After announcing there will be no more episode after "Hannibal" season 3, NBC was bombarded with hate tweets from fans. Many were surprised with the cancellation of the show which has been receiving good reviews since the first season.
Unknown to many though, NBC has been very kind to "Hannibal." The show performs poor in ratings game and for a commercial broadcast television, viewership is very important to be able to continue.
NBC were not really that pumped about this series being developed by Bryan Fuller since its freshman year. Still, they allowed it to go on for three seasons. And when they announced "Hannibal" will be canceled after season three, the network also took the time to assist Fuller and his crew to lay the groundwork for it to be able to find a new home.
"The studio had asked me what the scope of season four is, so they could prepare production proposals for potential distribution partners," Fuller said in an interview with TV Insider about "Hannibal" season 3 and show's cancellation. "That's where we essentially left it. It's all still unfolding as we speak."
In a separate interview with Deadline, Fuller explained how NBC has been protecting his show against those who are pushing for it to be cancelled.
"[Jennifer Salke - NBC's Entertainment President] had been protecting the show for the first three years from the programmers who wanted to cancel it," Fuller said. "And we knew that she could only cover us for so long - so we had an idea that this was going to be the last season on NBC."
"[NBC has] really given us a long leash with which to tell our stories," he concluded. "I'm glad that we had the first three years - and hopefully we'll have another year someplace else."
The next "Hannibal" season 3 episode called "Contorno" will air today.
Read the full "Hannibal" season 3 episode guide for "Contorno" below:
"Jack Crawford (Laurence Fishburne) and Inspector Pazzi (guest star Fortunato Cerlino) search for clues that will lead them closer to Hannibal Lecter's (Mads Mikkelsen) location in Florence, but the promise of riches offered by Mason Verger (guest star Joe Anderson) threatens to corrupt Pazzi's quest for redemption. Meanwhile, Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) and Chiyoh (Tao Okamoto) travel to Florence, both on a mission to find Hannibal, but at odds over the desired outcome. Elsewhere, as Alana Bloom (Caroline Dhavernas) continues to work with Mason Verger she grows concerned for the safety of all involved."
