Laurence Fishburne is in negotiations to star in NBC's upcoming series Hannibal as Jack Crawford. Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen have already signed on to play the leads Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter.

Jack Crawford is the agent-in-charge of the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit that is in charge of finding the cannibalistic Hannibal Lecter. The character was previously played by Dennis Farina in Manhunter, Scott Glenn in Silence of the Lambs, and Harvey Keitel in Red Dragon. This series, set in modern day, examines the relationship between FBI agent Will Graham and his mentor, Hannibal Lecter, before the good doctor's murderous exploits are uncovered.

Bryan Fuller wrote the pilot script and will executive produce, with David Slade directing the first episode. NBC made the rare move of ordering a 13-episode season, without seeing a pilot episode first. The network is eyeing a midseason debut for the new series.

Laurence Fishburne was most recently seen on the small screen in the CBS procedural CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, where he played Dr. Raymond Langston between 2008 and 2011.