Villains Unveiled
A Taste For Terror
Welcome to every dark alley, evil lair, and ominous crypt - this is Villains Unveiled, a nonfiction history series about fiction's greatest villains. Learn their dark secrets and uncover the real life inspirations behind these bad guys and wicked women.
(Spoilers ahead. The devilish doctor has been cooking for a while, but don’t spill the fava beans for anyone who hasn’t read about or seen him yet.)
Carving out of the mind of American novelist Thomas Harris, Dr. Hannibal Lecter has been an intriguing - and creepy - presence in pop culture for decades. Hannibal the Cannibal may be a fictional psychopath, but his influences come from ghastly killers who are all too real. A psychological marksman, Hannibal knows how to dissect the human brain in more ways than one.
The doctor’s dark origins begin in a smaller role in the 1981 novel Red Dragon, named after the William Blake painting the book’s main antagonist was obsessed with. In the thriller, retired FBI profiler Will Graham is called back into the field to investigate the murders committed by a mysterious serial killer known as the “Tooth Fairy.” In order to get inside the mind of a madman, Graham decides against his better judgment to seek the advice of Hannibal Lecter. Graham was the one who caught Hannibal, sending the cannibalistic killer to spend his days in a maximum security prison. Reluctantly, Graham confesses to the disgraced psychiatrist that he has reached a dead end with the Tooth Fairy. Sophisticated and enigmatic, Hannibal provides his own brand of strange clues as a way to peek inside the Tooth Fairy’s psyche. Graham must contend with Hannibal’s mind games as he sifts through the devious doctor’s manipulative machinations. Even confined to a cell, Hannibal is able to use his superior intellect and cunning use of language to lead Graham down a demented path. Ultimately, Hannibal provides enough insight to assist in the capture of the Tooth Fairy. Despite contributing to the other murderer’s downfall, Hannibal remains trapped in prison, haunting the memories of anyone with the misfortune of meeting him.
As a way to better understand the personalities of such twisted individuals, Thomas Harris researched his characters by visiting the Behavioral Science Unit in Quantico, Virginia during the later half of the 1970s. It was there that Harris spoke with FBI agents who discussed serial killers and profiling. Harris would later look after his ill father in a secluded house in a rural area. The months of isolation not only gave Harris time to write the book that would become Red Dragon, but also inspired locations where the fictional killer would strike. Cut off from society, Harris no doubt was easily able to conjure up a dangerous villain like Hannibal Lecter.
Prior to his capture, Hannibal was a respected forensic psychiatrist - an intelligent and dignified expert in his field, held in high regard by his peers. As the lore goes, the cultured Hannibal would eat his victims, especially delighting in dining on rude people. Boorish people exhibiting poor manners would find themselves to be on Hannibal’s menu. His preference for preparing the extremely rude as his meals could perhaps present Hannibal in a somewhat forgiving light. If he only ate those who “deserved” it, then maybe he isn’t that bad? This complexity added to the overall curiosity of Hannibal as a character. Above it all, though, his lethal actions served as a warning of how reprehensible he truly is.
Hannibal’s perplexing personality derived from real life lunatics. Early in his career, Thomas Harris traveled to Mexico to interview an American mental patient for a story. As a writer for Argosy magazine in the 1960s, Harris was no stranger to stories of adventure and danger, but perhaps he wasn’t prepared for a macabre meeting with convicted killer Dykes Askew Simmons. Detained in the Mexican prison, Simmons’ crimes included the murders of three local siblings. While serving his sentence, Simmons had been treated by a so-called “prison doctor,” a man who was referred to as “Dr. Salazar.” Salazar had once treated Simmons’ injuries after being shot by a prison guard, and was said to have skillfully removed the bullets from Simmons’ wounds.
Salazar provided more than medical know-how - he also advised the visiting Harris on how to interview Simmons, referencing how the inmate was highly insecure about his appearance. Salazar’s insights led to his own curious and detailed questions about what Harris had seen of Simmons’ victims. Described as an elegant, lithe man with reddish hair, the stoic Doctor Salazar was revealed to Harris by a guard as a fellow prisoner.
The “doctor” was believed to be Alfredo Ballí Treviño, the last criminal to receive the death penalty in Mexico in 1959. A former physician from an affluent family, Treviño had been accused of murdering a colleague. After a dispute, Treviño used a chloroform-soaked towel to knock out his victim. The sinister surgeon would later drain his victim’s blood, and used his surgical skill to neatly dismember the body with a scalpel. He would bury a small box of body parts on the grounds of a farm owned by his aunt. When a farm hand unexpectedly discovered the remains, Treviño was suspected and did not deny his charges. In a chilling twist of events, Treviño was released in 1981, the year Red Dragon was released, and he resumed working as a physician until his death in 2009.
