Posted in: NBC, Netflix, streaming, TV | Tagged: bleeding cool, books, bryan fuller, hannibal, Lecter, mads mikkelsen, nbc, novels, preview, season 4, The Silence Of The Lambs, thomas harris, Will Graham

Hannibal Star Mads Mikkelsen on What (and Who) He Wants for Season 4

Published Tue, 24 Nov 2020 10:35:13 -0600

by Ray Flook

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The last time we checked in on any potential rumblings in the on-again/off-again world of Bryan Fuller's (Star Trek: Discovery, American Gods) series take on Thomas Harris' "Red Dragon" universe, Fuller discussed other actors who the network wanted for the lead in Hannibal, how he had future seasons in mind even as production was continuing on the third season, and David Tennant's (Doctor Who) brief flirtation with the role of Lecter. Now, series star Mads Mikkelsen has revealed to IndieWire the direction he would like to see the series go (a series he says continues to get "bigger and bigger")- and a familiar face to the series he would like to see play a familiar face to Harris' universe.

Hannibal: An Artform On The Small Screen — Dr. Lecter and Will Graham in an episode of Hannibal. Source: NBC

Though legal rights have kept the series from using the characters and specific storyline details (you'll have to wait for CBS' Clarice for a look at what happened post-"Buffalo Bill"), Mikkelsen would like to see the series apply a "remix" to The Silence of the Lambs. "I don't think it's a secret that if it does happen, we would love to go into 'Silence of the Lambs,' That's always been an issue because they didn't have the rights for that book. But that's obviously the most famous part and we'd love to go in there," Mikkelsen explained. "We'd obviously switch it around a little and do all kinds of crazy stuff with it. That story is so interesting and the characters in it are as interesting. We'd switch around the genders and maybe even put two characters into one. We would love to find someone to play Buffalo Bill. That's going to be tough. We found a Hannibal, so it's possible."

While praising Ted Levine's portrayal as the "big bad" in Jonathan Demme's Oscar-winning film adaptation, Mikkelsen is dipping back into the second season for the person he would love to see in the role: Michael Pitt (Funny Games, Boardwalk Empire). Having played Mason Verger during the sophomore, Pitt is someone Mikkelsen feels he has a special chemistry with that's already been demonstrated- one that he would like to see play out in this new dynamic. "We already used Michael Pitt for Mason and that was fantastic. If he wasn't playing Mason I'd love to see him as Buffalo Bill," he said.

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