This Halloween, an old friend in a new form is coming to haunt our nightmares: Pinhead returns in the eleventh Hellraiser film, but there are a lot of asterisks to this release. First off, Pinhead, this time around, is played by a woman, Jamie Clayton - and she plays the role with aplomb. Also, this Hellraiser film isn't a continuation of the previous ten films; nor is it an actual remake of the 1987 original, written and directed by Clive Barker, based off his novella, The Hellbound Heart. This new Hellraiser, directed by David Bruckner and released by Hulu, is more of a reboot: a new, stand-alone story that starts the franchise over.
In this Hellraiser, we follow a young woman, Riley, a recovering addict, as her no-good boyfriend convinces her to steal from the abandoned storage container of a wealthy man. There is only one thing in that container, and it happens to be a Lament Configuration Box. Riley holds onto it until they can figure out where to pawn it, and naturally, she starts playing with it. The Box opens, it draws blood, and we are off to the races. Pretty soon, she and her friends are running for their lives, trying to learn the mysteries of the Box while preventing themselves from getting caught up in the Cenobite's sadomasochistic games.
We spoke with Adam Faison, who plays Colin, Riley's brother's boyfriend; and Drew Starkey, who plays Trevor, Riley's no-good boyfriend. The guys talked about being traumatized by the Hellraiser franchise as kids; the nerves and excitement surrounding remaking such a beloved horror classic; their favorite Cenobites, and some of their favorite practical effects and blood work from the film ("It felt like I was making a movie with my friends for Halloween!").
Hellraiser is streaming exclusively on Hulu starting October 7th.
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