Robert Pattinson, who plays Chris Hansen in the new biopic Primetime, has responded to a viral swipe at him from the real-life To Catch a Predator host.
To Catch a Predator was a recurring segment on Dateline NBC in which Hansen used adult decoys posing as minors to ensnare suspected child molesters.
The show ended in infamy in 2007 after one of its targets, an assistant district attorney in Texas named Bill Conradt, committed suicide while SWAT stormed his house with Hansen’s camera crew right outside the door.
Now Pattinson, 40, has uncannily channeled Hansen in Primetime, which premiered Saturday at the Venice Film Festival to a seven-minute standing ovation.
Last month, Hansen characterized Pattinson’s performance in the trailer as “overly dramatic” and grumbled about his casting that “I didn’t get to choose my own man.”
However, Pattinson had warm words for Hansen during a press conference at the film’s premiere last Saturday, saying, “I obviously hope he likes the movie,” via Variety.
The Daily Mail has contacted a representative for Hansen for comment.
Robert Pattinson, who plays Chris Hansen in the new movie Primetime, has responded to a viral swipe at him by the real-life TV host; Pattinson pictured at the film’s premiere in Venice this week
To Catch a Predator was a recurring segment on Dateline NBC in which Hansen used adult decoys posing as minors to ensnare suspected child molesters.
‘There’s something exciting about him. I hope the amount of inspiration his character has given to many people over the years is a compliment of sorts.”
Each edition of To Catch a Predator featured a man lured to a prearranged location by the offer of a sexual encounter with a supposed minor who actually turned out to be one of Hansen’s adult decoys in disguise.
Hansen would then arrive on the scene and expose the meeting as a sting operation, while authorities stood nearby ready to make an arrest.
During and after the show, the show raised questions about its ethics, such as the balance between law enforcement concerns and the demands of showbiz.
‘There’s something magnetic about his presence. “I saw the show when I was younger and didn’t think about it,” Pattinson said on Saturday.
“There’s this strange alchemy: something he does is the reason people are still talking about that show 20 years later,” he noted.
‘It’s not just about the subject. It was something about the show that was groundbreaking, but he’s also someone who centers it. There’s something, even after literally thousands of hours of looking at it, you can’t put your finger on it.”
In his first public comments on the film, Hansen, 66, had questioned Hollywood’s “motive” in producing a project about him, saying, “We don’t know, but I’ll find out,” in an appearance on the podcast. Serious with Annie Elise.
Now Pattinson, 40, has uncannily channeled Hansen in Primetime, which premiered Saturday at the Venice Film Festival to a seven-minute standing ovation
Last month, Hansen characterized Pattinson’s performance in the trailer as “overly dramatic” and grumbled about his casting that “I didn’t get to choose my own man.”
Although he quibbled with Pattinson’s portrayal of him, he confessed that his family “seems to think it’s a pretty good imitation.”
Hansen also announced that he would attend a private screening of the film the week after the interview, which appeared online in mid-August.
“Until I see the full film, it’s a bit silly for me as a reporter to talk about something I haven’t seen yet – so I’m going to see it,” he said. “Then I can tell you whether I like it or not, and how dramatized it is.”
He was less diplomatic about Pattinson’s casting, saying, “Obviously they want a commercial venture to succeed, and they think this is the way it’s going to succeed — you know, I didn’t get to pick my own guy.”
Hansen explained that he had started discussing a possible To Catch a Predator movie “years ago,” and felt at the time that Denis Leary, who is two years older than him, “would be a good guy” to play him if the project came to fruition.
But he clarified in the same interview, “I’ve been busy being the real Chris Hansen, so I don’t have much time to focus on the fake Chris Hansen.”
Primetime is the first fictional feature film directed by Lance Oppenheim, who previously specialized in documentaries.
His resume includes Some Kind of Heaven, a profile of the world’s largest retirement community, and Spermworld, which covers both sperm donors and recipients.
Oppenheim’s upcoming To Catch a Predator film, starring Anna Faris and Phoebe Bridgers, will hit theaters on September 25.
