At a glance
| Born | December 31, 1937, Port Talbot, Wales |
| Known for | Hannibal Lecter; The Silence of the Lambs |
| Role | Actor |
Overview
Anthony Hopkins plays Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Hannibal (2001), and Red Dragon (2002). The first of those won him the Oscar for best actor, and the screen time is short. The voice, the stillness, and the line about the census taker are what the later films are imitating. He did not play Lecter in Manhunter (1986). Brian Cox did. He did not play him in the Hannibal television series. Mads Mikkelsen did.
Career
Hopkins trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and worked on the British stage before film took over. The Lion in Winter, with Katharine Hepburn, is an early screen credit. The Elephant Man, Magic, and a run of literary adaptations sit under the Lecter films in the public memory and above them in the years worked. He was knighted in 1993. The Father (2020) brought a second Oscar, for a man losing his memory, and it is the performance people now put next to Lecter when they are being serious about the career.
Silence of the Lambs was directed by Jonathan Demme from Thomas Harris’s novel. Jodie Foster plays Clarice Starling. Hopkins has said he did not blink much and kept the voice soft. Hannibal, directed by Ridley Scott, lets the character out of the cell. Red Dragon is a prequel, with Edward Norton as Will Graham, and it retells the story Manhunter already filmed. Hopkins has been dry about the sequels. The first film is the one that fixed the role.
Lecter credits
- The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
- Hannibal (2001)
- Red Dragon (2002)
Trivia
- The role is under 20 minutes in Silence of the Lambs. The Oscar was for that portion.
- He has said he based the voice partly on a mix of Truman Capote and HAL from 2001, depending on the interview.
- Manhunter’s Lecter is spelled Lecktor and played by Brian Cox. It is the same character from the novel Red Dragon.
- He did not return for the television series. The rights and the tone had moved on.
- Knighted in 1993, after Silence of the Lambs.