Why does Trump think Hannibal Lecter is a 'wonderful man'?

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'You know why I like him?' asked Trump during a stop in Iowa last year where he once again talked about Hollywood's famous cannibal

Published May 13, 2024  •  3 minute read

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Donald Trump praised “the late, great Hannibal Lecter,” calling the fictional serial killer “a wonderful man” during a campaign speech in New Jersey over the weekend.

The former president made the remark in a 90-minute-speech in Wildwood, New Jersey, while at the same time condemning “people who are being released into our country that we don’t want.”

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Why did Trump say? 

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“Silence of the Lambs. Has anyone ever seen The Silence of the Lambs? The late, great Hannibal Lecter is a wonderful man,” Trump said, referring to the 1991 horror movie character played by Anthony Hopkins, in front a large crowd of supporters on Saturday night. An estimated 100,000 people showed up to hear Trump speak, a number Telegraph says is “a record for a political rally in the state.” The political rally is also one of only a few the Republican presidential candidate in the 2024 U.S. general election has made while he’s on trial.

“He oftentimes would have a friend for dinner,” he said, recalling the character. “Remember the last scene? ‘Excuse me, I’m about to have a friend for dinner,’ as this poor doctor walked by. ‘I’m about to have a friend for dinner.’” He continued on briefly before turning his attention to undocumented immigrants.

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“But Hannibal Lecter. Congratulations, the late, great Hannibal Lecter. We have people who are being released into our country that we don’t want in our country, and they’re coming in totally unchecked, totally unvetted.”

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“We have people that have been released into our country that we don’t want in our country, and they’re coming in totally unchecked, totally unvetted. And we can’t let this happen. They’re destroying our country, and we’re sitting back,” Trump goes on to say. “And we better damn well win this election, because if we don’t, our country is going to be doomed. It’s going to be doomed.”

Despite being referred to as “late (and) great,” Lecter does not in fact die in Silence of the Lambs or the books he’s based on.

But why the cannibal Lecter — again?

While the reference to Lecter may seem like a digression, Trump has previously attempted to draw a parallel between the serial killing movie cannibal and the migrants and asylum seekers who enter the U.S. without permission.

Trump has called Lecter “legendary” and a nice fellow, referring to him in campaign rallies while claiming migrants come from “mental institutions” or “insane asylums,” according to The New York Times. Since at least 2015, Trump has called migrants mentally ill and violent criminals, but border officials say they most are often vulnerable families escaping precarious situations, the paper notes.

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Trump answers: ‘You know why I like him?’

On Monday, while Trump walked away from the mic at a press conference outside a Manhattan courthouse, where he’s facing charges related to making hush money payments to Stormy Daniels, a reporter asked him, “Why Hannibal Lecter?” Trump continued to head into the courthouse, leaving the question unanswered.

However, during a stop in Iowa last year, Trump described Hannibal Lecter as an actor before quickly clarifying that he meant an actor who portrayed him.

“Hannibal Lecter, how great an actor he was. You know why I like him? Because he said on television, ‘I love Donald Trump,’ so I love him,” he said.

As Newsweek points out, none of the four actors who have portrayed Lecter — Anthony Hopkins, Gaspard Ulliel, Brian Cox or Mads Mikkelsen — have said they love him.

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