Anthony Hopkins stands as one of Hollywood’s finest actors, his illustrious career serving as a testament to his remarkable talent. Even now, over three decades later, his 1991 masterpiece The Silence of the Lambs remains a cornerstone of his legacy. The film garnered widespread critical acclaim, solidifying Hopkins’ status as a cinematic icon and earning him his inaugural Academy Award for Best Actor.
Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lecter truly made fans feel they were in danger while staring into his cold, blue eyes. Hopkins’ dedication to method acting won him tons of acclaim, but it also resulted in Martha Stewart ending her relationship with him as she was far too terrified.
Martha Stewart Broke Up With Anthony Hopkins After She Became Scared of His Hannibal Lecter Character
Martha Stewart decided to end her brief relationship with Anthony Hopkins because she found it difficult to separate him from his iconic role as Hannibal Lecter. During a past interview on shock jock Howard Stern’s radio show, Stewart confessed that watching The Silence of the Lambs while they were dating made her rethink their relationship.
”I really liked him, but he was… intimidating. I was considering inviting him to my beautiful home in Maine, but after watching that movie again, I had to reconsider. Can you imagine someone like that sitting in your lovely dining room in Maine?”
Despite Anthony Hopkins’ Academy Award-winning performance as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, Stewart was simply unable to shake her unease.
She concluded,
“I might have had a wonderful relationship with Anthony Hopkins, but I just couldn’t overlook the association with Lecter.”
While some may feel Martha Stewart wasted her relationship with Anthony Hopkins by being unable to separate the actor from the character, others can empathize with what she truly felt.
Anthony Hopkins Shocked Director Jonathan Demme With His Oscar For ‘Best Actor’
Jonathan Demme, despite his pride in the film and the exceptional performances delivered by the cast, initially didn’t perceive it as an “Oscar movie.” In his view, The Silence of the Lambs was a thriller centered around a young woman’s efforts to rescue another young woman. However, to his surprise, the film received Oscar nominations.
Jonathan Demme found himself wrestling with the notion of submitting Anthony Hopkins for Best Supporting Actor due to the actor’s limited screen time in The Silence of the Lambs, which garnered unexpected Oscar nominations. Reflecting on this in an interview with Deadline, Demme remarked,
“The nominations caught us all by surprise. We had anticipated other films winning the awards, and the only significant discussion we had was about the possibility of categorizing Anthony Hopkins as a Best Supporting Actor due to his relatively brief appearance on screen, less than 20 minutes.”
Continuing, Demme revealed how he discussed this impulse with his team and expressed how the outcome had left him feeling “freaked out.”
“I just said, ‘Look, you guys, let’s have as much fun as we can with this. That’s not a supporting performance. It’s an outstanding achievement in a leading role by a male. So let’s go for it.’ We all went out for the Academy Awards, and then…we started winning. I was just completely freaked out.”
With that said, Demme’s reaction is understandable, especially considering his initial consideration of nominating Anthony Hopkins for the Supporting Actor award. Nevertheless, Hopkins truly became a global icon thanks to that movie and that is what truly matters in the end.
