Brian Raftery

On our latest, @brianraftery.bsky.social joins to dissect the B-Sides of Anthony Hopkins! From JUGGERNAUT (a banger!) to INSTINCT (a movie that exists!) we cover a wide range, and also spotlight some of his most memorable roles: bit.ly/4ua6Qp8

We discuss the career of Anthony Hopkins and four of his most underseen films with @brianraftery.bsky.social, author of the new book Hannibal Lecter: A Life.

Listen to @tfsbside.bsky.social: thefilmstage.com/the-b-sides-...

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Dark Horizons?

Looking forward to my event tonight with @brianraftery.bsky.social to celebrate his fantastic new book: HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE.

Come join us at Exile in Bookville at 7:00 tonight! I’m naturally preparing with some fave beans and a nice chianti.

Original 1986 theatrical poster for Manhunter, in blue, gray, yellow, orange, and black, colors like a silk screen. Star William L Petersen is at the top, in pensive close-up, and right below it, his silhouette can be seen looming in the doorway of a dark room, holding a flashlight.

Dallas-FW! Manhunter screens Fri Feb 13 at Texas Theatre (@texastheatre.bsky.social) . Downstairs theater, INCREDIBLE sound. I'm hosting it & talking with guest @brianraftery.bsky.social, who'll sign copies of his new book Hannibal Lecter: A Life afterward. TIX: thetexastheatre.com/film/manhunt...

The secret history of how Hannibal Lecter won the Oscars in a ‘Lamb’-slide This exclusive excerpt from Hannibal Lecter: A Life reveals the untold backstory of Silence of the Lambs' record romp at the 1992 Academy Awards.

One more HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE excerpt to share, this time from @goldderby.com: A behind-the-scenes look at the night SILENCE OF THE LAMBS devoured the Oscars: tinyurl.com/yzswzf3c

How Thomas Harris ‘Found’ His Iconic Serial Killer, Hannibal Lecter On afternoon in September 1979, Linton Weeks was working at Volume One bookstore in Clarksdale, Mississippi, not far from Harris’s home-town of Rich, when a familiar-looking customer came through t…

At @crimereads.bsky.social, I dig into how Thomas Harris created Lecter in the first place: tinyurl.com/4e59athh

Hannibal Lecter seized the imagination. Clarice Starling shifted it. - The Boston Globe Thirty-five years later, Jodie Foster's FBI agent in "The Silence of the Lambs" looks like a precursor to our true crime era.

And at @bostonglobe.com, I looked at some of the real-life female FBI agents who influenced Clarice Starling both on- and off-screen: tinyurl.com/ycxhz8us

When Hannibal Lecter Took Over - Longreads With "The Silence of the Lambs" hitting theaters, Orion wanted a hit. They didn't anticipate an antihero.

For @longreads.com, I looked at the many ways Lecter took over the culture in the wake of the success of SILENCE OF THE LAMBS: tinyurl.com/2wn9akxz

He’s One of Our Greatest Actors. He Thought His Career Was Over—Until He Got One Delicious Role. To finally achieve his dream of movie stardom, Anthony Hopkins had to become his own nightmare.

And here's a look at how Anthony Hopkins created his version of Lecter, from @Slate: tinyurl.com/uz7kvz

How Hannibal Lecter Made His Film Debut in ‘Manhunter’ In an excerpt from his new book, ‘Hannibal Lecter: A Life,’ Brian Raftery chronicles Michael Mann’s effort to bring the iconic serial killer to the screen

It's the publication day for my new book, HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE--a reported look at the creation and impact of one of pop-culture's greatest characters. If you want a sneak peek, here are a few excerpts. First off: The making of MANHUNTER, from @the-ringer.bsky.social: rb.gy/geje11

On Tuesday, the incredible @brianraftery.bsky.social joins us for a discussion about HANNIBAL and his book HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE!

Raftery’s writing and podcasting are superb. Pre-order his book: www.simonandschuster.com/books/Hannib...

Subscribe to NA2001MP: youtube.com/@notanother2...

When Hannibal Lecter Took Over - Longreads With "The Silence of the Lambs" hitting theaters, Orion wanted a hit. They didn't anticipate an antihero.

The first excerpt for HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE is up today on @longreads.com! It digs into the mania that greeted The Silence of the Lambs" on opening weekend in 1991--and looks at how and why Hannibal Lecter instantly became America's most beloved bad guy: shorturl.at/8joEz

Hey Chicago! If you're free on February 12th, join me and @gillianflynn.bsky.social for a discussion about HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE at Exile in Bookville. Register for FREE here: tinyurl.com/46f22zws

Hannibal Lecter Drawing from exclusive interviews and previously unseen archival materials, this one-of-its-kind biography of Hannibal Lecter documents the canniba...

