Dino and Martha De Laurentiis are set to unite once again with Tarak Ben Ammar of Quinta Communications and British co-producers Chris Curling and Phil Robertson of Zephyr Films, to produce the highly anticipated Behind the Mask: Young Hannibal. Petr Moravec of Czech production company, Etic Films, will also join the fold for their first collaboration together. Best selling novelist Thomas Harris, who created and authored the world shattering series, has also written the screenplay, based on his highly anticipated upcoming novel, Behind the Mask.
This prequel follows the young Hannibal Lecter from his childhood in Lithuania to his teenage years in France and up to his time in America. 20-year old French actor, Gaspard Ulliel (A Very Long Engagement, Brotherhood of the Wolf) has been chosen to play the coveted role of the young Hannibal, the character brought to life by Anthony Hopkins with some of the most quoted and juicy lines in film history. Award-winning Chinese actress Gong Li will play Lady Murasaki, the woman who takes in the young Hannibal after his escape from an orphanage and unwittingly becomes the pawn in a revenge plot by Hannibal. Gong Li will next be seen in Memoirs of a Geisha for director Rob Marshall and is currently in production on Miami Vice directed by Michael Mann and co-starring Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx.
Completing the principal cast line-up is Rhys Ifans (Chromophobia, Vanity Fair, The Shipping News), Richard Brake (Batman Begins, Cold Mountain) and Kevin McKidd (Kingdom of Heaven, De-Lovely). Principal photography will begin on October 10th, 2005 in Prague. At the helm of this long awaited look at the heart and soul of Dr. Hannibal Lecter, will be British director and BAFTA nominee Peter Webber (Girl With A Pearl Earring, Men Only). Behind the Mask: Young Hannibal will bring the most irresistible and articulate villain of our time back to the big screen. Audiences will finally be introduced to the atrocities encountered in young Hannibal Lecter’s life that honed his particular appetite for evil.
Dino and Martha De Laurentiis first brought the complex character of Dr. Hannibal Lecter to life in 1985’s Manhunter, based on Harris’ psychological thrillers. De Laurentiis has since built one of the most unique franchises in movie history, with Lecter becoming the most infamous villain of our time. His creativity has garnered universal appeal sending international box-office figures soaring over the years with Hannibal ($351M+) and Red Dragon ($200M+). Silence of the Lambs, albeit not a De Laurentiis production, took an impressive $270M+ at the box office and won many Oscars.