The only thing that could make watchingThe Silence of the Lambsany scarier is finding out Dr. Hannibal Lecter is right beside you!
SirAnthony Hopkinsopened up about a very memorable experience he had when the classic film was first released in 1991 during an episode of thePresent Companypodcast.
Asked whether he ever re-watches any of his films, the 81-year-old actor described a screening he once went to with actressRene Russoin Atlanta.
“I remember being in the cinema. I was in Atlanta doing a film calledFreejack,” he explained. “And Renee Russo said, ‘I want to go and see your film.’ ” Hopkins went on to recall Russo asking him to come along because she was “scared.”
Agreeing to attend the screening, Hopkins wore a “baseball cap and sunglasses” and remembered his costar grabbing his hand during the film during a suspenseful moment.
However, things went awry when a sudden thunderstorm interrupted the showing.
“All the power went out in the movie theater,” Hopkins recalled. “And people got up to go to the bathroom and all that, and Renee got up and she heard someone say, ‘it’s probably Hannibal Lecter.’ ”
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
The actor, who later won an Academy Award for his work in the film, explained that at the time he had “just taken off my sunglasses and looked at him” which had the moviegoer completely spooked.
Hopkins went on to say that he “didn’t mean” to prank the audience, as he looked back fondly on the memory.
The British actor, who plays Pope Benedict XVI in the upcoming Netflix filmThe Two Popes, recently opened up about the famous role in the Dec/Jan issue ofAARP the Magazine, saying that he immediately recognized Dr. Hannibal Lecter wouldn’t be just another character.
“I have an instinct for those kinds of people. They’re narcissists. I don’t know if that’s in me — I just understand them. And I’ll never escape from that guy,” he said of the role. “When I started readingThe Silence of the Lambsscript, I told my agent, ‘This is the part of a lifetime.’ It changed everything for me.”
The Two Popesbegins streaming on Netflix Nov. 27.
source: people.com
