Bryan Fuller making Hannibal Lecter series!

[Temis the Vorta]

Bryan Fuller's Hannibal series.

Hannibal will explore the early relationship of Thomas Harris’ signature character, renowned psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lector, and his patient, a young FBI criminal profiler named Will Graham, who is haunted by his ability to empathize with serial killers.

Sounds like an excellent topic for Fuller! I wonder if Showtime might be eying it at a Dexter companion or replacement? No indication where it's showing, but I certainly hope it won't be on broadcast.

 

[Dream]

We will be waiting for ten seasons for Hannibal to finally eat someone.

 

[PsychoPere]

As of this time last year, Fuller was still in a two-year production deal with Universal Media Studios, though I can't find any reference beyond that point to whether or not he's still signed with USM or is with another production company now.

 

[Christopher]

Seems an odd match for Fuller. Sure, he's done shows with a macabre focus before, but they've been comedies with supernatural/magic-realist elements.

 

[IndyJones]

Love Bryan Fuller's shows. Hate that they tend not to last.

 

[Broccoli]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

 

[Professor Zoom]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

And the thing is... it feels like an old idea... we've had 4 movies... and only one of them was really good. And Silence was SUCH a classic, and... I don't know.

It could be good, but, what a shadow to have to stand in.

 

[Goliath]

I actually think they got three good movies out of this character and concept. Though only one of them was truly great.

This could be good. It's the only period of Lecter's life that hasn't been explored, in print or on screen. And it was the most active period of his career, so to speak. If they handle it well, it would be interesting to watch their two stories intertwine.

Or, it could be really bad. Either way, I'd be willing to give it a try.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

Don't watch Dexter?

I just thought of the perfect guy for Hannibal: Wentworth Miller. He's already played the younger version of a character Anthony Hopkins played as an older man, he's proven he can be the charismatic lead in a TV series, he can do subtle/scary very well, and is currently between series.

For the other guy, oh I dunno. I'd like to see Nick Stahl in something.

 

[Trekker4747]

Isn't Brian Fuller the one who has a habit of coming up with great TV series ideas, writing the first few episodes and then leaving/getting fired leaving the series in less capable hands who manage to not live up to the standards set by Fuller and the series quickly degrades until it's canceled a season later?

Further more, isn't Hannibal Lecter that movie character that was introduced to the world like two decades ago and is only memorable due to a remarkable performance by a remarkable actor but beyond that isn't much more (Setting aside the books) as the sequel(s) that came afterwards were about as deep as water puddle on a kitchen counter?

Yeah.

Why is this new series idea exciting?

 

[Obiwanshinobi]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

Don't watch Dexter?

I just thought of the perfect guy for Hannibal: Wentworth Miller. He's already played the younger version of a character Anthony Hopkins played as an older man, he's proven he can be the charismatic lead in a TV series, he can do subtle/scary very well, and is currently between series.

For the other guy, oh I dunno. I'd like to see Nick Stahl in something.

What about the guy from Hannibal Rising?

 

[Starbreaker]

Anthony Hopkins should narrate.

 

[Harvey]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

Don't watch Dexter?

Sure, and the series has become a poster child for premises unsustainable on television. It hasn't been consistently good since the second season (and some might even quibble about that year), and has quite annoyingly been both re-treading old ground and delaying plot advancement in order to be a TV series and not something with a shorter run.

 

[Dream]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

Don't watch Dexter?

Dexter kills people guilty of murder. Hannibal eats good and evil people alike. I don't think they can be compared at all.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

In the thread preview all I saw was "Bryan Fuller making Hannibal..." and I was thinking historical Hannibal. I'd rather it had been personally.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

Don't watch Dexter?

Sure, and the series has become a poster child for premises unsustainable on television.

When I watched the first season, I figured the Dexter premise had about 4 or 5 good seasons in it. So far, there have been three good seasons and a couple meh ones. Eventually they'll get to the final season, which will probably be great because it will be the season when everything comes together. So that will be 4 good seasons, even if they drag it out to 12. That's about what I ever expected from the show.

I'd have been okay if the writers had planned out 5 kickass seasons instead of trying to drag it out further, and I think Hannibal could also have about 4 or 5 good seasons in it. Hard to say until we learn more specifics and see who they cast. Bad casting could screw the whole thing.

Fuller never bailed on Pushing Daisies. I'm not going to assume he's bailing on this show before it's even been greenlit. It's a bit early in the game for handwringing.

What a terrible idea for a TV series. I mean, I don't have any idea on how it could possibly be sustainable.

Don't watch Dexter?

Dexter kills people guilty of murder. Hannibal eats good and evil people alike. I don't think they can be compared at all.

I'm thinking that has to be sarcasm...?

If not, there are two main characters. The FBI profiler/patient might be the real protagonist, and that should provide a more relatable point of view and more diverse story options. For instance, Hannibal Lector doesn't need to be in every episode. They might simply be the FBI profiler's case of the week. The article includes very little information on the series, so there's no way to tell how restrictive or broad the premise is, and how many seasons it can comfortably encompass.

 

[Trekker4747]

Fuller never bailed on Pushing Daisies. I'm not going to assume he's bailing on this show before it's even been greenlit. It's a bit early in the game for handwringing.

Well, to be fair, he didn't have time to.

Okay, I concede that Bryan Fuller doesn't bail on his projects (I think I have him confused with someone else who usually sets up great TV series, leave early, and then goes off to create another one) though he did bail on DLM. But his TV projects haven't been entirely successful for one reason or another.

But I really don't see how a Hannibal Lecter series could sustain an audience. As noted above Dexter has an ounce or two of "ethics" to his killing (he only kills murderers) Hannibal is just an animalistic serial killer who eats his victims.

I don't see how he'd be nearly enough an interesting character to sustain an entire series as for a series to work the main character has to be likable on some level, even if he's a sociopath or a criminal. (See: Tony Soprano.)

I don't think Hannibal Lecter can pull that off and, again, he's not been an interesting character to watch even in movies since Silence of the Lambs, why would a TV series change that?

 

[Temis the Vorta]

It's easy - Lecter is the villain of the story, and the FBI agent is the protagonist and the person we sympathize with. He suspects out that Lecter is a serial killer but for whatever psychologically based reason, he can't bring himself to expose his crimes.

It's Dexter, but with Doakes as the protagonist, and also with Doakes having more psychological attachment to Dexter and not just being out to get him so that their push-pull relationship can last for more than just two seasons.

They can get 4 or 5 cable-length seasons out of that premise. And maybe they'll figure out more complications to toss in. The FBI agent might have other plotlines that have nothing to do with Lecter.

Or, if the writers are really good, they might be able to get away with having a sociopath like Lecter as a semi-protagonist, just because he's so funny and slick and the audience will like him. Tricky, but theoretically possible. And we have the "out" of the FBI profiler if Lecter makes us feel too creepy about ourselves.

 

[Trekker4747]

It's still a series based on a movie made 20 years ago and has had two critically unsuccessful sequels.

 

[Harvey]

It's Dexter, but with Doakes as the protagonist, and also with Doakes having more psychological attachment to Dexter and not just being out to get him so that their push-pull relationship can last for more than just two seasons.

They can get 4 or 5 cable-length seasons out of that premise. And maybe they'll figure out more complications to toss in. The FBI agent might have other plotlines that have nothing to do with Lecter.

4-5 seasons? Eh, that sounds like you're stretching things pretty thin to me. Sounds like a premise that could be carried out in a six-hour miniseries, if that.