Robert Pattinson's Primetime Lands 92% on Rotten Tomatoes — and Oscar Buzz — as Chris Hansen Feud Escalates

It is shaping up to be one of the most talked-about films of the awards season — and not solely for the reasons its makers intended. Robert Pattinson's new A24 thriller Primetime has arrived at the Venice Film Festival to a wave of critical acclaim and a very public row with the real man at its centre, as Chris Hansen makes clear he is far from flattered by the attention.

The early notices for Primetime — directed by Lance Oppenheim and inspired by Hansen's notorious NBC Dateline series To Catch a Predator — are striking. The film currently holds a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with reviewers reserving particular praise for Pattinson's chameleonic turn as the enigmatic television host.

Deadline's own Damon Wise offered a comparison that will do nothing to dampen the awards chatter, suggesting Pattinson "may finally be entering the Christian Bale period of his career" — the kind of remark that tends to follow an actor all the way to the podium. The BBC's Nicholas Barber called the performance "extraordinary" and predicted the film is "sure to be an Oscar contender." Little White Lies went further still, describing Pattinson's portrayal as "a career high."

Not every critic was entirely swept away. Both IndieWire and Awards Watch awarded the film a B score, with the latter noting that while Primetime "recreates the machinery of To Catch a Predator with considerable skill, it leaves its moral machinery largely untouched." Screen International called it "visually striking" but "dramatically contrived." Next Best Picture gave the film 7/10 and singled out co-star Skyler Gisondo as the film's "true standout," even amid strong work from Pattinson.

The ensemble also includes Merritt Wever, Tony Revolori, Alex Winter and singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers in her acting debut.

Behind the critical fanfare lies a genuine controversy. Hansen, who hosted To Catch a Predator throughout its entire run on NBC Dateline from 2004 to 2007, had no involvement in the making of the film and has been vocal in his objections.

During an appearance on Dan Abrams' SiriusXM podcast, Hansen suggested he is weighing up his legal options, noting that an entertainment lawyer had told him he "probably" had a decent case against the production. He has also claimed he was turned away from an early screening after refusing to sign away his rights to his name, image and brand — a claim The Independent says A24 has been contacted about but has not yet addressed.

Hansen further argued that dialogue featured in the film's trailer "never took place in real life" and questioned how the filmmakers could tell his story without speaking to anyone directly involved.

Addressing the dispute at a Venice press conference, Pattinson struck a conciliatory — if candid — tone. He acknowledged that the film was never strictly intended as a portrait of Hansen the man, but expressed hope that the real presenter might eventually come around.

"I mean, obviously I hope he likes the movie," Pattinson said. "I never really set out to make a movie about Chris Hansen. I would hope in some ways, like, the amount of inspiration that his character has kind of given certain people who are involved in this film for like years now, I hope is some kind of compliment."

He also paid tribute to what made Hansen's original show so enduring. "Something he's doing is the reason why people are still talking about that show 20 years later," Pattinson said. "I just think there was something about the show that was very groundbreaking, kind of breaking the rules of television."

For British viewers eager to judge the film — and the furore — for themselves, Primetime will arrive in UK cinemas on 30 October, just over a month after its US release on 25 September. The film is also in competition for the Golden Lion at Venice, meaning the awards conversation may have further chapters to run before it even reaches a wider audience.

Director Lance Oppenheim has described his intention as tracing "the disparate ambitions of people who existed inside this apparatus" — a journalistic crusader, a mercenary producer, a wide-eyed dreamer — "converging into a moment of crisis." Whether Chris Hansen ever comes to see that framing as a compliment remains, to put it mildly, an open question.