It would appear that all new horror films mining a classic franchise are contractually obliged to use the same name. The latest Hellraiser is keeping to that format. And now we have the first look at the central Cenobite creature Pinhead, played here by Sense8‘s Jamie Clayton.
The Night House director David Bruckner is behind the new film, but don’t go expecting a lazy remake of the 1987 original.
“This is not a remake,” the filmmaker tells Entertainment Weekly. “I just didn’t think you could ever remake the original Hellraiser. It’s too much its own thing and it would be, I think, perilous territory for filmmakers, because how do you top that? This is a new story in the Hellraiser universe.”
“It’s the tale of a young woman (Riley, played by Odessa A’zion), who’s struggling with addiction and compulsive behavior, that comes in contact accidentally with the box and unfortunately begins to dabble with it,” adds Bruckner. “And chaos ensues.”
https://twitter.com/MsJamieClayton/status/1565371366420844544
As for switching up Pinhead, the director knew they needed to head in a fresh direction too. “We felt a kind of anticipation around the fans to reimagine the character,” says Bruckner. “We knew we wanted Pinhead to be a woman. Jamie was just the right person for the role. A person’s identity can be really exciting for a role in many ways, but I have to emphasize that Jamie absolutely killed, that’s how we got there.” For more on the movie, head to EW‘s site.
Hellraiser will release on Hulu in the US on 7 October, which means we can expect it on Disney+ here around the same time.
