Hiya I'm so confused. I don't watch Hannibal. Is it canon that Hannibal actually loves will romantically?
Yup, Hannibal is in love with Will.
Will asked Bedelia ( which is one of the characters that knows best Hannibal as well as his relationship with Will) “Is Hannibal in love with me?” And she said yes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-8wVnApglI
And this is what Bryan Fuller said about it:
It felt like we had to s–t or get off the pot, ultimately, because there had been so much going on between these two men that when Will asks, “Is Hannibal Lecter in love with me?” it is very much about death and the romance between these two men. There is a quality to connections that go above and beyond sexuality. You can have this intimate connection with somebody that then causes you to wonder where the lines of your own sexuality are. And we didn’t quite broach the sexuality. It was certainly suggested, but the love is absolutely on the table. There is love between these two men, and confusion between these two men. We had to articulate it, and the idea for a [potential] Season 4 was an interesting continuation of that, as well as a subversion of it at the same time. So it’s strange to look at [this week’s episode] as a finale, because part of me believes that the most interesting chapter of Will Graham’s story is yet to be told.
Those conversations between Will and Bedelia where he is asking, “Is he in love with me?” and she’s saying, “Yes, but are you in love with him?” He doesn’t know how to answer that question, because when we feel a connection to another human being who seems to understand us in a way that we are not often understood, it’s such a beautiful expression of connection. As broad as some of the human elements of the film avatar were, what really resonated with me was that the term of affection for them is, “I see you.” And there’s no greater expression of affection. That’s how Will felt with Hannibal — he felt seen. He felt naked and vulnerable, and yet understood in that. It’s a very addictive feeling to be in a relationship with somebody — whether it’s a friendship or a romance — where the dysmorphia of how you feel on the inside finally connects with someone else’s perception of you from the outside. It’s dizzying.
So Hannibal being pansexual and in love with Will has been confirmed. But the real question is “Does Will ache for Hannibal?”
As Bryan said “there is love between them”.
(My headcanon is that Will is a biromantic heterosexual but that’s another topic…)