This Forgotten ‘90s Silence of the Lambs Ripoff Is Begging For An 8-Part Netflix Reboot

The ’90s greatest Silence of the Lambs imitator, aptly named Copycat, is ripe for a Prestige TV revival. Let’s take a closer look at how Copycat has become a cult hit since its 1995 release, what about it doesn’t stand the test of time, and why it should get another shot as an episodic Netflix, Amazon, or Apple TV thriller.

Silence of the Lambs is still the GOAT crime thriller, 35 years after its release. As with any Hollywood success, the 1991 film inspired a wave of…copycats.

Lambs‘ DNA is all over Copycat, yet the latter movie has enough novel ideas to make it worth revisiting. It also has some missed opportunities for a TV adaptation to make good on.

Serial Killer Thriller “Copycat” Was Full Of Big Ideas And Missed Opportunities; That Makes it Perfect For Prestige TV

Directed By Jon Amiel; Starring Holly Hunter, Sigourney Weaver, & More; Released In 1995

A key element of what should make Copycat appealing to a network for a TV reboot is how the movie incorporates the real history of American serial killers into its story. The eponymous copycat isn’t just replicating the work of one previous killer, he’s staging his murders to look exactly like scenes of some of the most grisly American crimes ever.

It’s an ambitious conceit the 2-hour film doesn’t fully have time for. One that feels tailor-made for episodic television. Each episode of a Copycat TV reboot could be structured around the antagonist’s recreation of an infamous murder. The idea is one of the things about Copycat that holds up today, but the execution will leave most viewers wanting more.

Beyond that, it is moreso the things about Copycat that don’t hold up that make it ideal for a TV do-over. The movie’s tone is inconsistent. There are subplots and characters that come in and out of focus. But each of these flaws presents an opportunity; the chance to do it even better with a fleshed-out season of TV.

How “Copycat” Takes Cues From “Silence Of The Lambs” And Other Hannibal Lecter Movies

And Why The 30+ Year Old Movie Is Overdue For A TV Reboot

We started off by saying Copycat is a lot like Silence of the Lambs. Of course, that starts with co-lead Holly Hunter. Her character, Inspector MJ Monahan, unabashedly evokes Jodie Foster’s Lambs character, FBI trainee Clarice Starling, in everything from her tightly controlled mannerisms to the Southern cadence of her voice.

As a whole, Copycat follows a similar formula to Silence of the Lambs, though it is looser with its procedural beats. That’s one of many things a TV version could fix. There’s even one point where the main characters consult an imprisoned serial killer in order to aid their pursuit of the Copycat Killer. (We’ll return to Copycat’s Hannibal Lecter analog shortly.)

And the comparisons actually extend beyond Lambs. In Copycat, Sigourney Weaver plays a criminal psychologist who is a clear riff on Will Graham, the character portrayed by William Petersen in Manhunter, and Ed Norton in the remake Red Dragon. Graham was the one who took down Lecter, and later worked with him to catch another killer before Clarice did.

Copycat sets up that dynamic between Weaver and the killer played by Harry Connick Jr., but never follows through on it. It’s the movie’s biggest dropped ball, one an extended, multipart TV update of Copycat could pick up and run with. Honestly, Weaver’s character Dr. Helen Hudson is the low point of Copycat, the one most in need of a reboot’s redemption.

All The Ways “Copycat” Falls Short As A Movie Could Be Fixed On Television

Just One Example: Copycat’s Hannibal Lecter Equivalent Needs More Screen Time

In Copycat, Harry Connick Jr. turns in a completely over-the-top performance as Daryll Lee Cullum, a deranged killer who nearly murders Dr. Helen Hudson, leading her to develop severe agoraphobia in the aftermath of the attack. Cullum has a few memorable scenes in the movie, and plays a big role in its cliffhanger ending.

Copycat was a success at the box office in 1995, nearly tripling its budget. Despite how clearly derivative of Silence of the Lambs the movie is in many ways, this didn’t prove to be an issue with critics at the time. Copycat was fairly well-received. Notably, Roger Ebert gave the film 3 out of 4 stars. A generous review, but one that makes it clear he recognized the movie’s ambition as much as its flaws.

Like all the film’s characters, Cullum is worth giving more screen time to develop further. A Copycat series could do the adversarial relationship between Cullum and Dr. Hudson justice. Which would be a big step toward fixing the problems with the Dr. Hudson character. Which in turn is the biggest issue undermining Copycat as a movie.

Simply put, Dr. Hudson’s agoraphobia plotline is a total miss. Sigourney Weaver plays the character in near hysterics for 95% of Copycat, up until she has a heroic turn at the climax. That character could be totally reworked to be more in line with the Will Graham archetype. While her face-to-face with Cullum could capture more of that Lecter/Graham magic.

“Copycat” Was Too Ambitious For The Big Screen; It’s Perfect For The Prestige TV

The Film’s Supporting Roles And Subplots Need Room To Breathe

Copycat also features Dermot Mulroney, Will Patton, and Jonathan Rothman in supporting roles that would be well-served by an episodic expansion of the story. There are romantic entanglements between the various characters that go nowhere in the movie. The personal arcs of each character would benefit from the TV treatment as much as the crime procedural storyline would.

Like countless other movies, Copycat was a victim of its own ambition. Silence of the Lambs is complex, but it’s not really complicated. Copycat is a little more complicated, at times bordering on convoluted. The result is an on-screen product with some memorable moments, and lots of potential, but which doesn’t totally work.

In retrospect, it’s not that the script didn’t work. Two hours wasn’t enough for the story. Eight hours would be enough to tell the story Copycat had in mind 30+ years ago. Netflix or another streamer could have a legitimate hit on their hands by elevating Copycat above its Silence of the Lambs ripoff status and making the most of its potential.

What do you think? Have you watched Copycat? Do you think it would work better as an episodic series?