This year marks the 30th anniversary of Jonathan Demme’s Academy-Award winning film “Silence of the Lambs.”
But that nearly wasn’t the case, as the Welsh actor was actually Demme’s second choice.
“Connery has that fierce intelligence and also that serious physicality.
I love Tony Hopkins, but Sean Connery would be amazing.”
However, Connery took one look at the script and turned it down.
So the script was sent over to Hopkins, who jumped at the opportunity.
“I read the script and boom!
I knew intuitively how to play him,” he toldEmpiremagazine.
But what did Hopkins draw upon for the character, especially that sadistic drawl?
“There was a teacher we had, a Stanislavsky method teacher, and he was lethal.
He would just take you apart intellectually,” he explained.
“He’d just smirk, and he’d say, ‘No.
Do it again’…
I based it on him: ‘No, Clarice.'”
from “2001: A Space Odyssey”.
“After my first make-up session, I went to the mirror and thought ‘this is it’.”
And boy, did Hannibal Lecter make a lasting impression.
