As the ‘twilight’ star nears the end of an already eventful year, we take a look at some of the most interesting questions that have been raised about him since his highly-publicised split from longtime love Katarina Witt in September 2018.
Is He Afraid Of Being Alone?
One of the most interesting aspects of the ‘twilight’ star’s year has been the amount of time he has been able to spend alone. After nearly 10 years of constant companionship, it has been fascinating to observe Patton as he copes with a divorce and navigates a whole new life as a single man.
In an interview with Red Magazine in November 2018, Pattinson explained that he was more scared of being alone than he was of losing a loved one, as he has since proven. He continued:
“I think it might be harder to break up with a girlfriend and forget about her than I think it would be to end a relationship with someone I’ve known for a long time. You know what I mean? When you’ve known someone for a while and they hurt you and you have to break up with them, it’s hard. You think you’re going to be together forever, but you never know how things are going to turn out. That could be the worst thing. To me, the worst thing would be to wake up one day and not feel the same about someone. Not having that connection is what I’m scared of. If you don’t want to be with me anymore, that’s your decision and I’ll accept it, but until then we’re still together.”
While it is nice to see Pattinson opening up about his fear of being alone, particularly as it comes from such an influential figure in Hollywood, it still doesn’t answer the question of whether this is a phase he is going through or if he actually wants to be single for the rest of his life.
He hasn’t done much to quell the rumours that he is, in fact, looking to settle down and start a family. On the contrary, in December 2018 he gave People the “perfect Christmas present” by tweeting: “Merry Christmas Everyone! Hope you all are enjoying your time off. I’ve got a very exciting announcement to make. (…) Soon I’ll be adding another amazing partner to my life.”
Is He Secretly In Love With Victoria Beckham?
Another intriguing speculation surrounding the ‘twilight’ actor is whether or not he has romantic feelings for footballers’ wife Victoria Beckham. In the past, he has referred to her as “the woman I love” and “the most beautiful girl in the world” and seemed to hint at a possible courtship when he told the press: “She’s someone I love and respect a lot, so if anything happens, it would be really cool.”
When asked about whether or not he had a special someone in his life, Beckham replied: “I’m not going to comment on that, but if I did have somebody that I cared for enough to want to be with them all the time, you know what, I’d be singing a different tune.”
Despite the fact that their meeting at a football match in 2013 was heavily-filmed and publicly-discussed, the speculation that they are in some way romantically involved continues to this day. Whether or not they will ever actually go on a date remains to be seen.
Will He Join The Rising Star Coalition (RSC) For The 2021 Oscars?
The rise of the RSC, founded in 2019 by Frances McDormand and Meryl Streep, was undoubtedly caused by the fact that many Hollywood stars are choosing to stay at home – and therefore away from the red-carpet – and vie for Oscars instead via online voting. McDormand and Streep have both said that they expect Patton to be one of the first to join the RSC, with his popularity expected to make him a shoe-in for a spot on its 2021 ballot.
Other prominent figures who have joined the prestigious coalition include Charlize Theron, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Reese Witherspoon, and many more.
It wasn’t just about the Oscars, either. The RSC was also formed in order to promote an arts-friendly atmosphere in light of the current coronavirus pandemic, and to give fans and participants a more engaging way to follow the awards race.
Has He Found Happiness In His Craft?
Although Patton is one of the most famous and influential stars in Hollywood, he is by no means above criticism. The actor has earned a reputation for being difficult and demanding, with one report from The Telegraph in 2018 stating that he is “one of the highest-paid but least-liked celebrities”, not because of his money, but because of the power he wields in Hollywood. This year, however, has seen a rare glimpse of Patton at peace.
The Telegraph critic Peter Bradshaw described the ‘twilight’ actor as looking “more relaxed and content” than we have seen him for years, which is undoubtedly true. In a rare interview on the set of James White’s upcoming film ‘A Private Family Affair’ in March 2021, Patton opened up about his personal life and his work. He said:
“It’s been a really interesting year, just getting to know a lot more people and being in a new place. It’s been great. The only hard part is going to be getting back out there and being social. But I think I can adjust. I’m not worried about that. I’m just worried about remembering how to act.”
Asked about what he is most proud of in his career, Patton replied: “It’s hard to say because I feel like I’ve been very lucky, and I’ve worked very hard. I think that probably at the end of the day, what I’m most proud of is just being able to stay positive. I think that I’ve always tried to keep a positive mindset, which has helped me a lot, whether I was in a good place or bad place. And I think that if I ever started to doubt myself or my capabilities, then it would be awful. So I think that if I ever started to feel sorry for myself, then that would be a step forward, not backwards. So I feel like that’s what I’m most proud of, just trying to stay positive in a world that can sometimes be so negative.”
Robert Pattinson And Taylor Swift Team Up For A Music Video
In terms of pure craftsmanship and music video-making, the year was undoubtedly dominated by one of the most intriguing collaborations in recent history—the pairing of ‘twilight’ star Robert Pattinson and singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. A romantic partnership in principle if ever there was one, the two are expected to release a joint album in the near future and star in a new movie together.
The two creatives behind the wildly-popular ‘Blank Space’ and ‘Wildflowers’ music videos, respectively, were apparently drawn to one another from the start. In fact, they have been longtime friends and collaborators, having previously worked together on the video for ‘Remember Me’.
Music videos are a genre that both artists are known for, and one that they have continued to make interesting experiments with in recent years.
For ‘Blank Space’, the duo sought to subvert the typical tropes of a romance video and instead focused on the theme of disconnection. Shot partly in darkness to represent nightfall and sunrise as a metaphor for disconnection from society and technology, the clip is an exploration of a “falling out of touch with reality”, as the song’s official video description puts it.
As noted by Time in a video review, ‘Blank Space’ marked a turning point for the ‘twilight’ actor, who had, until that point, largely steered clear of music videos in favour of more traditional movie roles. Since then, he has gone on to star in a whole host of music-related projects, from a collaboration with the rock band Tokyo to a stripped-back performance of ‘Porcelain’ for the YouTube Red series ‘Highly Confident’ to the upcoming music-themed film ‘Fury’ with Brad Pitt.
Similarly, for ‘Wildflowers’, Swift wrote the soundtrack to the upcoming Broadway musical ‘Come From Away’ and the song inspired the video, which tells the story of a group of fans who find themselves in an Irish airport, watching TV screens and waiting for the band they love to arrive. The fact that the video is set in an airport speaks to the idea that the characters could be stranded there as a result of the pandemic.