Nearly 30 years after it became the last movie to win all five major Oscars, The Silence Of The Lambs is getting a sequel TV series.
CBS has handed out a series commitment for Clarice, a new series set in 1993, a year after the hit movie adaptation, exploring the untold story of FBI agent Clarice Starling, played by Jodie Foster in the movie.
The iconic serial killer Hannibal Lecter, played by Anthony Hopkins in the movie, is not expected to be featured in the series, according to Deadline.
Sequel series: Nearly 30 years after it became the last movie to win all five major Oscars, The Silence of the Lambs is getting a sequel TV series
No Hannibal: The iconic serial killer Hannibal Lecter, played by Anthony Hopkins in the movie, is not expected to be featured in the series, according to Deadline
The series will follow Starling as she returns to Washington D.C. to investigate serial killers and sexual predators while navigating the political landscape of the nation’s capital.
Alex Kurtzman (Lost) and Jenny Lumet (Star Trek: Discovery) wrote the pilot script and will executive produce.
While CBS isn’t giving it a straight-to-series order, the intention is to bring it to series, with the network to make its final decision after the pilot episode is filmed.
DC return: The series will follow Starling as she returns to Washington D.C. to investigate serial killers and sexual predators while navigating the political landscape of the nation’s capital
There is already a writers room established for the series, and the network is quite enthusiastic about the project.
The project will be produced by MGM, which retains the rights to the film adaptations, CBS Television Studios and Kurtzman’s Secret Hideout.
‘After more than 20 years of silence, we’re privileged to give voice to one of America’s most enduring heroes – Clarice Starling, Kurtzman and Lumet said in a statement.
Writers room: There is already a writers room established for the series, and the network is quite enthusiastic about the project
‘Clarice’s bravery and complexity have always lit the way, even as her personal story remained in the dark. But hers is the very story we need today: her struggle, her resilience, her victory. Her time is now, and always,’ they added.
The Silence of the Lambs was just the third movie in history to win the top five Oscars – Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), Best Actress (Foster), Best Director (Johnathan Demme), Best Adapted Screenplay (Ted Tally) and Best Picture.
Foster was asked to return for the 2001 sequel Hannibal, based on Thomas Harris’ sequel novel, but she refused and Julianne Moore was cast.
No return: Foster was asked to return for the 2001 sequel Hannibal, based on Thomas Harris’ sequel novel, but she refused and Julianne Moore was cast
MGM had previously tried to make a show about Clarice Starling in 2012, though that was a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs.
That series followed a young Clarice Starling after she graduates from the FBI academy, but the project never moved forward.
Both Kurtzman and Lumet created The Man Who Fell To Earth, which is set up at CBS All Access, and and they both produce Star Trek: Discovery.
Prequel: MGM had previously tried to make a show about Clarice Starling in 2012, though that was a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs
Young Clarice: That series followed a young Clarice Starling after she graduates from the FBI academy, but the project never moved forward