Chris Hansen didn’t find out that a movie about his work was being made until the cameras had already stopped rolling. According to the “To Catch a Predator” host, A24 has offered him a private screening of the film — but as of now, he still hasn’t been shown a single frame.
The A24 drama “Primetime” dramatizes Hansen’s years fronting the hidden-camera series that made him a household name, with Robert Pattinson taking on the lead role. For a project built so directly around a real person, Hansen says the level of involvement he was given amounts to almost nothing.
“My suspicion is that they used my name because it helps in a commercial enterprise,” Hansen said on the “Serialously With Annie Elise” podcast. “And until I see the full movie, you know, I as a reporter, it’s sort of silly for me to talk about something that I haven’t seen yet.”
That reporter’s caution runs throughout his comments. Hansen has spent decades building a career on verifying things before he speaks about them, and he’s applying the same standard here — declining to render a verdict on a film he’s only glimpsed in pieces.
For now, he’s basing everything on the trailer, where Pattinson appears to draw a dark portrait of Hansen and his motives. “I’ve been busy being the real Chris Hansen, so I don’t have a lot of time to focus on the fake Chris Hansen,” he said. “I know that he’s a very popular actor. I know that the director is a popular guy, but I also have some questions. You know, what’s Hollywood’s motive here? We don’t know, but I’ll find out.”
Those questions will likely have to wait until Hansen sees the finished cut for himself. “Primetime” hits theaters September 25.
