Hellraiser (1987): Clive Barker's Film, Cast & Facts

Hellraiser (1987) is a British supernatural horror film written and directed by Clive Barker, adapted from his own 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart. It was his debut as a director. A puzzle box summons the Cenobites, sadomasochistic beings from another dimension for whom pain and pleasure are the same thing. Their leader, played by Doug Bradley, later became known as Pinhead. Made on a very small budget and shot in London, the film was a commercial success and launched a long-running franchise. It is now regarded as one of the defining horror films of the 1980s.

At a glance

Release date	September 10, 1987 (Prince Charles Cinema, London); September 18, 1987 (US and Canada)
Director	Clive Barker
Writer	Clive Barker
Based on	The Hellbound Heart (1986 novella) by Clive Barker
Starring	Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, Doug Bradley
Runtime	93 minutes
Rating	R (US, after cuts; the MPAA first gave it an X); 18 (UK)
Budget	Reported figures vary: New World agreed to fund it for $900,000, and sources cite $1 million to $3 million
Box office	$30 million worldwide ($14.6 million US and Canada)
Franchise	Hellraiser: followed by nine sequels and the 2022 reboot Hellraiser (2022)

Plot summary

In Morocco, the hedonist Frank Cotton buys a puzzle box said to open the door to a realm of unknown pleasures. In the attic of the family house, he solves it, and hooked chains tear him apart. Some time later, his brother Larry (Andrew Robinson) moves into the same house with his second wife, Julia (Clare Higgins). Larry doesn’t know that Julia once had an affair with Frank. When Larry cuts his hand and his blood drips onto the attic floor, it brings Frank back in a skinless, half-formed state.

Still obsessed with Frank, Julia agrees to help him rebuild his body. She lures men home from bars so that he can feed on them. Meanwhile, Larry’s teenage daughter Kirsty (Ashley Laurence) grows suspicious, gets hold of the box and learns what it really does.

Spoiler section: the ending

Kirsty accidentally summons the Cenobites and buys her freedom by promising to lead them to Frank, who has escaped them. Frank kills Larry and wears his skin, and he accidentally stabs and drains Julia. When he confesses to Kirsty, the Cenobites hear him and tear him to pieces with their chains. They then turn on Kirsty, who banishes them by reversing the puzzle. In the final scene, a vagrant takes the box from a fire, turns into a winged skeletal creature, and the box goes back on sale.

Production and behind the scenes

Barker had been dismayed by earlier screen adaptations of his work, and he had experience writing, directing and acting in theater. He asked producer Christopher Figg how cheap a film would have to be for a studio to trust a first-time director. Figg said under a million dollars, with a story about a house and some monsters and a mostly unknown cast. The Hellbound Heart fit those limits, and New World Pictures agreed to fund it for $900,000. Reported figures for the final budget vary.

Shooting took place in London at the end of 1986. It was planned for seven weeks but ran to nine or ten. Working titles included Sadomasochists from Beyond the Grave, and Figg suggested Hellraiser over Barker’s choice, Hellbound. Barker later joked that he did not know one lens from another. New World had him move the story to an unspecified American setting, which meant re-dubbing some English accents. Barker based the Cenobites’ look on underground S&M culture, including a visit to a New York club. Bradley could barely see through his black contact lenses. Special effects designer Simon Sayce built the delicate Lament Configuration props, and he would lie on the floor during some takes in case one was dropped. After seeing early footage, the executive producers put in more money, and some scenes were reshot with a bigger budget, including Frank’s death. Christopher Young wrote the score after New World rejected Barker’s first choice, the electronic group Coil.

Release and reception

Before the US release, Barker had to cut several shots of gore and sexual content after the MPAA gave the film an X rating. The Ontario board in Canada first banned the film, and it passed only after about 40 seconds were cut. Hellraiser opened in the UK on September 10, 1987, peaked at No. 3 and spent about 12 weeks on the chart. It earned $14.6 million in the U.S. and Canada and $30 million worldwide.

Critics were divided. In Britain, Time Out called it “Barker’s dazzling debut” and “a serious, intelligent and disturbing horror film,” and Melody Maker called it “the best horror film ever to be made in Britain.” American reviews were cooler. The New York Times was unimpressed by the cast, and Roger Ebert gave it half a star out of four, calling it “a movie without wit, style or reason.” Today it holds a 72% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Legacy and influence

Critics have since come to treat Hellraiser as a classic. The British Film Institute calls it one of the defining horror films of its decade and called Bradley’s Lead Cenobite a “movie monster for the ages.” Paul W. S. Anderson cited Barker’s work as a major influence on Event Horizon (1997). David Bruckner, director of the 2022 reboot, noted that the Cenobites’ imagery had been absorbed into fashion and popular culture. That was one reason he redesigned them for his film, with Jamie Clayton as the new Pinhead. The franchise ran to nine sequels, starting with Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988), and Bradley played the role through 2005. Barker has said he signed away the story and character rights before the first film came out, without realizing how successful it would be.

Trivia

The film credits Bradley only as “Lead Cenobite.” The crew nicknamed him “Pinhead,” and the name is first spoken on screen in Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth.
Bradley has only about eight minutes of screen time in the film.
Tony Randel worked uncredited as an editor alongside Richard Marden. He suggested Christopher Young as composer and went on to direct Hellbound: Hellraiser II.
The demo music Coil recorded for the film was later released as The Unreleased Themes for Hellraiser.
Frank’s resurrection was created partly with reverse-motion effects, building his skeleton, organs and flesh frame by frame.
Barker has said he drew on Christopher Lee’s Count Dracula for the Lead Cenobite’s cold, aristocratic presence.