We may be almost exactly five years removed from the date that NBC originally canceled Hannibal, but over the last half a decade fans have never truly given up hope that the series was done for good. Bryan Fuller’s adaptation of Thomas Harris’ most famous literary creation remains one of the most visually-stunning shows ever to grace television, and despite receiving widespread critical acclaim throughout the entire three-season run, ratings just weren’t strong enough to save Hannibal from the chopping block in June 2015.
However, it’s remained incredibly popular with the diehard army of self-appointed ‘Fannibals’ constantly fighting what looked like an impossible battle to bring it back for another batch of episodes, and now those same fans are convinced that Netflix’s recent addition of Hannibal to their lineup could be planting the seeds for a full-blown revival.
In less than a week, the twisted psychological thriller managed to crack the streaming service’s Top 10 most-watched list, which is an impressive feat for a long-dormant show that was never exactly a ratings juggernaut to begin with, and now people have picked up on some subtle changes made to the version available for streaming that have started raising hopes about a potential fourth season once again, and you can check out some of the reactions below.
these changes that netflix is making in the episodes, like… subtitles, brightness, say A LOT! they're listening to us. if they didn’t have plans for the show in the future they wouldn’t worry about those details, but they are! and it gives me so much hope, i- 😭
— loe (@pjmjjkjhs) June 9, 2020
I mean why bother with all of this if they weren’t at least thinking about it.. they’re improving the watching experience for fans and new viewers. Because they want it to be successful? it’s had such a great welcome to Netflix, so many viewers. They MUST see this opportunity..
— 🖤 (@patrocluslecter) June 15, 2020
Season 4 is in the air. I can just feel it. That means we’re going to see a Madancy kiss soon. Mark my words
— Nutty Nat 🌝 (@ifyouplayyoupay) June 15, 2020
We're losing it over here @Netflix blink twice if Hannibal is going to be a Netflix original tv show https://t.co/pQF5JYAh2P
— manifesting happiness ( ◍•㉦•◍ ) (@JennaSm95161164) June 15, 2020
BRING HANNIBAL BACK @netflix pic.twitter.com/J6wobz6d0O
— loe (@pjmjjkjhs) June 15, 2020
You know what?#SaveHannibalS4
We count on you, @Netflix!
#Hannibal #Fannibals #HannibalOnNetflix pic.twitter.com/QRyvIaNLj3
— Le Corps Exquis 🌈🍖 (@CorpsExquis) June 13, 2020
Hannibal in the top 10 on Netflix I love to see it. One of my favorite TV shows of all time. Make that 4th season happen! pic.twitter.com/NKWWCHGXqs
— Thomas (@TomSteffler) June 12, 2020
https://twitter.com/angcliix/status/1272346078189363207?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1272346078189363207&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Ftv-shows%2Fnews%2Fhannibal-netflix-season-4-fans-convinced%2F
Admittedly, this is a bit of a stretch on the part of Fannibals everywhere, and the changes are almost entirely superficial ones to enhance the viewing experience, but all it apparently takes is a little brightness and some cleaned up subtitles to send the rumor mill into overdrive. That being said, Netflix does have a habit of reviving shows that have been canceled elsewhere, and the Justice League Snyder Cut recently proved that long-running fan campaigns can eventually yield results, so the return of Hannibal still can’t be completely ruled out just yet.
