Pattinson Hopes Hansen Likes Primetime Despite His Criticisms — SkimNews
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- Robert Pattinson said at Saturday's Venice press conference that he hopes Chris Hansen likes "Primetime," adding that "the amount of inspiration his character has given a lot of people for years is some kind of compliment."
- Chris Hansen declined to sign A24's standard NDA and called Pattinson's portrayal "overly dramatic" based on the trailer, though his family said it was "a pretty good imitation."
- "Primetime" premiered Saturday afternoon at the Venice Film Festival, directed by Lance Oppenheim in his narrative feature debut and loosely based on a 2007 Esquire article about Dateline NBC's "To Catch a Predator."
- Lance Oppenheim first discovered the show through South Park parodies and Ebaum's World, comparing Hansen's one-liners to Tony Montana and calling the film a "docu-fantasia."
- Phoebe Bridgers makes her acting debut as a decoy in the film; Pattinson praised her as "unbelievable," and Bridgers recalled responding "No way, dude" when first offered the role.
- "To Catch a Predator" ended in 2008 after backlash over its methods, and the film exposes the ethical limits of turning predator pursuit into primetime entertainment.
- Pattinson joked that back-to-back-to-back filming has bled roles together, saying he can "hear a little Chris Hansen in 'The Odyssey'" when he watches Nolan's film.
Why it matters: Hansen has publicly questioned Hollywood's motives without seeing the film, turning "Primetime" into a Venice referendum where the movie must defend itself against a still-living subject who controls his own narrative by refusing the NDA. For A24, that converts every festival reaction into a proxy vote on whether dramatizing a real journalist's methods is defensible.
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