First look at trans actor Jamie Clayton as Pinhead in remake of camp horror classic Hellraiser
Jamie Clayton as Pinhead in Hellraiser 2022. (Hulu/Twitter)
A reveal trailer for the blood-curdling Hellraiser reboot has finally been unlocked with a first look at Jamie Clayton as Pinhead.
The Hulu original movie stars trans actress Jamie Clayton as the iconic, masochistic villain Pinhead who leads a group of pain-obsessed beings called the Cenobites that feed off of the suffering of others.
The petrifying trailer, which was released by Hulu on Tuesday (20 September), shows various victims solving a puzzle box known as the Lament Configuration which, once solved, allows the Cenobites to enter the world.
From the master of horror Clive Barker, experience #Hellraiser on October 7. pic.twitter.com/0k1iWHMXmc
— Hulu (@hulu) September 20, 2022
One by one, the puzzle solvers are picked off in increasingly violent ways while Odessa A’zion’s character Riley explains how the puzzle box works.
It eventually shows off Clayton donning the terrifyingly cool new Pinhead look for the first time as she asks a final victim: “What is it you pray for?”
Fans instantly jumped for joy at the adaptation’s faithfully camp horror vibes and the iconically petrifying Pinhead redesign, with an appropriately edgy poster to boot.
“Omg Yes!! [Jamie Clayton] just reached HORROR ICON status!” a comment in the trailer’s replies said. “Need to watch this ASAP!”
The film is directed by The Night House‘s David Bruckner and will star Brandon Flynn, Goran Visnjic, Drew Starkey, Adam Faison, Aoife Hinds, Selina Lo and Hiam Abbass.
It is currently set for a 7 October release date exclusively on Hulu for US audiences, while a global release is not yet confirmed.
Clive Barker, who wrote The Hellbound Heart and directed the original Hellraiser films, is also working on the project as a producer.
Bruckner said that having Barker on the project “has been such an honour” and that his involvement has helped actualise “the incredible universe he created so long ago” in an interview with Empire.
Barker also added: “Having seen some of the designs from David Bruckner’s new Hellraiser film, they pay homage to what the first film created, but then take it to places it’s never been before.
“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 honour the original even ad they revolutionise it for a new generation.”
Clayton has also been excitedly posting about the film on her social media account in an iconically chaotic queer way. The star has exclaimed her excitement for everything Hellraiser-related since the announcement, from magazine covers to a Twitter Pinhead emoji.
https://twitter.com/MsJamieClayton/status/1571976396096032768
News that she had been cast as Pinhead first arose in October 2021 after the actress posted an image of her holding a Lament Configuration puzzle box on social media.
“Demons to some. Angels to others,” the Sense8 star said in a tweet that also linked to a Deadline article detailing her inclusion in the project.
The 1987 cult classic became a huge hit upon its release, with a particular following from the queer community at the time.
Barker, who is gay, told The Guardian that a lot of his designs were based on things he had seen in S&M clubs, adding: “There was an underground club called Cellblock 28 in New York that had a very hard S&M night. No drink, no drugs, they played it very straight.
“It was the first time I ever saw people pierced for fun. It was the first time I saw blood spilt. The austere atmosphere definitely informed Pinhead: ‘No tears, please. It’s a waste of good suffering!’”
