Alternate versions

The Hannibal Lecter Collection released by MGM in 2007, which also features The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Hannibal (2001), contains the authentic Theatrical Cut of the film.

In 1991, to hype up the release of The Silence of the Lambs (1991), a heavily-edited version of Manhunter was shown on NBC. Renamed Red Dragon: The Curse of Hannibal Lector, it was edited for swearing and sex. This version has only aired on TV and never saw a home video release.

The 'Theatrical Cut' included on Anchor Bay's 2001 releases of the film is not the authentic theatrical cut, and because it also features a number of scenes from the Director's Cut, it is often referred to as the Hybrid Cut. This version was sourced from a work-print and was never approved by director Michael Mann as an official version of the film. In this version,

• The opening credits are in a green font and play against a black background before cutting to Graham (William Petersen) and Crawford (Dennis Farina) on the beach. In the theatrical cut, the opening credits are in a white font and play against a static shot of the sky before panning down to show Graham and Crawford.
• The scene where Graham, Crawford, and Springfield (Norman Snow) are walking through the Atlanta police station and Graham is explaining to Springfield why he thinks the killer may have taken off his gloves is absent. Instead, this version cuts directly from Graham ringing Crawford in the hotel room to Princi (Peter Maloney) describing what the killer's teeth look like (-00:15).
• After the briefing, the scene where Springfield and Princi talk to Graham about Lecktor is missing several lines of dialogue. When Springfield says that Lecktor killed nine people, and Graham says, "nine we know of, two didn't die", Springfield can be heard (but not seen) saying, "what happened to them?" The film then awkwardly cuts to Springfield saying, "I understand he cut you pretty good." Graham ignores the comment and asks, "what about the dog?" This version omits not only Graham answering Springfield's question about the two victims who lived ("one's on a respirator in a hospital in Baltimore, the other's in a private mental hospital in Denver"), but also Springfield asking what the psychologists said was wrong with Lecktor, to which Graham says, "the psychologists call him a psychopath. They didn't know what else to call him" (-00:21).
• The scene where Geehan (Michael Talbott) shows Graham around the Jacobi house is included, even though this scene was not included in the authentic theatrical cut. Geehan tells Graham about the couple who looked like they were interested in buying the house until a police car pulled up outside and the cops started telling the couple about who was killed where and how. Graham then asks if any single men have been to see the house, and Geehan says not as far as he knows (00:42).
• The scene where Graham and Molly (Kim Greist) meet up in a hotel room during the investigation is included, even though this scene was not included in the authentic theatrical cut. As Molly is in bed, Graham is shown looking out the window, and we can see the extensive scaring from when he was attacked by Lecktor (Brian Cox). Molly gets out of bed and approaches him, asking him how the investigation is going, but he is reluctant to talk. He then jokes about them having to meet in a hotel as if they are having an "illicit romance". She asks if he remembers the first time they met and he says he does, to which she asks him if he remembers what he said, and he says "I said "this is too good to relive"." She then says "time is luck. Know the value of every single day." They then embrace (2:32).
• When Graham returns to the Leeds house after talking on the phone with Lecktor, in the theatrical cut, the scene starts within him already in the house. In this version, however, the scene begins with him still outside, looking through the screen door for a moment before then entering (00:04). Subsequently, as Graham moves across the kitchen and up the stairs, the voiceover is distributed differently in this version than in the theatrical cut, with more space between each sentence.
• After the scene where Dollarhyde (Tom Noonan) tells Reba (Joan Allen) that "Francis is gone. Francis is gone forever", there is a scene of Graham and Crawford working on the case. After Graham says "he believes he will become one who is wanted and desired and accepted. It'll all come true", this version cuts straight to Crawford asking "what about the mirrors?" In the authentic theatrical cut, however, there is additional dialogue where Graham speculates that Dollarhyde started as "an abused kid. A battered infant." When Crawford asks him, "are you sympathizing with this guy?" Graham responds, "Absolutely. My heart bleeds for him as a child. Someone took a kid and manufactured a monster. At the same time, as an adult, he's irredeemable. He butchers whole families to pursue trivial fantasies. As an adult, someone should blow the sick f*#k out of his socks." He then asks Crawford, "do you think that's a contradiction, Jack? Does this kind of understanding make you uncomfortable?" Crawford ignores the question and then asks about the mirrors (-00:55).

