Robert Pattinson says he hopes real life “To Catch a Predator” host Chris Hansen will eventually come around on “Primetime,” the A24 drama in which Pattinson portrays a fictionalized version of Hansen, despite the broadcaster’s public skepticism about the film.
Hansen Critical of a Film He Has Not Seen
Hansen has said he declined to sign a standard non-disclosure agreement required by A24 and has not watched the film, but told reporters that based on the trailer he found Pattinson’s portrayal “overly dramatic” and questioned Hollywood’s motives in dramatizing the Dateline NBC series, according to Variety. Hansen did acknowledge that his own family felt Pattinson’s performance was a fairly good imitation.
“Obviously, I hope he likes the movie,” Pattinson said at a press conference following the film’s premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday. “There’s something electrifying about him. I would hope the amount of inspiration his character has given a lot of people for years is some kind of compliment.”
A Look at the Show’s Ethically Murky Legacy
Directed by Lance Oppenheim in his narrative feature debut, “Primetime” is loosely based on a 2007 Esquire article that examined the aftermath of a suicide connected to one of the show’s sting operations, according to Wikipedia. The film follows Hansen’s rise as he turned pursuit of suspected predators into ratings-driven entertainment during the mid-2000s.
The Hollywood Reporter’s review called the film “a morbidly fascinating inquiry into performative justice,” while praising Pattinson’s performance as equal parts cracked and chilling, though it questioned whether the film brings enough new insight to distinguish itself from the 2025 documentary “Predators,” which covered similar territory.
Personal Connection to the Source Material
Pattinson said he watched “To Catch a Predator” when he was younger and did not think much about it at the time, but came to see something magnetic in Hansen’s on-screen presence that he tried to capture in the role. He initially joined the project only as a producer before agreeing to take on the lead role himself.
“Primetime” also stars Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo and Phoebe Bridgers, and is set for a limited theatrical release on September 25.