Hannibal Lecter’s beginnings would be explored in the fourth novel featuring his character, “Hannibal Rising” in 2006. A descendant of Lithuanian nobility, Hannibal also hails from noble Italian families. Regality flows in Hannibal’s blood, but something within his monstrous mind evolved him into a ritualistic serial killer. As a child, he witnessed his beloved sister killed and cannibalized by a group of deserting soldiers. Young Hannibal’s troubled childhood continues to suffer hardships by being sent off to live with relatives, one of whom abruptly dies. The sudden death of Hannibal’s uncle sends him across France where he discovers a talent for studying medicine. Hannibal’s developing intellect adds to his meticulous methods of murder.
Was there always a dark passenger of sorts lurking in Hannibal’s subconscious, waiting to escape? Or was the traumatic murder of his sister the catalyst to his mind being forever warped? In “The Silence of the Lambs,” Clarice Starling contends with Hannibal’s labyrinthine head games when she goes to him for help catching a serial killer. In the 1988 horror novel, Thomas Harris pits Starling as the young FBI trainee against the figurative wolves as she hunts the killer known as Buffalo Bill.
Starling is sent to interview Hannibal Lecter to assist with the capture of Buffalo Bill. Repeated visits to Hannibal causes him and Starling to develop a bizarre bond of sorts. While Starling pursues Buffalo Bill, Hannibal escapes confinement in a bloody escape. Hannibal corresponds with Starling, congratulating her in taking down Buffalo Bill. Hannibal’s fugitive state leads to the events of the 1999 novel, “Hannibal.”
In the sequel book, the FBI’s continued pursuit of Hannibal is influenced by one of Hannibal’s victims, Mason Verger. Verger, a wealthy, sadistic pedophile, was left scarred and disfigured from his encounter with Hannibal. Starling returns only to be used as bait to lure Hannibal into a vulnerable position. Verger’s attempts at revenge backfire, eventually leading to his grisly demise. In a disturbing turn of events, Hannibal aids Starling in a grim series of treatments to free her of years of childhood trauma - the sessions ultimately lead to Starling and Hannibal having an intimate relationship.
Live action adaptations have, naturally, strayed in certain ways from the original source material. In the 1986 film “Manhunter,” Michael Mann directed this decidedly 1980’s version of Red Dragon. Brian Cox played the incarcerated “Hannibal Lektor,” and William Petersen took on the role of Will Graham. 1991 brought us the now famous portrayal of Hannibal Lecter by Sir Anthony Hopkins in “The Silence of the Lambs,” also starring Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling. Directed by Jonathan Demme, the hit suspense thriller also featured Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill. Winning the Academy Award for Best Picture for that year, this rendition of Hannibal has been quoted, parodied, and ultimately celebrated to this day as a cinematic masterpiece.
A decade later saw the sequel, “Hannibal,” hit the silver screen. Ridley Scott’s 2001’s reprisal of Hopkins as escapee Dr. Lecter did not include Foster’s return. Julianne Moore stepped in as Starling this time, and the film’s ending altered in various ways - perhaps most strikingly absent was the odd romance between Hannibal and Clarice. Their weird bond remained, but other changes, specifically involving Mason Verger, left book fans with mixed feelings about an otherwise enjoyable film.
A year later brought a proper adaptation of Red Dragon to theaters. The 2002 Brett Ratner directed horror/crime thriller once again showcased Hopkins’ peerless portrayal of Lecter. Edward Norton played Graham this time around, with Ralph Fiennes providing a bone-chilling performance as Francis Dolarhyde aka the Tooth Fairy.
Director Peter Webber brought the 2007 version of Hannibal Rising, a prequel about young Lecter’s tumultuous upbringing. Gaspard Ulliel took on the mantle of the deranged doctor in this depiction of Hannibal as a young man in Lithuania and other parts of Europe.
Mads Mikkelsen played the television series version of Hannibal for three seasons starting in 2013. Largely based on the events of Red Dragon, the show would eventually delve into Mason Verger-related stories that went into more book-accurate details.
In 2021, the Paramount+ streaming platform produced one season of a sort of spinoff show, Clarice, featuring stories focused on Agent Starling. Due to complicated rights issues, the character of Hannibal Lecter could not appear.
No matter who dons the notorious protective face mask or stands with perfect posture behind a thick plate of glass, Hannibal Lecter will remain a horror icon because of his unique and terrifying nature. Lecter is one of the most fascinating characters ever conceived, and would likely make for an intriguing dinner guest - unless, of course, he’s having you for the main course.
Villain Ranking: DIABOLICAL
Hannibal Lecter is undoubtedly a genius but what keeps him from going full evil is a piece of him, deep down inside, that has a twisted sense of morality. Not a weakness by any means, but Hannibal has soft spots for certain conversational sparring partners. If the discussion is kept interesting, then you may be safe… maybe.
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