After her son leaves home to attend military school, divorcee Monica White is ready to focus on herself. After perusing dating sites, she meets a man named Anthony Robinson and finds herself in a whirlwind online romance. But soon, his bizarre behavior leads her to suspect that the man she’s been getting to know may be harboring dark secrets. Based on the true story of the Shopping Cart Killer, the drama stars Lela Rochon, Jarod Joseph, and Shyinne Anastacio. It was directed by Elisabeth Röhm (Husband, Father, Killer: The Alyssa Pladl Story).
Read on to find out everything you need to know about the film, and stream The Dating App Killer: The Monica White Story on Netflix now.
Who’s in The Dating App Killer: The Monica White Story?
- Lela Rochon (Waiting to Exhale) as Monica White
- Jarod Joseph (The 100) as Anthony Robinson
- Shyinne Anastacio (Listen Out for Love) as Beverley
- Princess Davis (Yellowjackets) as Tonita
- Shanna Giannozio (Limetown) as Beth
- Trezzo Mahoro (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before) as Isaiah White
- Katrina Reynolds (Family Law) as Laila
- Spencer Graham as Casey
- Spencer Driver as Rayleigh
Who is Monica White?
Monica White is the woman behind the film’s true story. White met Anthony Robinson online in 2020, when he responded to her on a dating app. The two dated for a few months before White ended the relationship in early 2021, after Robinson displayed inappropriate behavior toward her and her family. Robinson was arrested later that year on suspicion of a string of killings in Virginia and the Washington, DC, area.
Is The Dating App Killer based on a true story?
Yes. The film is based on the case of convicted serial killer Anthony Robinson, dubbed “the Shopping Cart Killer” because he used shopping carts to move his victims’ bodies. Monica White dated Robinson shortly before his 2021 arrest.
In November 2021, police in Harrisonburg, Virginia, found the bodies of Allene Elizabeth Redmon and Tonita Smith, whom investigators say met Robinson on dating apps. Robinson was arrested in connection with the murders after surveillance footage and cellphone records reportedly linked him to both women. In 2025, Robinson was convicted on all six counts related to the Redmon and Smith killings — two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of first-degree murder, and two counts of concealing a dead body. He was sentenced in 2026 to two life terms, plus 10 years in prison. His defense said after the sentencing that they will appeal the ruling.
Though he was not charged with the murders, police have named Robinson as the primary suspect in the killings of Cheyenne Brown and Stephanie Harrison, whose bodies were found together in 2021. Investigators have also examined his potential involvement in the 2021 killing of Sonya Champ and the 2018 death of Robinson’s former fiancée, Skye Allen.
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