Robert Pattinson fronts A24’s Primetime, a Lance Oppenheim thriller inspired by NBC’s To Catch a Predator, and the first teaser has dropped. He plays Chris Hansen alongside Anna Faris, Skyler Gisondo and Phoebe Bridgers in her feature debut, with the release date still under wraps as Pattinson juggles The Drama and Dune 3.
Robert Pattinson’s latest pivot drops him into the hot seat of a notorious TV sting, with A24’s “Primetime” casting him as Chris Hansen under Lance Oppenheim’s watch. The first footage hints at a sleek, claustrophobic thriller, bolstered by Anna Faris, Skyler Gisondo, and a big-screen debut for Phoebe Bridgers. Its roots in NBC’s scandal-stained “To Catch a Predator” promise a tense unpacking of spectacle and accountability. And Pattinson isn’t slowing down, juggling “The Drama” with Zendaya, Nolan’s “L’Odyssée,” and “Dune 3” while future stops line up at Netflix and Gotham.
Every so often, a trailer lands that jolts the news cycle and sets group chats buzzing. That happened this week, when A24 pulled back the curtain on its next headline-grabber. The studio’s thriller centers on TV’s messiest legacy, the kind that lingers in memory and lawsuits. Is there a better time for a story about media, accountability, and the line between exposure and exploitation?
A chilling first look at ‘Primetime’
A24 has dropped the first teaser for Primetime, with Robert Pattinson stepping into the role of Chris Hansen, the unmistakable face of NBC’s To Catch a Predator. Directed by Lance Oppenheim, the film reimagines the show’s sting operations as a tense character study, probing what happens when justice is packaged for primetime. The teaser, released May 27, builds intrigue without confirming a US release date.
A powerful supporting cast
Pattinson is joined by Anna Faris, Skyler Gisondo, and Phoebe Bridgers, who makes her feature acting debut. The footage leans into control-room claustrophobia and on-the-ground chaos, cutting between surveillance feeds and charged confrontations. A24’s signature is clear: a sharp, unnerving mood, a controversial subject, and a promise to challenge how we consume televised accountability.
Robert Pattinson’s blockbuster-packed calendar
It’s a crowded slate for Pattinson. He’s sharing the screen with Zendaya in The Drama, gearing up for a new epic from Christopher Nolan, and entering the Arrakis saga with Dune 3 as Scytale. On streaming, Netflix’s Here Comes The Flood remains on the horizon, while The Batman sequel is targeting 2027, keeping his schedule stacked across franchises and risk-taking originals.
The dark history behind ‘To Catch a Predator’
To Catch a Predator aired on NBC from 2004 to 2007, drawing massive attention for its sting operations against suspected offenders. The show’s tactics later faced intense scrutiny, most notably after the suicide of Texas prosecutor Bill Conradt during a filmed operation. Interest resurfaced in 2025 with a documentary titled Predator, which revisited the program’s methods and fallout, and framed the ethical questions Oppenheim’s film now revisits.
