We return to talk about Primetime, but this time we don’t want to tell you about Chris Hansen, the investigative and television journalist at the heart of Lance Oppenheimer‘s film. No, it’s Pattinson we want to tell you about and the work he did on the voice to make his portrayal credible. During a recent interview with GQ India, the villain of Odyssey explained how tricky it was to imitate Hansen’s tone, which is certainly unique and quite distinctive. To prepare, Pattinson listened repeatedly to the Have a Seat with Chris Hansen podcast, as he himself recounted:
He has a podcast in which he talks about his old cases, and I kept wandering around trying to reproduce his voice. He tackles rather dark subjects. I would walk down the street, repeat what he said, and people were disoriented by what was happening. For me his voice is really iconic and very hard to imitate.
Pattinson then added that at first he had embraced Primetime only as a producer after reading the script by Ajon Singh. Later he proposed that the direction be entrusted to Lance Oppenheimer, with whom he had worked on a documentary, and thus he decided to interpret the lead role himself. Of the director he said:
There’s something in his style that makes him suitable for the film, which recalls a bit of Oliver Stone and Brian De Palma. And when the second version of the screenplay arrived, I exclaimed: “Ooh! I really like this a lot.” It’s really unusual and bold. I’m curious to see how the audience will receive the film.
Robert Pattinson finally explained that Primetime is the first project that, as a producer, he follows from start to finish. For the actor it was a wonderful team effort to which he devoted his whole self.
Chris Hansen didn’t have the opportunity to see Primetime, but after watching the trailer, he revealed that Pattinson’s performance didn’t displease him, even if it struck him as a bit theatrical. The film is part of the competition at the 83rd Venice Film Festival and will hit theaters on October 15. He focuses in particular on the years when Hansen conceived and hosted To Catch a Predator, an investigative format in which, through undercover operations organized with law enforcement, adults who wanted to meet minors known online were exposed. The program, broadcast within Dateline on NBC, aired from 2004 to 2007.
In the cast of Primetime we also find Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo, Phoebe Bridgers and Bokeem Woodbine.
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