On the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Oscar‑winning thriller The Silence of the Lambs, actor Ted Levine, who portrayed the serial killer Buffalo Bill, said the film contains dialogue that “doesn’t hold up too well.” In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the 68‑year‑old Levine reflected on his earlier lack of concern and how his perspective has shifted after working with transgender people.
Levine told the reporter, “We all know more, and I’m a lot wiser about transgender issues. There are some lines in that script and movie that are unfortunate.” He singled out a line spoken by Dr. Hannibal Lecter that has become a flashpoint for critics: “Billy hates his own identity, and he thinks that makes him a transsexual, but his pathology is a thousand times more savage and more terrifying.” The actor called the film’s treatment of gender “unfortunate” and added, “It’s f***ing wrong… I didn’t play him as being gay or trans. I consider he was just a f***ed‑up heterosexual man. That’s what I was doing.”
Producer perspective on Buffalo Bill
Edward Saxon, one of the film’s producers, reiterated that the character was conceived as a “completely aberrant personality — that he wasn’t gay or trans. He was sick.” He later acknowledged a shortfall in sensitivity, saying, “To that extent, we missed it. From my point of view, we weren’t sensitive enough to the legacy of a lot of stereotypes and their ability to harm.”
Historical context of the character
Buffalo Bill was loosely based on real‑life murderer and grave robber Ed Gein, who killed at least two women and exhumed the graves of women who reminded him of his dead mother to fashion human remains into furniture and clothing. The film’s director Jonathan Demme guided the production to a historic achievement: it became the first horror film—and only the third film overall—to sweep the Academy’s “Big Five” awards (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay). The movie remains the only horror picture to win Best Picture.
Why the dialogue matters today
The line about “transsexual” identity has been repeatedly cited in discussions about the film’s legacy, especially as cultural understandings of gender have evolved since the early 1990s. Critics argue that equating gender dysphoria with violent pathology reinforces harmful stereotypes, while supporters of the film point to its broader artistic merits and its influence on the thriller genre.
Levine’s admission that “we all know more” underscores a shift in Hollywood’s awareness of how representation can affect real‑world attitudes toward transgender people. The actor’s willingness to label the script’s language “unfortunate” reflects a growing industry trend of re‑examining past works through a contemporary lens.
Looking ahead
As the film continues to be screened in retrospectives and discussed in academic circles, the conversation around its gendered content is likely to persist. Future releases of the movie on streaming platforms may include contextual notes or content warnings, a practice that other studios have adopted for older titles with dated portrayals.
Readers are invited to share their thoughts on how classic films should be presented to new audiences and to follow updates on any official statements from the film’s rights holders.
