Robert Pattinson isn’t new to this. And by this, we mean Dior Homme Parfum and all the sexy, ambery energy that comes along with it. “We have been together for longer than a decade,” the actor says with a laugh on a fall morning. “This was before everybody was working with a fragrance.”
When describing Homme, which was recently re-invented by the fashion house’s creative director of perfumes Francis Kurkdjian, Pattinson says “the scent feels like more of an aura than spraying some perfume on.” With notes of iris flower, vetiver, patchouli and amber, it’s something he likes to spray on for moments when he’s looking to make a good first impression. Like when he met with director Bong Joon-ho, director of his upcoming project Mickey 17, set to be released in March of this year. “Bong is one of maybe five directors in the world who have his level of expertise and influence. He is a really special artist.”
The actor also points out he’s not new to the more daring moments of the scintillating advertisement for Homme, which involves him riding a motorcycle on a beach. “I learned how to ride a motorcycle for Batman, so when Dior asked if I could ride, I said yeah. Well, I could sort of ride a motorcycle-ish. But even trying to even start a motorcycle in wet sand is literally impossible. I just thought, ‘I’m going to die on this.’”
Add the girl in his arms (literally) and Pattinson just has to laugh. “If the Dior man can do this easily, well, it’s very impressive.”
Pattinson says, though, that none of that—driving fast, daring stunts—is what he’s like IRL. “I’m very anxiety-prone, I don’t like driving fast in real life at all,” he says. “I can’t even parallel park! I need it to be valet-only like in Clueless. But there’s something about my pride that comes out when I’m being filmed. All of a sudden, I’m like ‘Yeah, I can drive 120 miles an hour through this tiny little gap.’”
The stunts he’s performing in Mickey 17 are much more in his natural skillset, Pattison jokes “It’s the kind of stunt where you’re just hurting yourself a lot. It just involves falling off ledges and being uncoordinated. It’s really in my wheelhouse.”
Though recent changes in his personal life—the actor welcomed a baby with partner Suki Waterhouse in March of 2024—have him leaning toward being even more risk-averse than before. The life milestone also introduced a new scent into Pattison’s life that he’s obsessed with. “I remember people used to be like ‘Oh, don’t you like the smell of babies, but I thought they were just smelling the baby powder,” he said with a laugh. “But then I had a baby, and I was like ‘My baby smells incredible.’ There’s something there, I can identify her. She doesn’t smell like other babies.”
This story originally appeared on Vogue.com.
