Editor’s Note: This article contains spoilers.
“You see how this looks, right?”
It’s a line that’s gone viral on TikTok and Instagram over the past few weeks, delivered by Robert Pattinson in A24’s latest film, “Primetime.” Sitting in the theater and hearing Pattinson say it in the film made me and my friends giggle, thinking of all the memes we had seen of it. Yet the film is far from a comedy, and the line is quite a bit darker than the typical trending TikTok audio.
Pattinson stars in “Primetime” as the real-life journalist and TV personality Chris Hansen alongside Skyler Gisondo (known for his role as Jimmy Olsen in 2025’s “Superman”) who plays Decoy Dan. The film is a fictionalized psychological thriller based on Hansen’s early 2000s “To Catch a Predator” segment on Dateline NBC, which, as the title implies, was a show that caught adults who tried to meet minors for hookups.
In both the film and the real-life show, Hansen would bring in a decoy — an adult posing as a minor — who would draw the predator into a set filled with hidden cameras. Once the decoy would leave the room, Hansen would walk in presenting them with the evidence of their crimes.
“You see how this looks, right?” was the classic line Hansen would often say after reading a slew of text receipts between the criminals and the decoy minor. Not long after, a camera crew would rush in and the criminal would be met with police officers outside so justice could be served.
Even with such a heavy premise built almost entirely around a show filmed over 20 years ago, the filmmakers still found a way to make the movie feel relevant. It felt artsy in a way that I didn’t expect, with overexaggerated camera angles and ceaseless ominous lighting. It only continues to grow more disturbing as Hansen’s life crumbles.
The film is backdropped by Hansen’s failing marriage and his lackluster fatherhood to two small children. He’s always traveling and working — not to mention the fact that he’s cheating on his wife. There’s a hint of Hansen’s character that makes me believe he wants to change and be a better husband and father. He’s proven that he’s a decent person by catching all these criminals. Hasn’t he?
Not long after things go wrong at home, things start to go wrong at work. “To Catch a Predator” is competing with NBC’s “Lost” for the primetime 9 p.m. time slot, leaving Hansen to search for “bigger” predators — public figures who are criminals. As Hansen competes for this time slot and struggles to find the kinds of people the network is looking for, he all but completely caves in on himself.
Throughout the film, Hansen had taken so much pride in his work — or at least, the “performances” he gave at work. He was obsessed with rehearsing exactly what he would say to catch the predators. He spent so much time making sure his image was perfect, to the point that if something were to go wrong, it would be paralyzing.
Then comes “the whale.”
Hansen has found the highest profile case of his career. He and his team find a well-respected Texas attorney who appears to be guilty of exactly what Hansen was hoping for. Though grotesque, this criminal excites Hansen since he knows it will get his shows more views. Yet everything slips through his fingers when the attorney he was trying so hard to catch takes his own life in front of him.
Hansen’s career is immediately shattered, and it appears the show may have run its course. The very last thing he was holding onto he was forced to let go, leaving the audience to question Hansen’s intentions with the show to begin with.
“Primetime” provides a powerful commentary on what our motives for justice are and what they should be. Hansen is depicted as someone who deeply wants to put on a performance rather than seek out justice. Similarly, his decoy, Dan, was just a struggling actor trying to make a living. While the show may have been founded on good intentions, it’s clear that these intentions have devolved by the time the credits roll.
Walking out of the theater with four of my friends, we paused in the hallway for a while to try to unpack what exactly we had just watched. We raved about the cinematography and the fun lighting and camera angles. But we were also left with so many questions. Was Hansen ever really trying to do something just and noble, or was he just putting on a front so he could have his “15 minutes” of fame? Was it ethical to have a whole TV show that (intentionally or not) gave predators their own glimmer of fame?
Was Hansen actually doing the right thing or not?
I’ll let you, dear reader, watch and decide for yourself.
Abby Pickett 
Adee Tulcan