Chris Hansen Buys Ads to Play Before Every Showing of Film About His ‘To Catch a Predator’ Days
Chris Hansen isn't waiting for Hollywood to tell his story his way, so he's paying to tell his own version first. The "To Catch a Predator" host has purchased advertising space to play before every theatrical screening of "Primetime," the upcoming A24 film starring Robert Pattinson as Hansen.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hansen's ad promotes TruBlu, his own true-crime streaming network devoted to predator investigations similar to the ones that made him a household name on Dateline NBC.
In the spot, Hansen appears in a kitchen, the setting long associated with his on-camera confrontations, and delivers a twist on his signature catchphrase, telling the audience, "I'm going to need everyone in the theater to take a seat right over there." He continues, "Now there are more platforms than ever before where this disturbing crime is being committed. Join us undercover every day on my streaming network, TruBlu." The spot ends with a QR code directing viewers to TruBlu's landing page.
A Line That Got Cut
Hansen initially wanted to close the ad with a jab at the film itself, planning to tell audiences that what they were about to watch was "a Hollywood fantasy version" of what actually happened. According to The Hollywood Reporter, that line was ultimately cut over concerns it could draw pushback from A24.
Why Hansen and A24 Are at Odds
Hansen has said publicly, including during an appearance on Fox News' "Jesse Watters Primetime," that he turned down an opportunity to screen "Primetime" in advance after A24's legal team asked him to sign away certain rights before viewing it.
"The lawyers at A24 wanted me to sign away my rights to my name, image and brand essentially, as well as any potential legal rights," Hansen said. He added in a separate podcast appearance that he had not been consulted during the making of the film.
What 'Primetime' Is About
"Primetime," directed by Lance Oppenheim, is loosely based on the 2007 Esquire article "Tonight on Dateline, This Man Will Die," which examined Hansen's "To Catch a Predator" era on Dateline NBC.
The film centers on Hansen's methods during that period, including the case of Bill Conradt, a Texas district attorney who died by suicide in 2006 during a police standoff connected to one of the show's investigations. Skyler Gisondo also stars in the film. "Primetime" premieres at the Venice Film Festival on Sept. 5 before opening in theaters nationwide on Sept. 25.
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