The most popular horror movie of summer 2024 is The Silence of the Lambs

It has been more than 33 years since Thesilenceofthelambs The film, which swept all five major Oscar categories, came out on Valentine’s Day and became an integral part of our culture. Hannibal Lecter’s mask and “rubbing lotion on his skin” made an immediate impression, but the film’s central narrative, about a young FBI agent determined to catch a brutal killer with the help of another brutal killer, has had a huge impact on crime shows, horror stories and true crime obsessions in the decades since.

It is no surprise that a film so successful, particularly in its aim to terrify audiences, has remained so influential. Parts of Thesilenceofthelambs haven’t aged very well; even at the time of its release, LGBTQ groups questioned its portrayal of Buffalo Bill, and if you watch the film in 2024, you can easily see where the script could be adjusted for more sensitivity. You can also thank entertainment for evolving more today than it did in 1991, and that horror projects that draw inspiration from Thesilenceofthelambs focus on its central dynamics, not its problematic aspects. This includes two of the most anticipated releases of the summer.

Speaking to Empire, M. Night Shyamalan teased his new film Trap in this lightning pitch: “What if Thesilenceofthelambs “Did this happen at a Taylor Swift concert?” The pop star’s concert setting is obvious from the movie’s trailers; we haven’t seen the film yet (it’s out August 2) but the Thesilenceofthelambs The reference is clearly to the main character, played by Josh Hartnett; he’s a serial killer nicknamed “the Butcher” who is being doggedly pursued by law enforcement. It’s unclear if there are any other connections. Maybe this very informative guy working in the theater is trying to influence the Butcher’s next move, a bit like Clarice Starling with Hannibal Lecter at the behest of her FBI boss? That’s probably a stretch. But we’ll be curious to see if there are any specific homages, or if Shyamalan was simply using shorthand to say “this is a serial killer story” by invoking one of the most famous examples.

Less confusing, both because we’ve seen the film (read our review here) and talked to the director about it, is Long legsFilmmaker Osgood Perkins told io9 Thesilenceofthelambs was a “film that had a huge impact” on him personally, ever since he first saw it in the cinema as a teenager, and that his latest film has “a deliberate one-to-one relationship” with Lambs(We’ll publish our full interview with Perkins next week, ahead of Longlegs’ release on July 12.) The parallels are both obvious and subtle; Long legs tells the story of a rookie but talented FBI agent who is chosen by her boss to help him catch an elusive murderer whose methods are as nightmarish as they are mysterious. The action is also set in the 1990s (a deliberate attempt on his life). Lambs-an inspired choice, according to Perkins) and features some small but memorable stylistic choices and plot points that Lambs fans will definitely notice. Long legs Ultimately, it’s really its own film, but knowing that it’s also in conversation with Lambs makes the visual experience even richer.

Thesilenceofthelambs has, over the years, inspired a series of more directly related media, drawn from Thomas Harris’s wildly popular book series but also spurred by the enduring appeal of Jonathan Demme’s film. Hannibal Lecter is now something of a franchise, with five films (Lambsthe same but different Manhunter And Red Dragon, HannibalAnd Hannibal Rising) and two TV shows (we all remember Hannibal; there was also a short duration Clarice (series) exploring his unique blend of elegance and wildness.

Some of them had their charms – fanatics always hope for a Hannibal season four one of these days, and Manhunter has that distinctive Michael Mann sense of cool as well as the intriguing positioning of having been released in 1986, well before Silence caused a sensation (fun fact: SuccessionBrian Cox plays Hannibal “Lecktor”, the spelling of which has been changed. But it’s even more gratifying to think that Thesilenceofthelambs The film has not only permeated sequels, prequels, and spin-offs, but also the minds of creators who continue to pass on its message. Part of that message, of course, is that unimaginable evil can be found anywhere: in a small West Virginia town, at a Taylor Swift concert, under the perpetually gray skies of Oregon. What could be more disconcerting?

Thesilenceofthelambs is streaming on Prime Video. Long legs hits theaters July 12; Trap comes out on August 2nd.