Hellraiser (2022 film)

Hellraiser is a 2022 supernatural horror film directed by David Bruckner, with a screenplay by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski, from a screen story co-written with David S. Goyer. It is a reboot and the eleventh installment in the Hellraiser franchise, based on the 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. The film stars Odessa A'zion as a young woman recovering from addiction who ends up with a mechanical puzzle box that can summon the Cenobites, a group of sadomasochistic humanoid beings who thrive on pain being pleasure. Jamie Clayton, Adam Faison, Drew Starkey, Brandon Flynn, Aoife Hinds, Jason Liles, Yinka Olorunnife, Selina Lo, Zachary Hing, Kit Clarke, Goran Višnjić, and Hiam Abbass appear in supporting roles.

Plans for a Hellraiser remake were publicized in October 2007, when Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo were reported to be directing, with Barker producing and Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton writing the script. After Maury and Bustillo left the project, Todd Farmer and Patrick Lussier were attached, with production slated for an early 2012 release. However, following the release of Hellraiser: Revelations (2011) to secure continuing rights, Farmer and Lussier were no longer involved. By 2018, after the critical and commercial success of Halloween, Miramax had confirmed plans for new Hellraiser installments. The film was green-lit in early 2019, with Bruckner directing from a script written by Collins and Piotrowski, while the project moved to Hulu with Spyglass Media Group and Phantom Four Films. Filming took place from September to October 2021.

The film was released in 2022, first during Fantastic Fest 2022, then throughout North America via Hulu, and finally throughout the United Kingdom and globally via Spyglass and Paramount Pictures. The film received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, with some deeming it an improvement over its predecessors and the best since the original 1987 film; it was praised for its new take on the series, its faithfulness to the tone of the source material and Clayton's performance, while being criticized for its rushed character development and runtime.