Justina Machado is bringing the horror to the small screem…
Amazon Studios has picked up to series The Horror of Dolores Roach pilot based on the hit Gimlet podcast, starring the 49-year-old Puerto Rican actress and One Day at a Time alumna Justina Machado in the title role.
The project, in development at Amazon since 2020, hails from Blumhouse Television — which won the rights to adapt the podcast in 2019 in a competitive situation — Spotify’s Gimlet and GloNation Studios. The Horror of Dolores Roach will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
The Horror of Dolores Roach originally was developed by podcast creator Aaron Mark as a one-woman play starring Daphne Rubin-Vega, who reprised her role in the podcast. It is a grotesque Sweeney Todd-inspired tale of eat or be eaten — a macabre urban legend of love, betrayal, weed, gentrification, cannibalism and survival of the fittest.
“Magic Hands” Dolores Roach (Machado) is released from prison after 16 years and returns to a severely gentrified Washington Heights with $200 and the clothes on her back. With her boyfriend missing and her family long gone Dolores reunites with an old stoner buddy, Luis, who gives her room and board and lets her give massages for cash in the basement under his dilapidated storefront, Empanada Loca, the only remnant of her former life. When the promise of her newfound stability is quickly threatened, Dolores is driven to shocking extremes to survive, and in the face of unexpected professional success, Dolores and Luis become dangerously symbiotic, and Luis must unleash his own peculiar predilections.
Alejandro Hernandez, Kita Updike, and K. Todd Freeman also star.
Mark penned the pilot script. He and Dara Resnik will serve as co-showrunners and executive produce the eight-episode half-hour series, alongside Gloria Calderón Kellett, Rubin-Vega and Roxann Dawson, who directed the pilot.
“After eight years living with the indomitable Dolores Roach in multiple forms, I could not be more thrilled to be bringing her to life on television with this powerhouse team,” Mark said.
“We at Amazon Studios fell in love with this story along with everyone else as the podcast captured listeners. We couldn’t be more excited and fortunate to be working with such world-class creatives to bring Dolores Roach to screen in what is sure to be a captivating series,” said Marc Resteghini, head of development, Amazon Studios.
“Dolores Roach is exactly the type of fresh, bold, and completely unique storytelling that Blumhouse is passionate about making. Audiences will soon see why this modern-day horror story with a darkly humorous twist is just so special,” said Chris McCumber, president of Blumhouse Television.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with the teams at Amazon Studios, Blumhouse, and GloNation to bring Spotify/Gimlet’s fan favorite, The Horror of Dolores Roach, from podcast to screens. The complicated story of Dolores Roach, colored by the bustling soundscape of New York City, not only lends itself to immersive audio but also rich storytelling. We’re honored to have this action-packed adventure of Dolores Roach, voiced in the podcast by Daphne Rubin-Vega, and portrayed in the series by Justina Machado, exist in audio and on the screen,” said Lydia Polgreen, managing director of Spotify’s Gimlet.