‘Hannibal’: What Shocked Showrunner Bryan Fuller The Most About The Finale?
With Hannibal’s cancellation from network television and the future of the show still up in the air, fans of the show haven’t given up hope that Hannibal will somehow make a comeback. Once Amazon passed on reviving the series, for many reasons, other options were discussed by “Fannibals,” such as a feature film or shorter seasons with longer episodes as is done with BBC’s Sherlock.
In an interview with Digital Spy, Hannibal showrunner Bryan Fuller talked about the finale and looked back on Hannibal from the beginning. There is one part of Fuller’s interview that “Fannibals” might disagree with, however.
“The way [the series] ended, I’m hoping that we’re in a place where it could lie fallow for a year or two, and then we could return to the story in some unexpected way if there was appetite for it. Right now, it seems that everyone is willing to let it lie for the time being.”
This is not to say a future for Hannibal does not exist. With a note of hope, Fuller added, “…I’ll wait and see how the fates decide if Martha’s able to raise money for a film – I’m waiting for instructions from above.”
While there are “Fannibals” who are no doubt satisfied with the way Hannibal ended, there are yet more who want Hannibal to come back. Stop by Twitter anytime, and you’ll find tweets from fans pleading for Hannibal to return in some format.
Just a friendly reminder that despite the fact that we LOVED S3 finale WE ARE FAR FROM BEING SATISFIED, Bryan! #hannibal #SaveHannibal
— Alexis (@integral87) September 6, 2015
Now to prove Bryan wrong we have to trend three times a week and then send him screencaps from Twitter stats! #Hannibal #savehannibal
— Alexis (@integral87) September 6, 2015
@BryanFuller promise you’ll never stop looking for Hannibal’s new home, the finale was absolutely beautiful #Hannibal #SaveHannibal
— Eve Maureen O’Dea (@EveMaureen) August 29, 2015
I DEMAND A FOURTH SEASON. I NEED IT LIKE AIR. #SaveHannibal
— m.s. • d.h. (@fyhobrien) August 29, 2015
But what’s the one aspect of the Hannibal finale that shocked Bryan Fuller the most? He divulged the ending of Hannibal was interpreted in a way he found surprising.
“I was surprised that everybody, or at least a faction of the audience, assumed that Bedelia chopped off her own leg and was cooking it! [laughs] For me, that was: Hannibal survived. The whole point of that tag is to suggest that Hannibal has lived, and there’s three place settings at the dinner table, so interpret that how you will.”
As noted by Crave Online, there were those who doubted Hannibal could work on NBC. With the material necessary to tell Dr. Hannibal Lecter’s story, the question was how could Hannibal work around the censors? Hannibal not only accepted the challenge, but also accomplished a new way of storytelling on television, gaining fans from around the world.
The decision to cast Mads Mikkelsen as Hannibal and Hugh Dancy as Will Graham could not have been a better one. The two actors shared a chemistry on Hannibal that allowed for their characters’ stories to evolve in ways even Fuller couldn’t have predicted in the beginning.
Of course, Hannibal couldn’t have worked without the rest of the talented cast, including Laurence Fishburne, Caroline Dhavernas, Gillian Anderson, Scott Thompson, Aaron Abrams, and Richard Armitage.
Were you satisfied with Hannibal’s finale, or are you anxiously waiting for more Hannibal?
[Image via Twitter]
