Chris Hansen, the journalist known for hosting NBC’s “To Catch a Predator” from 2004 to 2007, has publicly criticized Robert Pattinson’s portrayal of him in the new A24 film “Primetime,” calling the performance “bizarre” and disconnected from reality.
“It was so bizarre and so in-and-out of reality,” Hansen said on his “Have A Seat With Chris Hansen” podcast Friday. “Obviously, I’m not objective because the character is, you know, me, but it was so detached from reality or anything I’ve experienced then or now doing the investigation.”
“I’m not sure what the point of it was,” he added.
Hansen, 67, said Pattinson’s take on him was “so detached, so unhinged, so dark, so unlikeable,” and noted the reaction among people who worked with him.
“I mean, it’s upset my colleagues, current and former.”
Hansen said he watched the film alongside roughly 13 members of his former crew.
He also criticized director Lance Oppenheim, 30, saying Oppenheim approached the project with a “dark image of what he wanted to do.”
“He wanted to create a horror-like film with interesting photography and didn’t want to hear anything else,” Hansen said. “[He] didn’t want to have his mind polluted by anything positive that this actually achieved over the last 22 years.”
Hansen argued that Hollywood is working to “demonize” him and cast him as a “bad guy” for work he believes has been valuable in catching child predators.
“You have to question the motives of not coming forward and talking to me or anybody who I worked closely with over the years. And they didn’t want to hear that Chris Hansen is a good guy. They didn’t want to hear that this work is important. In a way, it’s a hit piece on me and the series, which is weird.”
Page Six said it reached out to representatives for both Pattinson and Oppenheim for comment but had not heard back.
This is not the first time Hansen has spoken publicly about his frustration with the casting and production of “Primetime.” In August, he told the “Serialously” podcast that he had no input on who would play him.
“I didn’t get to choose my own guy,” Hansen said, adding that he had once envisioned actor Denis Leary in the role, based on earlier script discussions. “I always thought — I had discussions years ago, I had crafted a script — Denis Leary [would] play me, depending on the age of it all.”
Hansen acknowledged Hollywood’s interest in making the project a “commercial endeavor.”
Pattinson, 40, addressed Hansen’s reaction earlier this month at the Venice Film Festival, saying he hoped the portrayal would be well received.
“I would hope, in some ways, the amount of inspiration that his character has given so many people who are involved in this for years now. I hope it’s some kind of compliment.”
