35 years on, Jonathan Demme’s The Silence of the Lambs got inside our minds in a way few other thrillers have before or since. The tale of FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) enlisting the help of imprisoned serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) to catch another murderer would see both actors win Oscars for their performances, and the movie itself win Best Picture — making it the only horror movie to snag the industry-topping award.

For fans of the movie, it’s difficult to imagine anyone else in those iconic roles, but Foster was far from the first choice for Clarice. Director Demme originally preferred Michelle Pfeiffer for the part. That change would have made the film an entirely different prospect, and presents a Sliding Doors moment for a Hollywood classic.

Michelle Pfeiffer was First Choice for Clarice Starling… While Jodie Foster was Last

While Demme tried to sell Pfeiffer on the role, Foster had campaigned to be cast as Clarice, and producers were eager to cast her given she was riding high from an Oscar win for her performance in The Accused. Demme, however, wasn’t convinced.

“She was just like this person, this normal person,” the director said, reflecting back on his thoughts about Foster during the casting process in a 2015 on-stage discussion at Austin Film Festival. Foster sought him out because she was a fan of the character of Clarice from the book, but Demme recalled thinking “I wouldn’t believe Jodie Foster in that part.” Demme then approached Meg Ryan, who he said was “slightly offended” by the offer. He then became passionate about casting a pre-fame Laura Dern, but the studio insisted that he take a second look at Foster. “I met Jodie again and was no more taken with her at all,” he remembered, but her passion for the role and the studio’s interest in her eventually convinced him. After they began work on the film, Demme said, he “fell madly in love with her, and she did what she did, and she embodied all that fierce [energy].”

Audiences fell in love too, making Silence of the Lambs the fourth-highest-grossing film of 1991 in the US. Still, many fans speculate what might have happened had Demme got his way.

Michelle Pfeiffer Would Have Brought Glamour, but Not Grit

Image via Orion

In a short amount of time, Pfeiffer became one of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood, thanks to hits like Scarface, Ladyhawke, and The Witches of Eastwick. Her star power was not in dispute, but she would have brought a different energy to the role of Clarice Starling. Pfeiffer was glamorous, charismatic, and stood out in the frame. These are all excellent qualities for a movie star — but not for this particular role.

Foster made Clarice humble but determined – an intelligent and fiercely ambitious young woman pushing against the tide as she sought to make it in an industry dominated by men. She dressed soberly, as pointed out by Lecter as he taunts her for her “cheap shoes” and “little taste.” She wasn’t there to turn heads, but to do her job, suppressing the vulnerabilities that Lecter would become so interested in.

Pfeiffer was capable of gritty performances – in 1992’s Batman Returns, she turned the character of Selina Kyle/Catwoman into a fascinating howl of female rage, while three years later she would tangle with troubled youths in Dangerous Minds. However, her presence would have been much larger than Foster’s calm, deliberate portrayal.And in a 2021 interview with The New Yorker, Pfeiffer revealed that she had her own reasons for passing on the part, saying“The thing I most regret is missing the opportunity to do another film with Jonathan [Demme].” But, she noted, she didn’t sign on to play Clairce because “It was that evil won in the end, that at the end of that film evil ruled out. I was uncomfortable with that ending. I didn’t want to put that out into the world.”

Foster’s ‘Hannibal’ Replacement Would Struggle to Reach the Same Heights

Ten years later, Hopkins would don the mask once more in the sequel Hannibal. Foster would not return, with reports at the time stating she felt the script gave Starling “negative attributes” that would “betray” the original character. Julianne Moore, a celebrated actor who had won plaudits for her performances in Magnolia and Boogie Nights, was brought in to replace her. This portrayal was harder and less careful, reflecting Starling’s decade of experience since the first film. She no longer smiled in the face of institutionalized sexism, and showed an interesting bond with the returning Hopkins.

Good as it was, it never quite touched the pinnacle that Foster would reach. Some actors were meant for certain roles, and Foster’s take on Clarice Starling was a game changer not just for the film, but for Hollywood in general. Female investigator characters for generations to come would owe something to that performance – The X-Files creator Chris Carter would admit she influenced the character of Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) – and it remains a signature role in Foster’s illustrious filmography.

Sometimes, the biggest name isn’t always the best. Michelle Pfeiffer would have brought presence and personality to the role of Clarice Starling. However, it’s hard to see her embody her in the same way that Jodie Foster did. It was confirmation of the brilliance of the actor, whose performance echoes in the genre to this day like the screaming of the lambs.

Release Date

February 14, 1991

Runtime

119 minutes

Director

Jonathan Demme

Writers

Ted Tally, Thomas Harris

Producers

Edward Saxon, Kenneth Utt