It's a good time to be a horror fan, as the genre has been experiencing a thrilling renaissance for a number of years now. And as such, some of the best horror movies have returned to theaters thanks to new sequels. Following the success of Halloween and Scream, the next of these projects will be Hulu's new Hellraiser movie. Actress Jamie Clayton revealed a clear look at her version of Pinhead, and fans have thoughts.
The horror genre is built on long-running franchises, and the Hellraiser movies are no exception. 10 movies have preceded Hulu's upcoming reimagining, which will seemingly be closer to the original novella The Hellbound Heart. Pinhead will be played by Sense8 star Jamie Clayton in the upcoming movie, and she recently debuted her look on Instagram. Check it out below,
I mean, how cool is that? Just like her predecessors, Jamie Clayton looks thoroughly unsettling as Pinhead in the new Hellraiser movie. It remains to be seen how she'll play the role differently than the various other actors that have come first, but since it's a new adaptation she should presumably have some freedom. Although the internet has definitely had thoughts on this first look at Clayton's Pinhead.
Upon releasing this first look, director David Bruckner spoke to EW about the movie's casting, and bringing the first female Pinhead to life for the screen. He explained why Jamie Clayton was the right actress for the job, saying:
We felt a kind of anticipation around the fans to reimagine the character. 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.
This first glimpse at Hellraiser inspired a ton of folks to get online and share their thoughts about this new Pinhead. Some out there were psyched about the long-running horror franchise returning, especially since it's going to be a more accurate adaptation of the novella. As one person posted on Twitter,
Book accurate pinhead looks good
But it wasn't all praise and excitement online in relation to this first glimpse at Jamie Clayton's Pinhead in Hellraiser. While some took umbrage with the villain's appearance, others were concerned with just how dark this breaking image was. As one such person reacted on Twitter:
Man, I hope it's not one of those "everything's-so-fuckin-dark-I-can't-see-shit" movies...
Touche. There's been a trend lately of movies being so dark that they're almost unwatchable at points. Some examples include The Batman, Solo: A Star Wars Story, and various projects like Zack Snyder. And since this Pinhead image was a pretty dark one, we'll have to see if the entirety of Hulu's Hellraiser has this problem.
This first image from the new Hellraiser has also inspired a few fan theories about what the movie might be about. One fan posted online upon seeing Jamie Clayton, hoping that the new movie is a prequel to the franchise similar to what Prey did with The Predator. As they posted,
MOTHER?! Praying for this to be the Prey of Hellraiser
Then again, there are some folks who are preparing for the worst when it comes to the Hellraiser movie that's heading to Hulu this fall. The franchise has already been full of peaks and valleys, and one person posted on Twitter, wondering:
So.... Is this the final Nail in the coffin for the franchise?
That question has yet to be answered, but Hulu recently had a major horror hit with Prey. Although by and large no horror movie is truly dead; just give it a few years and any property could seemingly return. Just look at how the current Halloween movies performed after Rob Zombie's pair of grisly installments. As such, smart money says Hellraiser will eventually return with a new movie regardless of how the upcoming movie performs.
Hellraiser is currently expected to arrive October 7th on Hulu, just in time for Spooky Season. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
