The Horror of Dolores Roach

The Horror of Dolores Roachis an Americandark comedyhorrortelevision series, starringJustina Machadoin the title role. It is based on the one-womanoff-BroadwayplayEmpanada Locaand the podcast of the same name, created by Aaron Mark. The series was released onPrime Videoon July 7, 2023. In November 2023, the series was canceled after one season.
Dolores Roach is released after an unjust 16-year prison sentence, and she returns to a now-gentrifiedWashington Heightsneighborhood. She reunites with an old stoner friend, Luis, who lets her live and work as a masseuse in the basement under his empanada shop. When the promise of her newfound stability is threatened, she must go to extremes to survive.
On May 6, 2020, it was reported thatBlumhouse Televisionwas adaptingThe Horror of Dolores Roach, aGimlet Mediapodcast, as a drama series in development forAmazon Studios.Dara Resnikis the showrunner, working alongside Aaron Mark, creator of the podcast, who would be adapting the series from his own script.The podcast is based on Mark's one-womanoff-BroadwayplayEmpanada Loca, starringDaphne Rubin-Vega, which Mark subsequently adapted into a podcast, also starring Rubin-Vega.
Amazon Studios gave a pilot order for the series in June 2021, and on February 3, 2022, it was reported that Amazon had given it a series order.
The 8-episode series is executive produced by Mark, Resnik, Rubin-Vega,Jason Blum, Chris McCumber, Jeremy Gold, Justin McGoldrick,Dawn Ostroff, Mimi O'Donnell,Gloria Calderón Kellett, andRoxann Dawson.Dawson directed the pilot episode,which was written by Mark.
On February 3, 2022, it was reported that the series would starJustina Machado, Alejandro Hernandez, Kita Updike, andK. Todd Freeman.On June 29, 2022, it was announced thatMarc Maron,Jean Yoon,Judy Reyes, andJeffery Selfhad joined the cast in recurring roles.On August 1, 2022, it was reported thatCyndi Lauperhad joined the cast in a recurring guest role.
On November 21, 2023, it was reported that the series was canceled after one season.
The first three episodes premiered on June 15, 2023, at theTribeca Film Festivalas part of its Festival TV lineup.The series was released onPrime Videoon July 7, 2023.
The series received generally positive reviews, with Machado's performance being widely praised.
OnRotten Tomatoes, the first season of the show garnered a 79% score from critics, a "positive" score, with the critic's consensus being "The Horror of Dolores Roach bites off more than it could chew with the delicate balance between horror and humor, but Justina Machado's commitment to the zany premise makes for a savory snack of a series."
Joel Golby, writing forThe Guardian, called it a "hugely fun drama" and praised the tone and originality of the series.The A.V. Clubalso gave a positive review, commenting: "The right combo of love, betrayal, murder, and cannibalism gets emulsified with commentary on mass incarceration, gentrification, and classism. It’s a chaotic task to juggle all of that over the course of eight under-30-minute episodes. Yet The Horror Of Dolores Roach pulls it off, presenting a darkly comedic and horrifying character study in the process."Angie Han ofThe Hollywood Reporterpraised Machado and Hernandez' performance, but criticized what she perceived as the missed potential of the show.Cristina Escobar ofrogerebert.comcommented "A playful show about a serial killer, "The Horror of Dolores Roach" gets its frights by not taking itself too seriously."Entertainment Weeklygave the show a score of B+ on a scale from A to F.
Conversely, Jack Seale, also writing forThe Guardian, gave a negative review, calling the series a "sloppy mess" while praising Machado's performance.Varietyalso gave a negative review, writing "Advertised as a horror comedy, “The Horror of Dolores Roach” effectively earns neither scares nor laughs."Brian Lowry, writing for CNN, gave a negative review, writing that the show had a "killer concept" but failed to live up to the concept.