With yet another horror reboot on the horizon, it surprised no one that the upcoming Hellraiser reboot has been given an R rating for “strong bloody horror violence” and “graphic nudity”. Two staples of the horror genre, let alone the original Hellraiser series, it’s one less thing for fans of the original to worry about.
Another reboot fans weren’t exactly clamoring for, news has been pretty thin on the ground since its original announcement, but now we seem to at least be moving in the right direction regarding the Hellraiser reboot.
Straight to Hulu
Announced back in 2020, the reboot will be heading straight to Hulu sometime this year, maybe early next year. The film getting a rating would indicate sooner rather than later, but we’ve yet to hear a concrete date as of yet.
Starring Sense8’s Jamie Clayton as the Hell Priest and directed by David Bruckner, a director with a rich caliber in horror (V/H/S, Southbound, The Night House, and The Ritual, amongst others), the film is at least in good hands, with the Clive Barker attached to produce, hopefully, it’s pretty faithful in most ways to the original. Speaking about the film recently, Barker seemed to show great admiration and excitement for the latest installment.
“This is a Hellraiser on a scale that I simply didn’t expect. David and his team are steeped in the story’s mythology, but what excites me is their desire to honor the original even as they revolutionize it for a new generation.”
A producer of the film in question speaking in glowing terms isn’t exactly new to the marketing game, but let’s hope it’s genuine excitement rather than manufactured.
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What Came Before, And What To Expect
The Hellraiser franchise isn’t new to horror fans, started back in 1987 with Hellraiser, an adaptation of Barker’s own novella The Hellbound Heart. Since spawning nine sequels, the franchise is near the top of the list for most horror fans, with its portrayal of graphic violence and otherworldly realms fondly looked back upon. With the Cenobites like Pinhead, Butterball, and The Chatterer being a big part of horror fandom, it’ll be interesting to see what parts of the original mythology the reboot takes from it, and what it changes and modernizes for the modern audience.
Related: Why Fans Want Iconic Horror Franchises To Stop Making More Movies
The director David Bruckner had this to say on what audiences could expect, come its release on Hulu.
“We can’t say anything about it yet… But it is something that we are actively working towards, and it is a joy and a dream for a filmmaker like myself to dive into that world,”
If nothing else, with his previous works Bruckner has at least shown his capability of evoking terror and tension in his audience, so hopefully he’ll be taking that to his latest work, and the R rating isn’t going to hurt that either, in a franchise that relies on blood and gore, it would have been a setback if they went for anything but that.
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