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‘Woman of the Hour’ – Anna Kendrick’s Serial Killer Thriller Finds a Home at Netflix

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Woman of the Hour TIFF Review

Fresh out of its world premiere at TIFF, the Anna Kendrick-directed thriller Woman of the Hour has been sold to Netflix for a staggering eight figures, Variety reports this week.

Variety details, “The streamer is paying in the $11 million range for the ripped-from-the-headlines thriller, making it the first major sale of the festival. The deal covers the U.S. and several international territories including France, Italy, Japan and South Korea.”

Meagan Navarro explains in her four-star review for Bloody Disgusting, “Anna Kendrick takes aim at the true crime serial killer story in her feature directorial debut, Woman of the Hour. A charming, kitschy ’70s set exploration of gender dynamics quickly gives way to an unnerving, suspenseful stranger-than-fiction tale of serial killer and rapist Rodney Alcala and his bizarre appearance as a bachelor on “The Dating Game.” Kendrick’s incisive vision, blending horror and humor with nonlinear storytelling, makes for an unshakable debut.

“Kendrick pulls double duty for her debut, also starring as Cheryl Bradshaw, a struggling actress trying to carve out a career in California. Cheryl’s failed attempts to win over casting directors and gently rebuff her pushy neighbor put her at her wit’s end. That’s when her agent decides to land her a spot as the bachelorette on the popular live TV show “The Dating Game.” But it’s not just the typical stressors and anxieties of getting thrust into a live show with overbearing personalities to worry about; one of the eligible bachelors on her episode happens to be brazen killer Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto) in the midst of a ruthless murder spree.”

Meagan raves, “Kendrick’s directorial debut dazzles with its incisive commentary, and the first-time director demonstrates clever instincts in knowing when to weaponize dark humor and when to let the dramatic moments breathe for maximum impact. Kendrick tosses out some of the more familiar serial killer conventions, and yet nothing is lost in terms of intensity and nerve-fraying sequences. It makes for an authentic, poignant, and unsettling debut.”

Nicolette Robinson and Autumn Best also star.

Ian MacAllister McDonald wrote Woman of the Hour, a Black List script that had previously been optioned – but ultimately ditched – by Netflix. The film has truly come full circle.

Stay tuned for more on Woman of the Hour as we learn it.

Writer in the horror community since 2008. Editor in Chief of Bloody Disgusting. Owns Eli Roth's prop corpse from Piranha 3D. Has four awesome cats. Still plays with toys.

Movies

The Birthday Murders: Viral Marketing Website Launches for ‘Longlegs’

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NEON has been absolutely slaying the marketing game for their horror output this year, and they’re kicking the Longlegs campaign into high gear with one more month until release.

A cryptic ad in The Seattle Times today (seen below) has led clever horror fans to discover TheBirthdayMurders.net, the brand new official viral marketing website for Longlegs.

The in-universe website details the victims of the serial killer known as Longlegs (Nicolas Cage), described as a “Satan-worshipping psycho” who has terrorized families throughout the Pacific Northwest for nearly three decades.

The website details, “A bloody trail of bodies here in the great state of Oregon attests to the depraved savagery of this one-of-a-kind serial killer. With over three dozen victims that we know of, LONGLEGS is one of the most prolific mass murderers ever to have graced the region, and his gruesome endeavors are the stuff of nightmares. At first, all of the killings appeared to be straightforward murder-suicides: the handiwork of average men who suddenly snapped and slaughtered their wives and children. But a series of eerie coded messages left at the crime scenes indicate that someone – or something – is influencing these horrific crimes. The cryptic letters are signed by someone calling himself LONGLEGS.”

“With thirty-eight kills to his name, LONGLEGS has torn apart the lives of eleven different families throughout the Beaver State. His victims were good people: honest fathers, decent mothers, innocent little children.”

The website is loaded with secrets, clues, and gruesome (faux) crime scene photos, and you might even find a mention of yours truly nestled in there. Poke around. Stay a while.

Longlegs arrives in theaters July 12.

The upcoming serial killer horror movie marks the return of director Osgood Perkins (The Blackcoat’s Daughter, Gretel & Hansel). Nicolas Cage stars alongside Maika Monroe, with Monroe playing an FBI agent and Cage playing a serial killer.

In the film, “FBI Agent Lee Harker (Monroe) is a gifted new recruit assigned to the unsolved case of an elusive serial killer (Cage). As the case takes complex turns, unearthing evidence of the occult, Harker discovers a personal connection to the merciless killer and must race against time to stop him before he claims the lives of another innocent family.

The film is rated “R” for “Bloody violence, disturbing images and some language.”

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