Anthony Hopkins has spoken out about his acclaimed role as Hannibal Lecter and admitted that he had regrets about reprising the iconic role.
Speaking to TheWrap, Hopkins admitted that playing the cannabal doctor, which won him an academy award for The Silence of the Lambs, was “a mistake” when he went back for the second and third films.
He said, “I did it once. Made the mistake of doing it twice- three times.” He did say that the first film was “good.”
The second film, Hannibal, came out in 2001 while the prequel Red Dragon was released a year later. Hopkins was asked if he would play Lecter in later films, but he only responded, “No.”
Hopkins spoke about the role after he took part in a panel for the Television Critics Association to promote his Starz film The Dresser.
The role of Hannibal Lecter also came to television, with Mads Mikkelsen playing the title role in Hannibal for three seasons before its cancellation.