Former To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen is considering legal action against A24 over the upcoming fictionalized thriller Primetime, starring Robert Pattinson. Hansen slammed the film as an exploitative work of fiction, while also purchasing preshow advertising for the September 25 theatrical release to promote his true-crime network TruBlu.
To Catch a Predator and A24’s Primetime
When A24 announced plans for Primetime, a dramatic feature exploring the turbulent behind-the-scenes reality of NBC’s controversial 2004–2007 hidden-camera sensation To Catch a Predator, the project immediately captured widespread public attention. But the real-life broadcast journalist whose career inspired the movie has found himself locked in a contentious feud with the studio.
Hansen, who was not consulted during the production, has sharply criticized the film’s depiction of his investigative work. The project, directed by Lance Oppenheim and based on a 2007 Esquire article called Tonight on Dateline This Man Will Die,
stars Robert Pattinson as a driven television host attempting to make broadcast history.
The original television series aired in the 2000s and drew a large audience for its televised sting operations. During the program, Hansen came face-to-face with men who believed they were meeting minors for sex. The program faced legal and ethical scrutiny and ended after just 20 episodes.
SiriusXM’s The Dan Abrams Show
Hansen has revealed on SiriusXM’s The Dan Abrams Show that he was given some legal advice that he could have “a decent case” against the Lance Oppenheim-helmed thriller. People are looking at it,
he said on the show. I don’t know. One guy told me, somebody who’s very, very good at all this and very entrenched in entertainment law, he said, ‘You know, you can do that, and you probably have a decent case. How much time do you want to spend doing it?’
And the thought process here is that, if you protest it too much, do they turn it into a promotional situation where, ‘this is the movie Chris Hansen doesn’t want you to see.’ Well, in reality, it’s the movie Chris Hansen hasn’t even seen yet, so it’s a hard question to answer. Hansen
Hansen has said on podcasts and on Jesse Watters’ Fox News program that he declined an invitation to see the film because he was required to sign an agreement barring him from taking legal action against A24. Sources close to him tell The Hollywood Reporter that he is now consulting attorneys about his options.
Hansen sent TMZ a portion of a non-disclosure agreement he says the studio asked him to sign to attend a private screening of the movie, and he claimed the paperwork asked for him to sign away the rights to his life. Clause 5 of Hansen’s alleged NDA reads: “Recipient hereby releases, Company and its parents, subsidy areas, affiliates, divisions, agents, representatives, employees, successor, and assigns, jointly and individual individually, from any and all claims and demands arising out of or in connection with the project, including recipients screening of the project.” Hansen told TMZ there was no way in hell he was going to sign that and that he thinks A24 tried to pull a fast one on him.
Venice International Film Festival
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hansen has purchased preshow advertising on every screen showing the film, turning a movie he has criticized into a promotional opportunity. The film is scheduled to open in theaters Sept. 25 after its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on Sept. 5.
The commercial promotes Hansen’s streaming service TruBlu, which focuses on true-crime programming and predator investigations. In the clip, the broadcaster tells the audience, I’m going to need everyone in the theater to take a seat right over there.
The official description for director Lance Oppenheim’s Primetime is In 2006, To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen sets out to make television history.
The latest trailer reveals a fictionalized behind-the-scenes look at the NBC news show’s production, co-starring Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo, and Phoebe Bridgers in her first major acting role.
Worth a look