Jonathan Demme's 1991 film "The Silence of the Lambs" remains a landmark in horror cinema. Based on the novel of the same name by author Thomas Harris, the film is the only one within the horror genre to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and is also the most recent film to sweep the "Big Five" Oscars, which consist of Best Picture, Best Director (Jonathan Demme), Best Adapted Screenplay (Ted Tally), Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), and Best Actress (Jodie Foster). Only two other films have accomplished
the "Big Five" sweep: Frank Capra's 1934 romantic comedy "It Happened One Night" and Miloš Forman's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest."
As one of the defining films of the 1990s, it is hard to imagine "The Silence of the Lambs" with different actors in its two leading roles. Sure, Jodie Foster turned down the opportunity to reprise her role as Clarice Starling in the 2001 sequel, "Hannibal," with Julianne Moore replacing her, but in particular, Anthony Hopkins' unforgettable performance as Hannibal Lecter stands out as one of the most chilling performances ever put on celluloid, and replacing him would arguably have been an even bigger challenge. With that in mind, there is a world where an acclaimed actor from "Superman: The Movie" nearly played the cannibalistic serial killer, the legendary Gene Hackman.
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Gene Hackman Almost Played Hannibal Lecter
Bob Bookman, a longtime literary agent, manager, and producer, brokered book rights deals for Thomas Harris, sharing that while his first book, "Red Dragon," was bought by Warner Bros. Pictures, put in turnaround, and picked up by the De Laurentiis Entertainment Group to be adapted as Michael Mann's 1986 film, "Manhunter," studios were initially uninterested in the rights to "The Silence of the Lambs." Reflecting on the struggles to get the film rights picked up to Deadline, Bookman shared that it was not until "Superman: The Movie" star Gene Hackman came along, expressing interest in helming the project himself:
"Nobody wanted it. It was a combination of the serial killer aspect of it and the failure of 'Manhunter.' It reminded of how the science fiction genre was as dead as a door nail ... until George Lucas made 'Star Wars.' Then one day my colleague Fred Specktor asks, are the rights still available? Gene Hackman wants to buy them. Gene called a good friend, Arthur Krim at Orion, and they bought it together, 50/50 partners. Gene wanted to direct, and play Hannibal Lecter."
Screenwriter Ted Tally recalls that he learned of Gene Hackman's departure from the project while he was writing the first draft of the script. Bob Bookman claims he received a call from his colleague, Creative Arts Agency (CAA) talent agent Fred Specktor, sharing the reason why Hackman turned "The Silence of the Lambs" down:
"I get a call from Fred saying, you won't believe this. Gene Hackman's daughter read the book. And she called her father and said, 'Daddy, you're not making this movie.' So, Gene called Arthur, told him what happened. Arthur said, 'Don't worry Gene, I'll buy out your half.' That's how Orion got the rights."
Although Gene Hackman Passed Up The Silence Of The Lambs, All Was (Un)forgiven
Ultimately, Anthony Hopkins was cast in the role of Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Hopkins would be the second actor to bring the character to life, following Brian Cox, who played the character in "Manhunter," with the alternate spelling, "Lecktor." Hopkins would reprise the role in the sequel, "Hannibal," and the prequel, "Red Dragon," the latter of which is based on the novel of the same name, which was also the basis of "Manhunter." Dr. Hannibal Lecter would later be portrayed by Gaspard Ulliel in the prequel film, "Hannibal Rising," and was also played by Mads Mikkelsen in the NBC series, "Hannibal."
Despite passing on "The Silence of the Lambs," Gene Hackman would go on to appear in Clint Eastwood's "Unforgiven." Released in 1992, a year after the release of the project he passed on, "Unforgiven" would go on to win Best Picture, while awarding Hackman his second Academy Award for his performance, this time in the category of Best Supporting Actor. He previously won for Best Actor in William Friedkin's "The French Connection" over 20 years prior. Hypothetically, if Hackman accepted the opportunity to direct and star in "The Silence of the Lambs," perhaps he could have won in both of those categories, which would have found him winning three Oscars in back-to-back years.
Besides "The Silence of the Lambs," Gene Hackman also turned down another psychological thriller in David Fincher's "Se7en," which makes at least two seminal 1990s classics that Hackman passed up on. Ultimately, things worked out in the best way for both Hackman and Anthony Hopkins, given that Hackman had already brought Superman's arch-nemesis Lex Luthor to life, and perhaps having two legendary genre villain roles under his belt would have been greedy.
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