So much for 2017 being the year that might deliver news of a Hannibal revival.

Series boss Bryan Fuller had previously hinted that August would be the earliest that work could begin on new episodes.

But now Hugh Dancy – tortured Will Graham – has told TVLine that he doesn't expect any Hannibal comeback to land for "four or five years".

Fuller has made it clear that he'd love to bring the axed NBC series back with an adaptation of Hannibal Lecter's most famous outing – The Silence of the Lambs.

Dancy confirmed that he's spoken to Fuller about a "reworking" of the Thomas Harris novel, though there isn't "any concrete" to report.

"I know where we stood at the end of season three, in terms of what he was thinking about, and it did reflect some elements of Silence of the Lambs," Dancy said "He loves that source material, as he would tell you."

Fuller spoke to Digital Spy last month about a possible return for Hannibal, telling us that "everybody involved wants to come back and continue telling the stories."

We grilled Mads Mikkelsen, who plays Mr Lecter, on a potential resurrection in October – and he told us he would "definitely find time in the calendar."

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