
Photos: On TV, the list of serial killers grows

Two decades after its release, “The Silence of the Lambs” has become a defining influence on programming, most recently on Fox’s "The Following."
David Giesbrecth/FOX
| March 2, 2013

The serial killer has become a kind of rock star figure on TV, like Dexter Morgan, who kills killers on Showtime’s hugely successful “Dexter.”
Randy Tepper/Showtime
| March 2, 2013

NBC is returning to the source with “Hannibal,” in which Hugh Dancy’s FBI agent turns to Mads Mikkelsen’s Lecter for assistance.
Brooke Palmer/NBC
| March 2, 2013

The list of serial killer fantasies goes on: “Criminal Minds” has remained in Nielsen’s weekly Top 15 for five of its eight seasons.
Michael Desmond/ABC Studios
| March 2, 2013

“Dark Minds,” an Investigation Discovery reality series, just returned for its second season with a doozy of a “Silence of the Lambs” gimmick.
Investigation Discovery
| March 2, 2013

“Ripper Street” isn’t about Jack the Ripper so much as those who failed to catch him, but his fame hangs over every episode.
Jonathan Hession
| March 2, 2013

Globe critic Matthew Gilbert thinks thought-provoking depictions of violence have a place in our broad range of programming. Above, CW’s “Cult.”
The CW Network
| March 2, 2013