NBC’s Hannibal Finally Coming to Netflix

Sharpen your Porsche Chroma Knives and iron your finest linen napkins… NBC’s Hannibal is returning to Netflix. Fans in the US will be able to stream all episodes of Bryan Fuller’s gloriously chic serial killer show from Friday June 5^th. (It’s already available to stream on Netflix UK.)

Cut off by NBC in its prime in 2015, Hannibal starred Mads Mikkelsen as the aesthete gourmand with a taste for human flesh from Thomas Harris’ book series. (Though at one stage, fact fans, David Tennant was in the running for the role.)

Mikkelsen was joined by Hugh Dancy as FBI profiler Will Graham, and later, by Gillian Anderson as psychiatrist Bedelia Du Maurier – a character invented for the world of the TV show but who slots right into its grisly yet glamorous universe.

Fuller’s series ran for three seasons from 2013 to 2015, when it was cancelled by NBC, prompting a vocal fan protest. Production on the final season became troubled when budgetary cuts were made. Back in May 2015, Fuller explained to Den of Geek what was behind the delay in the arrival of season three:

“Essentially what happened is that the show, which was only able to be produced in the first two years with eight days of main unit shooting and a couple of days of second unit shooting and a considerable amount of overtime, was then reduced to seven days of shooting, no second unit and no overtime. It was horribly misguided and not particularly smart and the shows were incomplete.”

The relationship never recovered, and to fan and cast disappointment, season four never arrived. As recently as August 2017, Fuller announced that restrictions on a potential revival had then passed the two-year contractual halt, and that he had a story ready and waiting. To date though, a broadcaster or streaming service has yet to be found. If the Netflix buy proves a massive hit for the streamer though, who knows what the future might bring?

It’s solace to fans that at least season three had a proper, satisfying ending – good to know if you’re planning to tune in for the first time come the Netflix arrival date. With major spoilers, here’s why we thought the season three finale was the perfect goodbye.

Fans of Harris’ books might also like to know that CBS has ordered to series new show Clarice, based on the experiences of the FBI’s Clarice Starling one year on from Silence of the Lambs. Fuller’s show never had the rights to the character of Clarice, memorably played by Jodie Foster in Jonathan Demme’s 1991 film, so she never appeared in its 39 episodes.

Have your checked suits dry-cleaned, prepare a selection of themed snacks and let the rewatch countdown begin. Eat the rude!

Hannibal arrives on Netflix in the US on Friday June 5^th.