Robert Pattinson has described his new film Primetime, in which he plays the real-life host of the American TV show To Catch a Predator, as dealing with the most terrifying thing that can happen to a parent.

The British actor spoke to BBC News at the film’s screening at the London Film Festival. The A24 crime thriller depicts NBC journalist Chris Hansen carrying out sting operations on would-be predators. To Catch a Predator aired from 2004 to 2007 and involved hunting alleged child abusers, becoming a ratings hit averaging around seven million viewers per episode by the 2006-07 season.

A father takes on a dark role

For Pattinson, who welcomed his first child with Suki Waterhouse in March 2024, the film’s plot is particularly concerning. He told the BBC it was both the most terrifying thing that could happen to anyone, whether a parent or not, and the most unimaginable sin possible.

The actor reflected on the show’s complicated legacy, saying it presented a microcosm of the idea that something could be done about child abuse really quickly, but that it also made for incredibly powerful television, which is where it entered dicey territory. The show raised questions about where to draw the line between investigative journalism, police activity and reality television.

Not an indictment

Pattinson has stressed that the film is not an indictment of Hansen as a person, calling it a portrait shaped by the feeling of watching the show in a certain period. Director Lance Oppenheim said the film was designed as more of a fever dream than a representational portrait. Hansen himself has been critical of the film, calling it bizarre and detached from reality in a post on X.

The show was cancelled in 2008 following a 2006 sting operation in which Texas assistant district attorney Bill Conradt died by suicide as officers entered his home. Journalist Luke Dittrich’s 2007 Esquire article on the episode became a key source for the Primetime screenplay, written by Ajon Singh. The film has been released in the United States this week, with a UK release scheduled for October 30. Pattinson has had quite the year, already starring opposite Zendaya in The Drama and playing a key role in summer blockbuster The Odyssey.