Claim: The Silence of the Lambs was originally a Thomas Harris novel.
Evidence: Adapted by Ted Tally from the 1988 novel of the same name by Thomas Harris , his second to feature the character of Dr. Hannibal Lecter ; a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer , the film was the second adaptation of a Harris novel featuring Lecter , preceded by the Michael Mann-directed Manhunter in 1986.