Trivia: The role of Hannibal Lecter was originally supposed to go to Gene Hackman, who bought the rights to the source novel and had planned on directing the film himself. He backed off the project when he decided that the role was too dark for his taste, and he felt that he had already played an unlikeable character in "Mississippi Burning."
Suggested correction: There's another trivia entry here stating that the role was originally offered to Sean Connery. Please provide evidence that it's Hackman.
You're right. Sean Connery was also offered the role. Movie roles often go through multiple actors before a final choice is made. There are a ton of articles on the Internet about this, but here's one. You can easily find other sources. https://collider.com/silence-of-the-lambs-gene-hackman/.