The real Cheryl Bradshaw's chilling reaction after meeting serial killer Rodney Alcala

Woman of the Hour is on Netflix and it is based on the real TV show The Dating Game.

Anna Kendrick, who plays Cheryl Bradshaw, is set to make her directorial debut with Woman of the Hour on Netflix. The film is based on the true story of serial killer Rodney Alcala, who appeared on the TV show The Dating Game while continuing his murder spree.

After winning the competition, he was due to go on a date with the 1978 episode’s bachelorette, Cheryl Bradshaw. Cheryl, a drama teacher, found Alcala charming and she chose him as her ideal date.

He was introduced as a photographer and recreational skydiver, but there was a whole other side to him Cheryl would later see. She admitted to feeling "creeped out" after meeting him in person and refused the date, ultimately saving her own life.

Later, Alcala commented on the rejection, saying: "She played me; she played hard to get." Cheryl had told the Sydney Telegraph in 2012: "I started to feel ill. He was acting really creepy."

Cheryl called one of The Dating Game's producers, saying: "There’s weird vibes that are coming off of him. He’s very strange. I am not comfortable. Is that going to be a problem?"

The producer said it was fine for her to turn Alcala down as her husband, executive producer Mike Metzger, had also raised concerns about him during the casting process.

During the show, when Cheryl asked him what was his 'best time', he is said to have referred to himself targeting victims under the cover of darkness, and responded: "The best time is at night."

She later asked: "What are you called and what do you look like?" To which he gave a bizarre response: "I’m called the banana and I look good. Peel me."

At the time of his appearance on The Dating Game, Alcala had already murdered at least five women in Southern California and had served three years in prison for beating and raping an eight-year-old girl.

After Cheryl rejected him, he went on to murder 12-year-old Robin Samsoe in Los Angeles in 1979.

He was sentenced to death for the killing but instead died of unspecified natural causes in July 2021.

As for Cheryl, her current whereabouts are not known. In 2012 she spoke to the Sunday Telegraph about the ordeal, saying: "He was acting really creepy. I turned down his offer. I didn’t want to see him again.”

Woman of the Hour is on Netflix now