Robert Pattinson has a simple response to Chris Hansen’s criticism of his portrayal in Primetime.
On Saturday, The Odyssey star broke silence on Chris Hansen’s concerns and threat of legal action over his portrayal of the former To Catch a Predator host in Primetime, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival.
At a press conference in Italy Pattinson, 40, was asked about Hansen’s criticism and questions over the film’s “Hollywood motive.”
“I mean, obviously I hope he likes the movie,” Pattinson said.
He added, “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.”
“I think the more you watch a show, there’s something like magnetic about his presence,” Pattinson added of Hansen.
He shared, “I watched a show when I was younger and I didn’t even think about it. I mean, when you kind of obsessively watch it, you realize there’s a strange alchemy with what’s going on with the status of the show and how it was directed and how things got together and the time period.”
To note, Hansen’s three-year run on the controversial show is the focus of Primetime, a psychological thriller starring Robert Pattinson as the former To Catch a Predator host.
The film follows his character as he seeks to make history with the 2000s hidden-camera series, which featured him confronting men who believed they were meeting minors for sex.
“But something he’s doing is the reason why people are still talking about that show 20 years later,” Pattinson continued.
He stated, “And it’s not to do necessarily solely with subject matter. I just think there was something about the show that was very groundbreaking, kind of breaking the rules of television.”
Chris Hansen concerns over Primetime
Pattinson's remarks came after Hansen, 66, said he was considering his legal options over Primetime while appearing on Dan Abrams’ SiriusXM podcast on August 26.
While appearing on Fox News’ Jesse Watters Primetime, Hansen said he declined an early screening of Primetime after A24 allegedly asked him to waive rights to his name, image, brand and potential legal claims.
