Here's Why CBS' 'Clarice' Television Series Can't Mention Hannibal Lecter

Clarice is a new series coming to CBS in just a few months that will continue The Silence of the Lambs franchise.

However, there’s one thing that the television series can’t do, and that’s mention anything about Hannibal Lecter.

According to executive producer Alex Kurtzman, who spoke with Entertainment Weekly, the series can’t do this because the rights to author Thomas Harris’ characters are actually divided between MGM and the Dino De Laurentiis Company.

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But, the CBS show will have all the other characters mentioned in the book, like Clarice Starling, her colleague Ardelia Mapp, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Paul Krendler, the late serial killer Buffalo Bill, and a few others.

“I’m still trying to understand how the rights are divided,” Alex shared with the magazine about the legality of it all, but he’s okay with that too.

Turns out that not having access to Hannibal hasn’t been limiting.

“It’s been quite liberating because we have no interest in writing about Hannibal — not because we didn’t love the films and the show,” Alex adds, “but because it was done so well by so many people that it didn’t feel fresh for us.”

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Clarice will be centered on the FBI Agent as she returns to the field in 1993, one year after the events of “The Silence of the Lambs.”

Brilliant and vulnerable, Clarice’s bravery gives her an inner light that draws monsters and madmen to her. However, her complex psychological makeup that comes from a challenging childhood empowers her to begin to find her voice while working in a man’s world, as well as escape the family secrets that have haunted her throughout her life.

Clarice will premiere in February on CBS.