A24’s ‘Primetime’, Starring Robert Pattinson As Chris Hansen, Lands 9-Minute Ovation At Venice World Premiere

The much-talked-about Chris Hansen close up Primetime, starring Robert Pattinson, has landed an enthusiastic nine-minute standing ovation this evening following its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. Among those in the audience to watch the film tonight were Chloé Zhao, Amanda Seyfried, Mona Fastvold and Pattinson’s partner Suki Waterhouse. The film has landed well on the Lido with good early notices. Pattinson has come in for particular praise. Directed by Lance Oppenheim from a screenplay by Ajon Singh, the film follows Chris Hansen in 2006 as he sets to make TV history with To Catch a Predator. Pattinson plays the NBC Dateline correspondent who made a name for himself by catching suspected child predators with the help of law enforcement and a team of decoys pretending to be minors online. Watch on Deadline Pattinson produced the film alongside Brighton McCloskey through their company Icki Eneo Arlo. Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Fred Berger, Lars Knudsen, and Tyler Campellone also produce. Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo, and Phoebe Bridgers also star. Running up to today’s Venice screening, the real-life Chris Hansen has attempted to draw attention away from the title to promote his own work. The former To Catch a Predator host has even purchased ad space before upcoming screenings of the film to promote his true-crime streaming network TruBlu. The spot will run for four weeks before screenings of Primetime and in movie theater lobbies. If the movie does well at the box office, they could renew the ad. Hansen also recently confirmed that he was “going to see” the movie following an invite from the production team to a private screening. He then appeared on Fox News, claiming he was asked to sign “a very restrictive agreement” to attend the advanced screening. “I’ve never seen anything quite like it,” he said. “The lawyers at A24 wanted me to sign away my rights to my name, image, and brand essentially, as well as any potential legal rights that would come out of the movie,” added Hansen. “I couldn’t sign that, so they didn’t show me the film. I went all the way over there.” The form was an NDA that all preview audiences are asked to sign a week in advance to view an unreleased film, to prevent spoilers and protect IP. Hansen reportedly refused to sign and therefore wasn’t allowed to screen the film. A24 will release the film in U.S. cinemas on September 25.