As if we weren’t already excited for Robert Pattinson‘s career-changing performance in Mission: Blacklist, author Eric Maddox has publicly given his official seal of approval. “For me, it was a no-brainer,” Eric — who recalls his own experience spearheading the capture of Saddam Hussein in the book — tells Boston radio station WRKO about the movie’s team snagging Rob for the role. “I said absolutely! Whatever you did to get that guy to be a part of this movie, I think it’s wonderful and I fully support it.”

And since Rob will be playing Eric, the military interrogator says he spent quite a bit of time meeting the Twilight star. They spent 14 hours together after Eric returned from Afghanistan, and now he has no doubt that Rob will do an incredible job with the role.

“We’re talking about a guy who is super famous and really popular,” Eric says. “We met for 14 hours, and he focused exclusively on the project, and wanted to get down to the nitty gritty of the project. His entire focus was on the project. It wasn’t about him or his needs, and from that, I realized that this is a guy who is dedicated to his work and wanted to put in the hours. That’s what made me certain that they have built the right team for this.”

We have a feeling Rob’s role in Mission: Blacklist will silence all of his haters — and we can’t wait!

Listen to the interview below, then vote: Will YOU see Mission: Blacklist?

Click here to view the embedded video.

More Mission: Blacklist News:

1. Robert Pattinson’s New Thriller Will Make Him The Next Brad Pitt
2. Robert Pattinson To Star In Military Thriller ‘Mission: Blacklist’