On the big screen, Hopkins appeared in a number of relatively little-seen films, including The Girl from Petrovka (1974), starring Goldie Hawn; Juggernaut (1974), starring Richard Harris; and Audrey Rose (1977). He had a supporting role in the feel-good family film International Velvet (1978), and starred with Anne Bancroft and Sir John Gielgud in David Lynch’s quirky The Elephant Man (1980). He also starred opposite Shirley MacLaine in A Change of Seasons (1980), and appeared as the tyrannical sea captain William Bligh in The Bounty (1984), co-starring Mel Gibson. Other notable films included The Good Father (1987), The Dawning (1988), A Chorus of Disapproval (1988), Desperate Hours (1990), and The Efficiency Expert (1991).

In 1991, Hopkins earned an Academy Award for Best Actor for his magnetic performance as the serial killer Hannibal “The Cannibal” Lecter in the film adaptation of Thomas Harris’ novel, The Silence of the Lambs. The film was the breakout critical success of the year, racking up four other Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director (Jonathan Demme), Best Actress (Jodie Foster, who played FBI trainee Clarice Starling), and Best Adapted Screenplay.

The success of The Silence of the Lambs established Hopkins internationally as a leading dramatic actor. In 1992, he improved on his newly minted star status with a performance alongside Emma Thompson and Vanessa Redgrave in the acclaimed film Howard’s End, made by the producer-director team of Ismail Merchant and James Ivory. He also appeared in the high-profile film adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992), directed by Francis Ford Coppola and co-starring Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, and Keanu Reeves.

In 1993, Hopkins was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor for his role as a repressed English butler in the Merchant-Ivory film The Remains of the Day, also starring Thompson. That same year, he turned in an acclaimed performance as the author C.S. Lewis in Shadowlands, directed by Attenborough and co-starring Debra Winger. In 1994, Hopkins starred in the poorly received The Road to Wellville and Legends of the Fall, co-starring Brad Pitt. He garnered a third Best Actor nod in 1995 for his portrayal of President Richard M. Nixon in the Oliver Stone biopic Nixon.

A third collaboration with Merchant and Ivory, Surviving Picasso (1996), was less successful than the previous films, although Hopkins turned in an emotionally intense performance as the brilliant but tortured Pablo Picasso. Also in 1996, Hopkins made his feature directorial debut with August, an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s play Uncle Vanya; he also starred in the film and composed the score.