The original Director's Cut of the film was created in 1987 for a screening on TMC. This version of the film was first made available on home media in Anchor Bay's 2001 Limited Edition DVD. The picture quality is extremely poor as it was sourced from the 1-inch masters of the TMC copy of the film rather than any of the original negative elements (which had been discovered to have been lost). Significantly, Anchor Bay converted TMC's 4:3 version back into 2.35:1 for the disc (meaning it's a widescreen version of a pan & scan version of a widescreen original). This results in significantly tighter and less precise framing than in the original, occasionally resulting in characters' heads being cut off at the top of the frame. Although director Michael Mann oversaw the Director's Cut for TMC, he was not directly involved in Anchor Bay's release. In the Director's Cut,

• The DEG logo for De Laurentiis Entertainment Group is absent (-00:14).
• The first few credits (up to the film's name) are in a green font whereas they are in a white font in the theatrical cut. After the film's title appears, the credits play out during the opening dialogue scene between Graham (William Petersen) and Crawford (Dennis Farina) on the beach. In the theatrical cut, the opening credits play against a static shot of the sky before panning down to show Graham and Crawford (-01:08).
• The shot of Graham ascending to his hotel room after he has examined the Leeds' house for the first time is absent (-00:14).
• Immediately after the above, the scene where Graham watches the home video footage of the Leeds' family is edited differently. In the Theatrical Cut, the film cuts several times between Graham and the TV, and we then see Graham say, "when they were dead, he smashed the mirrors and began selecting the pieces that he would use later on Mrs. Leeds." This line is omitted from the Director's Cut, and the lines, "killing Mr. Leeds would take less than a minute. Mrs. Leeds' injuries were postmortem" are spread out more in the Director's Cut. The distribution of shots is also different, showing less of Graham watching the TV (-00:12).
• The police briefing in Atlanta is longer. The Theatrical Cut goes directly from the scene in the hallway between Graham, Crawford, and Springfield (Norman Snow) to Princi (Peter Maloney) describing what the killer's teeth look like. In the Director's Cut, there is an additional scene in between. We see the cops coming into the room and sitting down, and then Springfield taking the podium. He talks about some assignments, mentioning that they have clerks cross-checking airline reservations into and out of Birmingham a month prior and Atlanta a week prior. He then calls Princi to the podium. Princi's address is identical in both cuts of the film, but immediately when he is finished, in the Theatrical Cut, the briefing ends, but in the Director's Cut, Springfield asks Graham to address the room. Graham says the killer is not a drifter because the killings are too skillful and that he most likely lives a normal life. He explains that the killer is acting out fantasies based upon his dreams. When Springfield asks what his dreams are, Graham says he doesn't know (01:54).
• Immediately after the briefing, the conversation between Graham, Crawford, Springfield, and Princi is different. In the Director's Cut, after Graham says "it's in his dreams," and Springfield, says, "his motive?" Graham says, "yes" and then Princi asks Graham about his earlier career. In the Theatrical Cut, however, after Graham answers yes to Springfield, he also says, "his act fuels his fantasy." Springfield asks "which is?" and Graham says he doesn't know. This was most likely omitted from the Director's Cut because it is redundant in light of the additional scene where Graham addresses the cops (-00:08).
• Prior to Graham visiting Lecktor (Brian Cox), there is an additional scene in Graham's hotel room when Molly (Kim Greist) rings him. She says that things are boring and asks him how things are going. He talks about the lack of physical evidence and she asks him does he know how long he'll be. He says he has to go to Baltimore, and she says she's thinking of painting the kitchen, asking him what color he likes. He says yellow and she says no, he then says blue, and again, she's not enthused. He then loses his temper, saying, "paint the damn room battleship gray. What do I care?" He immediately apologizes and says that when he gets home, they can pick the color together. She tells him she loves him, and misses him, that she's always there for him, and will meet him anywhere if he needs her to (02:07).