The result is a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most popular novels, films and TV episodes of the last forty-plus years--as well as a history of the modern true crime movement. If that sounds like something you might like, you can pre-order the book here: shorturl.at/70zJM

HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE is the result of years of research. I dug into Jonathan Demme's private archives; spoke with numerous FBI agents who helped inspire the Lecter books; and interviewed such filmmakers as Michael Mann and Ted Tally.

The book cover for HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE, by Brian Raftery

Very excited to share the cover for my next book, HANNIBAL LECTER: A LIFE, coming in February from Simon & Schuster! It's about how Thomas Harris created one of the most beloved bad guys of all time, and a look at the making of such hits as THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, MANHUNTER, and NBC's HANNIBAL.

Hannibal Lecter: A Life Review - The Making of a Monster Hannibal Lecter: A Life is a fascinating deep dive into the evolution of Hannibal Lecter and his rise to fame in the horror genre.

Hannibal Lecter: A Life is a fascinating deep dive into the evolution of Hannibal Lecter and his rise to fame in the horror genre.

@brianraftery.bsky.social

For @nytimes.com, I wrote about music-biz veteran George Drakoulias, who went from producing records for Tom Petty and the Jayhawks to being the music supervisor on such hits as "Severance" and "Barbie." Gift link here: shorturl.at/nLc8j

The final episode of MISSION ACCOMPLISHED goes behind the scenes of THE HURT LOCKER and IRON MAN--two films that, together, close out the George W. Bush years with a bang: shorturl.at/60sR6

In episode five of MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, we go behind the scenes of the Coen brothers' NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, and Oliver Stone's W--two movies that capture the grim mood of George W. Bush's final years in office: shorturl.at/0RzQf

4. ‘Michael Clayton’ and ‘Chop Shop’ | Mission Accomplished The Big Picture · Episode

In episode four of MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, we look at the making of MICHAEL CLAYTON and CHOP SHOP--two great films about the various economic, emotional and ethical recessions of the George W. Bush years: shorturl.at/RHX2k

3: ‘Anchorman’ and ‘Zodiac’ | Mission Accomplished The Big Picture · Episode

Episode three of MISSION ACCOMPLISHED goes behind the scenes of ANCHORMAN and ZODIAC--a pair of Bush-era films about living in a glass case of emotion: shorturl.at/rmMh5

2. ‘25th Hour’ and ‘The Manchurian Candidate’ | Mission Accomplished The Big Picture · Episode

Episode two of MISSION ACCOMPLISHED looks at the the making of Spike Lee's 25TH HOUR and Jonathan Demme's remake of THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE--two films that captured the confusion and anger of post-9/11 America: shorturl.at/nk7L7

1. ‘Bring It On’ and ‘Donnie Darko’ | Mission Accomplished The Big Picture · Episode

The first episode of MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, my new Ringer podcast about how the George W. Bush era changed Hollywood, is out today! Episode one looks at the making of two very different films about early-2000s teen life: BRING IT ON and DONNIE DARKO: shorturl.at/FSXhE

My next podcast for The Ringer launches Aug. 12th! MISSION ACCOMPLISHED examines the making of 12 great 2000s movies, and chronicles how Hollywood and America changed during the Bush years. Expect new filmmaker interviews + fun behind-the-scenes tales + plenty of early-21st century lunacy.

(Also: It's wild to me that this wound up running in the NYTimes--as a kid, I used to monitor the sales charts for these collections in the Book Review every Sunday)

Remembering When ‘the World Really Made Sense’ on the Comics Pages (Gift Article) Wildly popular strips like “Bloom County,” “Calvin and Hobbes,” “Cathy,” “The Far Side” “and “Doonesbury” peaked in the 1980s, but they left their mark.

For @nytimes, I wrote about the peak era of the daily comic strip--a time when newspapers were bursting with blockbusters like 'Bloom County, 'Cathy,' 'Calvin & Hobbes,' 'The Far Side,' and other beloved hits (gift link below): www.nytimes.com/2024/12/23/b...

1. The World Will Be Full of Fear | The Hollywood Hack The Big Picture · Episode

This month marks the 10-year anniversary of the Sony Hack--a seismic event that impacted showbiz, politics, the media, and the tech world. I spoke with many key players for THE HOLLYWOOD HACK, a podcast produced earlier this year by The Ringer and Spotify. Here's episode one: tinyurl.com/4e858hty