Social media users on X and Instagram can’t stop talking about the latest trailer for the upcoming Netflix film Woman of the Hour.
The thriller, which was described as “creepy and fantastic,” stars Anna Kendrick, who also makes her directorial debut.
The 39-year-old shared the trailer on X this morning, revealing that she ‘can’t wait’ for the release on October 18.
But some are hesitant to watch the film after seeing what one person called a “disturbing” trailer.
Kendrick plays Cheryl Bradshaw – a contestant on The Dating Game who almost went on a date with serial killer Rodney Alcala.
Alcala was bachelor number one on a 1978 episode of The Dating Game and was described as a “successful photographer” who enjoys skydiving and motorcycle riding.
He dazzled Bradshaw and the audience with his witty charm, despite being in the middle of a crime spree.
Before his killing spree, Alcala allegedly attacked young women while in the military in the early 1960s, and nearly killed eight-year-old Tali Shapiro in 1968.
Alcala managed to escape the police and murdered Cornelia Crilley in a New York apartment in 1971.
The serial killer murdered at least four women in total before appearing on The Dating Game, and despite being given a tennis-themed date with a trip to Magic Mountain, Bradshaw refused to go because he thought he was ‘creepy’.
Alcala murdered Jill Parenteau and 12-year-old Robin Samsoe in 1979, but was ultimately arrested by police later that year.
He was officially linked to eight murders before dying of natural causes on death row in 2021, but police believe his number of victims is much higher.
Bradshaw stayed out of the spotlight after her appearance on The Dating Game and was not harmed by Alcala.
The official trailer for Woman of the Hour starring Anna Kendrick was released this morning by Netflix
Rodney Alcala appeared on a 1978 episode of The Dating Show and won a date with his bachelorette, Cheryl Bradshaw (left)
Another person called the trailer “crazy” and “scary” and pointed out how “real” it felt in one tweet.
Other
‘Directed by Anna Kendrick? Hard pass’, an X user tweeted this morning.
Some Instagram users were also “shocked” by the trailer, despite their excitement for Kendrick’s directorial debut.
“These previews make me so nervous, I know exactly how she feels,” one Instagram user wrote.
Several X users freaked out about the trailer and insisted they wouldn’t watch Woman of the Hour
“The trailer for Woman of the Hour has been released, and to say that this is a highly anticipated movie for me this year, even though I’m not really into true crime, is an understatement,” says an X user . tweeted.
X-users also praised Kendrick for taking on the project, complimenting her talent and looks.
‘This looks intense and exciting. It seems so good and look at yourself; you look great and a great act as always!’, an X user wrote.
Several X and Instagram users were intrigued by the film’s trailer despite the storyline
Woman of the Hour received several positive reviews from critics after its 2023 premiere, and it has a 90 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Critics were disturbed by the film, but in a great way.
‘The film can be quite difficult to watch; I definitely struggled to get through my screening,” wrote one critic of The Atlantic Ocean.
“Yet Kendrick proves herself to be a skilled director, with a talent for building tension.”
‘A confidently crafted thriller that is not just a true crime story, but an expose of systemic misogyny and how it fuels violence,’ RogertEbert.com critic Brian Tallerico wrote.
Other reviewers weren’t so kind about the film, but more than one focused on Kendrick’s direction rather than the plot.
“Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut, about an abused aspiring actress and a serial killer in her midst, says the right things, but too loudly and too often,” wrote a critic for Little white lies.
One reviewer from Huffington Post wrote: ‘Woman of the Hour is not a great film. It’s a film about many things that don’t always come true.’