• Immediately after the above scene, there is an additional scene between Graham and Dr. Chilton (Benjamin Hendrickson). Chilton explains that the only place Graham will be allowed to speak to Lecktor is when Lecktor is in his room. When Graham says he wants to give Lecktor some material, Chilton says that's fine as long as it is on soft paper. Chilton then asks Graham if Graham can tell him anything about Lecktor as Graham is the only person to have ever shown any understanding of Lecktor's mind. When Graham says no, Chilton asks if Graham was able to reconstruct Lecktor's fantasies in his own mind. Graham ignores the question and says, "I'd like to see Lecktor now" (01:26).
• During Graham's meeting with Lecktor, there is some additional dialogue. After Graham says he read Lecktor's article on surgical addiction and found it interesting, "even for a layman," Lecktor frowns and says, "a layman? Interesting term. So many experts on government grants and you say you're a layman. But it was you who caught me wasn't it? Do you know how you did it?" Graham asks, "does it matter now?" to which Lecktor replies, "It doesn't matter to me Will" (00:20).
• After Graham's dream on the plane, the photos of the murders fall out of his folder, frightening the girl sitting next to him, and there are three quick shots of the photos. In the Director's Cut, the three shots are shorter, less than a second each, whereas in the Theatrical Cut, each shot is 1 second (-00:01)
• Immediately after the above scene, there is an additional scene where Geehan (Michael Talbott) shows Graham around the Jacobi house. He tells Graham about the couple who looked like they were interested in buying the house until a police car pulled up outside and the cops started telling the couple about who was killed where and how. Graham then asks if any single men have been to see the house, and Geehan says not as far as he knows (00:42).
• After the scene where Freddie Lounds (Stephen Lang) interviews Graham and Sidney Bloom (Paul Perri), there is additional dialogue between Graham and Crawford. After Crawford says the symbol carved into the tree means 'Red Dragon', the Theatrical Cut ends the scene, but in the Director's Cut, Crawford tells Graham that he's having Molly flown to Birmingham on the FBI's dime. Graham seems a little surprised, and Crawford asks if he did something wrong, to which Graham says, "no, it's just the setting Jack" (00:15).
• After Graham and Spurgen (Jim Zubiena) head out to "walk the route", the Director's Cut cuts straight to the scene of Dollarhyde (Tom Noonan) taking a newspaper. In the Theatrical Cut, however, as Graham and Spurgen emerge from the archway, there is a slow zoom out, showing the surrounding area (-00:14).
• Immediately after we see the Dollarhyde taking a newspaper, there is an additional scene between Graham and Molly, who have meet up in a hotel room. As Molly is in bed, Graham is shown looking out the window, and we can see the extensive scaring from when he was attacked by Lecktor. Molly gets out of bed and approaches him, asking him how the investigation is going, but he is reluctant to talk. He then jokes about them having to meet in a hotel as if they are having an "illicit romance". She asks if he remembers the first time they met and he says he does, to which she asks him if he remembers what he said, and he says "I said "this is too good to relive"." She then says "time is luck. Know the value of every single day." They then embrace (2:32).
• During the scene where Dollarhyde is showing Lounds slides, a part of the scene is absent. Dollarhyde shows Lounds a slide of the Leeds family alive, the Jacobi family alive, and then the next family "as they will look when I visit them." The film then cuts straight to Dollarhyde showing Lounds the slide of him and Graham. In the Theatrical Version, however, he shows Lounds slides of the Leeds and Jacobi families after they were murdered, before the slide of Graham and Lounds (-00:18).
• When Graham returns to the Leeds house after talking on the phone with Lecktor, in the theatrical cut, the scene starts within him already in the house. In the Director's Cut, however, the scene begins with him still outside, looking through the screen door for a moment before then entering (00:04). Subsequently, as Graham moves across the kitchen and up the stairs, the voiceover is distributed differently, with more space between each sentence.
