“I was trying to mold this role into the best role I could for someone else, and then I got more and more attached to it,” Pattinson said Saturday at the Venice Film Festival, where the film had its world premiere and received a nine-minute standing ovation.

The 40-year-old English actor started out as a producer on the NBC Dateline show “To Catch a Predator.” But when he and his colleagues found that they could not stop themselves from imitating Hansen when talking about the project, they “found his accent too difficult.”

Pattinson said, “It’s more than any other part I’ve done, just grunt work.”

He was also part of the reason the directing duties were handed over to Lance Oppenheim, who had only directed documentaries up to this point. Oppenheim knew of Chris Hansen and was interested in the phenomenon he had created. However, something happened when Oppenheim’s wife gifted him a cameo video and he saw Hansen performing as himself.

Oppenheim said, “For me it was a great character, a great subject.” “A man who became a personality…a man who adopted his own meme.”

“Primetime”, written by Ajon Singh, has already created buzz and headlines with its trailer and content. It is based on journalist Luke Dietrich’s “Esquire” article “Tonight on Dateline This Man Will Die”, which explores a 2006 sting operation on Texas assistant district attorney Bill Conrad. She died by suicide when police officers arrived at her home outside the show’s television cameras.

Oppenheim said in his director’s statement that he wanted to “explore the disparate ambitions of the people inside this system – a journalist warrior, a mercenary TV producer and a wide-eyed Hollywood dreamer – converging in a moment of crisis.”

Henson was not involved in the production of the film and has made several public comments about it, including that he always thought Denis Leary should have played the role and that he questioned the filmmakers’ intentions. He was invited to watch the film before the festival, but was asked to sign beforehand due to the NDA issue. There are also reports that they have purchased advertising to run in front of “primetime” theatrical screenings when it opens in theaters on September 25.

When Pattinson was asked to comment on the commercials, he said he just hoped Henson would enjoy the film.

Pattinson said, “The more you watch the show, there’s something magnetic about his presence.” “What he’s doing is why people are still talking about that show 20 years later.”

The film also marks the acting debut of singer Phoebe Bridgers, who found it challenging.

“It was definitely very scary,” Bridgers said. “At first when Lance asked me I said, ‘No way, man.'”

For Pattinson, “Primetime” is another much-talked-about performance in a banner year that already includes memorable performances in hits ranging from “The Drama” to “The Odyssey” and “Dune: Part Three” still to come.

With nearly two years of schedule booked and the birth of a newborn at home, Pattinson went straight from “The Drama” to “Primetime” and then “The Odyssey.”

“When I watch ‘The Odyssey’ I can definitely hear a little bit of Chris Hansen in it,” he said with a laugh.

But, he adds, “Once you get up to speed, it’s actually, strangely enough, not that hard.”

Pattinson isn’t the only famous Briton on the Lido Saturday. Oasis members Noel and Liam Gallagher are also on hand for the world premiere of their reunion tour documentary “Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger”.

With plenty of movie star moments already in the making, from George Clooney’s Lifetime Achievement Award to the emotional ovation for John Malkovich’s performance in “Wild Horses Nine,” the combination of Pattinson and Oasis in the same day is shaping up to be a high-wattage pinnacle for this year’s festival.

For coverage of the 2026 Venice Film Festival, visit: /hub/venice-film-festival

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