But that wasn’t common knowledge before The Silence of the Lambs arrived in 1990. The novel released to acclaim in 1988, winning the Bram Stoker and Anthony Awards for Best New Novel, and Lecter had previously appeared on screen in Michael Mann’s Manhunter, played as a surly captive by Brian Cox. But Lecter certainly wasn’t the horror icon he is today.
Even more unlikely is Hopkins getting the part. While the Welsh actor had notable film turns in The Lion in Winter, Magic, and The Elephant Man, he certainly wasn’t the household name he is today. In fact, Hopkins was better known as a stage and television actor, having won a British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his work in the 1972 BBC production of War and Peace and two Primetime Emmy nominations for TV movies.
So when Hopkins began reading the story of young FBI recruit Clarice Starling (Foster), who engages with Lecter to find serial killer Jame Gumb (Ted Levine), he knew he had something rare, and his nervousness was earned.
Fortunately, there was a real offer and Hopkins got the part, a part he would reprise (for better or worse) in Hannibal and Red Dragon. And because he got the part, people today continue to stop watching The Silence of the Lambs, driven away by the fear that he creates in them.
We Did OK, Kid is now on available.
