Robert Pattinson’s ‘Primetime’ Scores Over 80% on Rotten Tomatoes Just One Day Before Release
Critics praise Robert Pattinson’s turn as Chris Hansen, with reviews highlighting Lance Oppenheim’s direction and the film’s fictionalized take on the real story.
- On Friday, September 25, 2026, director Lance Oppenheim's A24 film 'Primetime' debuted in North American theaters, earning an 89% Rotten Tomatoes score. Robert Pattinson stars as a fictionalized version of television host Chris Hansen.
- Screenwriter Ajon Singh based the script on a 2009 Esquire article by journalist Luke Dittrich, drawing from the 2006 'To Catch a Predator' television series. The film explores mid-2000s reality television culture.
- Pattinson stars alongside Merritt Wever, who plays producer Andie Bender, and Skyler Gisondo as decoy Dan Plumb. Critics have praised the ensemble cast for nuanced performances within the film's psychological thriller framework.
- Despite an 89% Rotten Tomatoes score, the real Hansen is reportedly considering legal action regarding the portrayal. BBC critic Nicholas Barber awarded the film a perfect 5/5 stars, calling it "the best performance yet from the most intriguing actor of his generation."
- The film is scheduled to open in Australia on October 29, 2026, following its North American debut. Director Oppenheim's project examines media sensationalism and how righteous intentions become corrupted by ratings and celebrity.
19 Articles
19 Articles
Euronews Culture's Film of the Week: 'Primetime' - Robert Pattinson needs to catch his predator (and ratings)
Lance Oppenheim’s narrative debut features a masterful turn from Robert Pattinson in a dark media satire about blurring the lines between journalism and exploitation. Primetime will fascinate and occasionally frustrate as a surface-level mood piece.
Primetime review: Robert Pattinson is magnetic in this unsettling media satire
Lance Oppenheim's Primetime follows Robert Pattinson's Chris Hansen through the staging of To Catch a Predator. The film probes how television can turn morality, spectacle and discomfort into entertainment.
Review: In 'Primetime,' a sinister shift in media, with a dazzling Robert Pattinson
Buzzing with the sound of dial-up internet and the hum of grainy VHS tape, Lance Oppenheim’s Primetime, about Chris Hansen and his Dateline NBC series To Catch a Predator, identifies a seedy moment when media became the new arbiter of communal justice.
'Primetime' review: Robert Pattinson makes Chris Hansen a scary clown
'To Catch A Predator' gets the 'American Pyscho' treatment. Primetime feels like a fever dream before you even see it. Lance Oppenheimer, who's teamed with Nathan Fielder for the upcoming documentary on Elizabeth Holmes, You Can See Everything, directs a drama based on the events surrounding the reality TV series To Catch a …
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