By: Ema Rapaic
Garnering significant public attention and acclaim, Lance Oppenheim’s film Primetime has earned over $47 million worldwide and is projected to be a strong contender during award-season. Starring Robert Pattinson as Chris Hansen, the semi-biographical film chronicles the 2006 television show To Catch a Predator and the broadcast’s subsequent controversies, blurring the lines between dramatized fiction and reality. Notably, Chris Hansen has viewed the film and expressed his disdain for its contents, weighing legal options and consultations.
“Despite the controversies surrounding the film, it’s a box office success that is expected
to campaign Robert Pattison for Best Actor during award-season.”
Even before the release of the film, To Catch a Predator was immensely controversial as Hansen directly interrogated sex offenders and exposed them on national television. Airing from 2004 to 2007, the broadcast lured unsuspecting predators into hidden camera and recording equipped houses by having members of a volunteer watchdog group pose as underage adolescents in online chat rooms. These predators were subsequently confronted by Hansen with law enforcement officers waiting outside, generating millions of viewers and leading to more than 200 arrests. However, in 2006, the show was scrutinized and eventually cancelled as Texas prosecutor Bill Conradt took his own life when the police and cameras entered his home.
Evidently, the subject matter makes for a compelling film and perhaps because of that, Hansen was never directly contacted by A24 film executives to inquire about the broadcast and his personal life during the production of the film. Shortly before the trailer was released, Hansen was approached and contacted for the first time by film executives who wanted to screen the film for him only if he signed an NDA. Hansen refused, noting that, “they wanted to create something much darker and way more dramatic” to The Hollywood Reporter. Behind the scenes, Hansen wanted A24 to explicitly admit the film wasn’t factual and was just loosely based off him.
Despite the controversies surrounding the film, it’s a box office success that is expected to campaign Robert Pattison for Best Actor during award-season. Even with Hansen expressing his disapproval and claiming that Hollywood portrayed him in a negative light, Primetime is an immersive experience that explores media manipulation and the expense of success.
Pictured: Primetime movie poster
