CANNES WATCH: Robert Pattinson rates film romp with Julianne Moore

CANNES, France – Robert Pattinson is making quite a surprising reputation for himself — as the actor who has sex in cars on film.

The star plays Jerome, a chauffeur and would-be actor, in David Cronenberg’s latest film “Maps to the Stars,” which premiered Monday at Cannes. In it, he has a romp with the desperate Julianne Moore character in a car.

And it comes just two years after he filmed a sex scene with the 50-year-old Juliette Binoche in a limousine in Cronenberg’s last film “Cosmopolis.”

Quizzed by journalists on the dubious habit, he rated the respective performance of his co-stars.

“Both(are) like 7s. I’m joking. . Obviously Julianne. It was a wonderful experience. It was extremely sweaty,” he said.

“It’s sublime,” retorted Moore, 53.

As for Cronenberg, he said the reason why he’s included automotive sex scenes in his films is simple — it happens.

“There’s an entire generation of Americans who have been spawned in the backseat of 1974 Fords. It’s not like I invented Sex in cars. You have to remember that that part of the sexual revolution came about because of the automobile, because of the fact that young people could get away from their parents from being supervised and that was freedom,” he said. “So I don’t think I’m breaking any new territory when there’s a scene of people having sex in cars. I mean why wouldn’t you? I mean, there are so many great cars around.”

— Thomas Adamson, http://twitter.com/ThomasAdamsonAP