Buffalo Bill’s house in Silence of the Lambs is currently up for sale again. The 1.76-acre property is located in Perryopolis, Pennsylvania. While this home is something that a lot of horror fans will be interested in, it should be noted that there is not a well in this basement, though the three-story home looks almost exactly the same as it does in Jonathan Demme’s 1991 classic. The entry way of the house is seen extensively towards the end of the movie.
The Victorian home was built in 1910 and it isn’t as creepy as it appears in The Silence of the Lambs. It does need some repair work, which is reflected in the $298,500 price tag. The home comes with the original hardwood floors, woodwork, light fixtures, pocket doors, fireplaces, and wallpaper, which is said to be in pristine condition. Recent improvements include reflooring the wrap around porch and gazebo, a rose bed garden and fountain were added at the front, refinished hardwood floors in attic, new hot water tank, well pump, and UV filter.
Scott and Barbara Lloyd previously owned the home and put it up for sale in 2015. The couple was looking to downsize and put the house up for $300,000. The Lloyds purchased the iconic house in 1976 and were later married there. Fast forward 12 years later, the couple were eating dinner when a producer knocked on their door and asked if they could take some pictures of the house. Mrs. Lloyd recalled, “They were looking for a home in which you entered the front door and had a straight line through.” She continued, “They wanted it to look like a spider web, with Buffalo Bill drawing Jodie Foster into the foyer, into the kitchen, then into the basement.”
In The Silence of the Lambs, Buffalo Bill, aka Jame Gumb, is played by actor Ted Levine. The character is a serial killer who murders overweight women and skins them so he can make a “woman suit” for himself. He preys on women by pretending to be injured and asking for help, which then leads to him kidnapping and starving them in his basement well. The starving makes the skin loose enough for Buffalo Bill to remove.
The Silence of the Lambs author Thomas Harris based Buffalo Bill on a number of real serial killers. Jerry Brudos would strangle his female victims and would dress in their clothing, while keeping their shoes as a trophy. Ed Gein, amongst other things, liked to make masks from the faces of women. Ted Bundy would pretend to be injured in order to trap his victims, and Gary M. Heidnik would trap his victims in a pit. Harris also used Edmund Kemper, Gary Ridgway, and Alfredo Ball&í Trevi&ño to create the Buffalo Bill character, who was named after Buffalo Bill Cody, who allegedly scalped a Cheyenne warrior.
While living in The Silence of the Lambs house may creeps some people out, it could be a goldmine for anyone looking to rent it out on Airbnb to horror fans. As for the franchise, CBS is developing the Clarice series with Rebecca Breeds of Pretty Little Liars taking on the role that Jodie Foster made famous. It takes place in 1993, one year after the events of the movie and it aims to tell the rest of Clarice Starling’s story. The highly anticipated series is executive produced by Alex Kurtzman and Jenny Lumet. If you’re interested in buying The Silence of the Lambs house, you can head over to the Allanassad website. You can see a tour of the home above
