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Kendrick admitted directing had her "feeling as terrified as I've ever been about, frankly, anything."

But in getting there, "I think there was something about the movie overall that I found compelling," the Pitch Perfect star said. "I was aware that while I liked the character, I was way more interested in the movie as a whole."

Kendrick was originally attached to star and produce. But "as often happens with movies, it was just taking forever, and the pieces weren't coming together." And when they did finally have a start date, they had "no director," according to the actress.

"And of course, the whole two years, I'm sitting there going, 'Well, if it were my movie, this is how I'd do it. But it's not, so it's not my call,' " she told EW. "I just got so excited about the idea of taking this script that I loved so much and shaping it in the way that I saw it."

Kendrick also told the outlet she wants the film to convey why "more often than not, there is nothing you can do, no matter how smart you are, no matter how careful you are, to protect yourself from someone who wishes to harm you."

"I was thinking about how even very subtle victim-blaming is baked into our culture," she said. "Even the most well-meaning people will say things like, 'Yeah, you really just got to pay attention to those early red flags,' which is not a nightmare of a thing to say, but man, woof."

Woman of the Hour, which premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, is on Netflix Oct. 18.