• After the scene where Dollarhyde tells Reba (Joan Allen) that "Francis is gone. Francis is gone forever", there is a scene of Graham and Crawford working on the case which is missing some dialogue. After Graham says "he believes he will become one who is wanted and desired and accepted. It'll all come true", the Director's Cut goes straight to Graham saying, "but he doesn't take anything." In the Theatrical Cut, however, Graham speculates that Dollarhyde started as "an abused kid. A battered infant." When Crawford asks him, "are you sympathizing with this guy?" Graham responds, "Absolutely. My heart bleeds for him as a child. Someone took a kid and manufactured a monster. At the same time, as an adult, he's irredeemable. He butchers whole families to pursue trivial fantasies. As an adult, someone should blow the sick f#*k out of his socks." He then asks Crawford, "do you think that's a contradiction, Jack? Does this kind of understanding make you uncomfortable?" Crawford ignores the question and asks about the mirrors, to which Graham says "he uses the mirrors to see it happen." Then he says, "but he doesn't take anything" (-01:07).
• The scene where Graham has the revelation about the padlock is edited differently with a different distribution of shots as the films cuts from Graham to Crawford to the home movie footage. Notably, there is less of the home movie material and more of Crawford watching Graham's analysis. There is no difference in run-time.
• At the end of the scene, the dialogue where Crawford orders a helicopter and says where they will be going is absent, with the film cutting directly from Graham saying, "it does, doesn't it" to the exterior shot of Dollarhyde's house (-00:12).
• The shot of Fisk (Frankie Faison) printing Dollarhyde's driver's license before faxing it to Graham is absent (-00:10).
• The scene where Graham shoots Dollarhyde is edited differently; in the Theatrical Cut, Graham shoots six times and hits Dollarhyde five times whereas in the Director's Cut, he shoots five times and hits Dollarhyde three times (-00:02).
• The immediate aftermath of the shootout is edited differently. In the Theatrical Cut, there is a scene of Graham looking down on Dollarhyde's body before limping away, but in the Director's Cut, there is just a very quick shot of him looking at the body. Additionally, the shot of Graham leading Reba out of the kitchen is longer in the Theatrical Cut (-00:22).
• Immediately after Graham hugs Reba, the shot of a wounded Crawford approaching Graham on the dock is absent (-00:37).
• In the Director's Cut, instead of the above scene, the film cuts to a scene of Graham visiting Dollarhyde's next intended victims, the Sherman family (Kin Shriner and Patricia Charbonneau). After he inadvertently scares Mrs Sherman, he awkwardly introduces himself, and they ask him if he wants to come in. He says no and asks them if everything is ok. Mr Sherman then says that Crawford rang to tell them about the case. They thank Graham, as he awkwardly says, "I just stopped by...to see you. That's all" (01:46).

The Restored Director's Cut was first released on DVD in 2003, at which time director Michael Mann recorded an audio commentary, stating it is his preferred version of the film. For the 2016 Scream Factory Blu-ray release, the remastered HD footage from the Theatrical Cut has been used, meaning that the picture quality and framing issues from the Anchor Bay Director's Cut are no longer an issue. However, the additional scenes are in SD. This is because the original elements were lost and had to be sourced from the 1-inch masters of a screening of the original Director's Cut on TMC in 1987. The Restored Director's Cut is identical to the original Director's Cut except for the absence of the scene where Graham meets Chilton prior to visiting Lecktor; this scene was added to the original Director's Cut, but has been removed from the Restored Director's Cut.

The Theatrical Cut included on the 2016 Scream Factory Blu-ray disc is the authentic theatrical cut as it was first released to cinemas in 1986. Remastered in HD, the only difference between this version and the original theatrical cut is that the opening shots of Dollarhyde moving through the Leeds house are degraded and re-framed SD, as if filmed on a camcorder. This was most likely a stylistic choice by director Michael Mann when putting the Blu-ray together.

VCD (video CD) version by Panorma Entertaintment is cut to 115 minute