Full disclosure: I work for NBC. So reviewing a movie about NBC’s most infamous ratings machine feels a little like a chef reviewing a documentary about his own kitchen’s health inspection. Pull up a chair. Actually, have a seat right over there.

Primetime stars Robert Pattinson as Chris Hansen in 2006, during the early years of NBC’s To Catch a Predator, and it is one of the most unsettling, darkly entertaining films of the year. It is also proof that Pattinson has fully completed his transformation from sparkly vampire to cinema’s most fearless weirdo.

The Setup

The real show started as a single Dateline segment in November 2004, then became a regular primetime series in 2006. That jump is where this film lives. The show lands on Wednesday nights opposite ABC’s Lost, and suddenly Hansen and his team need fresh blood every week. Running alongside him is Dan Plumb (Skyler Gisondo), a 23-year-old would-be actor whose babyish looks make him the perfect bait.

The Performance

The easy route would have been a Saturday Night Live impression. Pattinson skips it entirely. His Hansen walks into every room like he owns the building, radiating certainty, and yet underneath it all I could feel a man quietly panicking that the cameras might turn away. That’s the real horror here. Not the predators. The appetite.

Pattinson has admitted Hansen’s voice was tough to crack, calling the role more grunt work than anything he’s ever done. Honey, the grunt work paid off.

The Director

This is the narrative debut of documentarian Lance Oppenheim (Some Kind of Heaven, Ren Faire), and his nonfiction instincts are everywhere. Dial-up modem screeches, fuzzy VHS textures, chunky CRT screens, then sudden dreamlike images that feel like Hansen’s ego leaking onto the screen. If you were alive in 2006, prepare for a flashback so vivid you’ll check your MySpace Top 8.

The Ensemble

Merritt Wever is the secret weapon. Pattinson’s Hansen performs his power for anyone watching; Wever’s character just quietly has it, and every scene between them crackles. Gisondo brings the bruised heart. Phoebe Bridgers makes her acting debut, and Anna Faris steals her lone scene as Hansen’s wife, mostly by staring at him in disappointment. We’ve all been there, Anna.

The Real-Life Drama

The off-screen saga is almost a movie of its own. Hansen had no involvement in the production, has questioned the filmmakers’ motives, and said he always pictured Denis Leary in the role. Pattinson’s response? “I hope he likes the movie.” Iconic.

Any Flaws?

A few. The satire occasionally pulls its punch right when I wanted it to land the knockout. And a handful of key exchanges between Pattinson and Wever get swallowed in the sound mix. Bring your best listening ears.

The Verdict

Primetime had me laughing, squirming, and leaning in, sometimes all in the same scene, and that’s exactly the trap it’s built to expose. It earns a spot next to Network and Nightcrawler on the shelf of movies that hold a mirror up to TV news and dare us not to blink. Pattinson’s 2026 has been stacked, from The Drama to The Odyssey, but this is his awards-season calling card.

Manny’s Rating: 3.5 out of 4 Kisses 💋💋💋½

Go see it, then go home and think hard about what you choose to watch. Mwah!

Primetime is now playing in theaters, from A24.