Robert Pattinson Was Bribed to Star in Primetime With 200 Zyn Canisters and a Note Reading ‘Dear Chris Han-Zyn’

Robert Pattinson was originally going to produce A24’s Primetime, not star in it. Director Lance Oppenheim told Vulture that he changed that by sending Pattinson 200 canisters of Zyn nicotine pouches.

Oppenheim said Pattinson was dealing with a Zyn addiction at the time, and that the pouches were hard to find in the US, per Variety. He had a friend in Canada send 200 canisters to Pattinson’s Los Angeles home. He then dropped off the latest script draft with a letter opening with the pun ‘Dear Chris Han-Zyn,’ a nod to the real To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen.

According to the Tribune, Pattinson first turned down the part with a flat refusal. Screenwriter Ajon Singh also reworked the script to win him over. Primetime is set in 2006 and follows To Catch a Predator’s move to a primetime slot. It is Oppenheim’s first narrative feature, after documentaries including Ren Faire.

Oppenheim called the film a fever dream and an elaborate form of fan fiction rather than a conventional biopic, per NME. Hansen has criticized the film, calling it a complete work of fiction. Critics have been more favorable. Variety’s Owen Gleiberman called Pattinson a new kind of movie star, and the performance is generating Oscar buzz.