Hannibal is an inspired take on the work of Thomas Harris and the movies it inspired, but in the world of television, ratings are king. Despite the plaudits it earned, the Bryan Fuller show simply didn’t attract enough viewers to remain on the air and it ended on a cliffhanger after just three seasons on NBC.
Rumors of a revival have been circulating since it was cancelled, and although it hasn’t happened yet, Fuller remains hopeful that it’s only a matter of time. Speaking during an hour-long Nerdist House reunion alongside the rest of the cast and crew, the showrunner had this to say on the possibility of a belated fourth season:
“I am very hopeful. The great thing about the idea that if we are going to be meeting [back up with Hannibal and Will] and it takes five, six, seven years or what have you, that’s just how long they’ve been on the lam. Then the story picks up from that point. And we’ll adapt.”
There are many reasons why a fourth season of Hannibal is a tantalizing proposition. Firstly, there’s the aforementioned cliffhanger from the end of season 3 to resolve, and beyond that, fans are no doubt hoping that Fuller and his creative team will go on to adapt The Silence of the Lambs with the show’s cast.
During the reunion, Fuller also broached the subject of what a fourth season of Hannibal could look like, describing his vision for it as “sunny and sweaty” and went on to discuss the possibility of a Lambs adaptation.
“It’s very sort of sunny and sweaty, as compared to the cold, harsh realities of Toronto. I think it would be fun to go sunny and sweaty and beachy. A whole new temperature to the cinema. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with the show moving forward, and whether…if there ever is to be a Silence of the Lambs miniseries with this cast.”
So, what are the chances of a Hannibal comeback? That could depend on how well the first three seasons perform on Netflix, having arrived on the platform not too long ago. If they continue to attract a hefty viewership, surely the streaming giant will at least consider the possibility of giving such a critically acclaimed show a second chance, even if NBC won’t.