CBS recently dropped the first trailer for Clarice, teasing the upcoming series, which picks up one year after the events that transpired in The Silence of the Lambs. However, excitement for the CBS original was dampened by YouTube users, who took to the comment section of the official trailer and demanded Season 4 of Hannibal, the prequel TV series that was canceled in 2015. This outcry leaves some wondering if Clarice will ever be embraced by Hannibal fans, who seem to think the new series has killed any chance of Hannibal Season 4.
Based on the novel of the same name by Thomas Harris, The Silence of the Lambs premiered in 1991. It stars Jodie Foster as FBI trainee Clarice Starling and Anthony Hopkins as cannibal serial killer Hannibal Lecter. In a major victory at the Academy Awards, The Silence of the Lambs became the third film to win the Oscar's big five (Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Adapted Screenplay). Since its debut, there have been multiple screen adaptations of Harris' writing, including Hannibal.
Hannibal acted as Hannibal Lecter's origin story. The series reinvented and adapted the events of Harris' Hannibal novels, which include Red Dragon, The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal. After three seasons, Hannibal was canceled by NBC due to low viewership, leaving viewers with a literal cliffhanger. Despite fan outrage, the series has yet to receive a revival since its cancellation.
Although Hannibal borrowed from The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal books, which both feature Clarice Starling, the show never introduced the character, instead choosing to focus on Will Graham, the main protagonist of Red Dragon. Therefore, Clarice acts as an opportunity to flesh out Clarice Starling's backstory in a way the Hannibal series couldn't. The new series will not involve Hannibal Lecter, but it will focus on Clarice's personal story and work on other serial killer cases as a member of the FBI's Behavioral Psychology unit.
Clarice is an exciting premise, particularly for fans of Thomas Harris' novels. It looks to bridge the gap between The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal, providing an intimate glimpse into Clarice's life while, hopefully, offering insight behind the controversial ending of Hannibal, the novel. Despite this, anyone scrolling through the YouTube comments of CBS's official Clarice teaser trailer will find a different opinion.
Instead of praising the upcoming release, the comments section is riddled with pleas for a Hannibal Season 4 and #SaveHannibal. The hashtag was born as a result of Clarice's announcement in January, and the movement has gained momentum, even capturing the attention of Bryan Fuller, Hannibal's creator, who responded to a tweet to explain that MGM would never permit him to use Clarice Starling because of their own plans for the character. He then closed the tweet by saying, "CBS's show does NOT mean #Hannibal S4 won't happen." While there may be hope after all for a Season 4 of Hannibal, things aren't looking great for Clarice's viewership, at least among Hannibal fans.
Clarice stars Rebecca Breeds as Clarice Starling, Michael Cudlitz as Paul Krendler, Lucca de Oliveira as Tomas Esquivel, Kal Penn as Shaan Tripathi, Nick Sandow as Agent Clarke, Devyn Tyler as Ardelia Mapp and Marnee Carpenter as Catherine Martin. The series premieres Feb. 11, 2021 at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT on CBS and CBS All Access.