Hannibal: Discussion Thread

[DRW50]

A lot of cable material tends to be overhyped in terms of how daring it is - or if it is daring, it's often seen as loathsome and disgusting. Being on a network made Hannibal seem like an unfairly treated darling, something to fight for. Being stuck on the Duck Dynasty channel or on increasingly stagnant HBO, I tend to question if it would still be on the air.

As for Dancy, I've always thought he didn't have the range or depth for a role like this. Too many saw him as a woobie figure, when that was never the point of the role. When Will himself became darker and people couldn't keep squealing Somebody Help Will Graham!!! every week, a lot of the fan passion seemed to fade (well that and the mistakes the show made in season 2).

[Vee]

I watched the first season of Hannibal entirely on Amazon. It had nothing to do with the network; that was completely incidental. Most people thought the network was just a very bizarre choice for such a show, and it was. It was something the audience tolerated. Its presence did not make Hannibal what it is.

[DRW50]

I'm not talking about someone saying, "This is on NBC, I love NBC!!!!" I'm talking about the idea of a show being on a major network meaning you have to fight for it, which is not as common when a show is on other platforms or cable channels. Add in that Fuller was a martyr to many because major networks had canceled his other shows, and it did help make fans more passionate, until a lot of people got tired of it in season 2, anyway.

[Vee]

I never liked any of Bryan Fuller's other shows, frankly. I thought they were all suffocatingly twee. I wasn't expecting much from Hannibal - I thought it would be some schlocky procedural with a movie brand attached - but it blew me away from the first scene. It's a quantum shift in terms of television. And I will disagree with you, because the very active fandom and audience is definitely still there. Sometimes too much so for my tastes, but they are loud and proud and very involved.

In any event, Fuller appears to be behind continuing the show, so I'm expecting to hear something soon, hopefully. I hope that wherever you are in viewing the show, you will come watch Season 3.

[Vee]

Netflix is actively engaging with Hannibal fans tonight. Looks like that may be a major possibility, although I was under the impression Amazon might have first dibs.

[YRBB]

Both Netflix and Amazon have passed on continuing the show.

Netflix presumably because Amazon would still have the streaming rights to Seasons 1-3. As for Amazon turning it down....

[Vee]

Netflix wanted it badly, but Amazon ransomed the rights very high due to their ongoing feud and wouldn't give up the prior seasons. Amazon, meanwhile, a) has issues with producing existing programming as opposed to their originals and wanted them to start production immediately, which is logistically impossible given Fuller's other show. And now, because of that Amazon deal, fewer other outlets are able to take it. So given all the rights issues with the show's existing deal, what would normally have been an easy pick-up has become caught between a rock and a hard place.

I think the show will continue, either now or later, because it's consistently one of the most incredible things I've ever seen on television and everyone involved is committed to it. Fuller is talking about doing a feature or several features for cable or streaming or something, which I have no doubt he could do, but I'd rather see another full series. In any event, nothing is official yet so we'll see.

[slick jones]

Just finished the finale. Visually stunning and well written and acted. 

[YRBB]

According to Bryan Fuller, the show is not dead dead yet. There are more talks to be had, but not until August 2017. 

[Vee]

I'm sure it'll come back in some form eventually - a miniseries, a movie. The whole crew still wants to do it and it had many suitors (Netflix, Amazon), but the immediate pick-up was stymied by schedules and by the complexities of the show's foreign ownership which blocked those opportunities.

[YRBB]

 

And now it's August 2017, and the conversations for a revival have begun.

 

I'm fairly certain it will come back. It'd be great to see Will and Hannibal as murder husbands somewhere (if that's indeed the way it goes!). Although it might be 2 to 3 years before it ever comes to fruition. 

[te.]

From what I understand it was all about waiting for the rights to expire - I guess it was licensed for five years originally and assuming they didn't extend it it's now up for grabs. Now begins trying to get someone interested and then getting the cast together... yeah at least two years, if not three. I guess they could do a time-jump in the series itself.