The internet wants Robert Pattinson to play Patrick Bateman in the new ‘American Psycho’ film

'Challengers' director Luca Guadagnino is set to direct a new version of Bret Easton Ellis' controversial novel

With a new version of American Psycho in the works, the internet is speculating on who should be the new Patrick Bateman, with Robert Pattinson an early frontrunner.

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Last week (October 18), the new adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ controversial 1991 novel was announced, with Challengers and Call Me By Your Name director Luca Guadagnino on board.

Scott Z. Burns, whose writing credits include The Bourne Ultimatum and Contagion, will write the screenplay, although as of yet no casting details have been shared.

Mary Harron’s 2000 film version starred Christian Bale as Bateman, a mentally unstable yuppie banker in the 1980s who lives a second life as a gruesome and cold-blooded serial killer.

The new version will require a new Bateman, and people online are suggesting names for actors they feel can take on the two extreme poles of the character’s personality.

“There is one answer: Robert Pattinson,” wrote one X/Twitter user in response to the question.

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“I think Robert Pattinson should play Patrick Bateman because I want to know what kind of voice he would do,” wrote another.

Another recurring name being suggested is Nicholas Alexander Chavez, who recently starred as Lyle Menendez in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.

Other actors to have been put forward include Timothée Chalamet, Jacob Elordi, Glen Powell and Dev Patel. See some suggestions below.

The upcoming project marks Guadagnino’s second foray into genre remakes, having previously directed a new version of Suspiria in 2018, based on Dario Argento’s 1977 Italian supernatural horror.

“We are thrilled to add another elite filmmaker to our upcoming slate,” said Lionsgate motion picture group chair Adam Fogelson (via Deadline). “Luca is a brilliant artist, and the perfect visionary to create a whole new interpretation of this potent and classic IP.”

Pattinson, meanwhile, will star in Parasite director Bong Joon-ho’s upcoming Mickey 17. He will play a human who signs on as a disposable member of an expedition to explore an ice planet, and every time he dies, he is revived as a clone. The film is out on January 31.