We’re not saying that it’s “The Shining” or anything, but as far as horror movies go, the original “Hellraiser” was something a little different. Some truly innovative imagery, some original mythology, and a nasty little mood. Unfortunately, the series has been dragged into the mud by a series of increasingly awful direct-to-video sequels, leaving the franchise just as tarnished as any other over-extended horror series, and culminating in the imminent “Hellraiser: Revelations,” denounced by creator Clive Barker, and made essentially as a way to hold on to the rights.
Having done so, the Weinsteins have been pushing ahead for a while now with a new cinematic reboot, with “The Roommate” helmer Christian A. Christiansen initially eyed to direct, before “My Bloody Valentine” and “Drive Angry” duo Patrick Lussier and Todd Farmer eventually landed the gig. It’s been in development for a year, with a PG-13 treatment being (sadly) targeted, but it looks like something hit a bump along the way, as Lussier and Farmer now appear to be off the film.
Shock Til You Drop caught up with the team over the weekend at a signing event, and the pair apparently say that it’s “unlikely” that they’ll be involved in the film going forward, which means that the film is, at present, on hold. We can’t imagine that it’ll be too long before the Weinsteins find some other horror director to take up the reins, but no one’s going to be crying over this right now; the film never seemed to be taking advantage of the B-movie charm that Lussier and Farmer have demonstrated on their previous films, and, really, who wants to see a PG-13 “Hellraiser” movie anyway? Back to the dungeon of ill-advised ideas with you!
The PG-13 rating was disproved. It was actually going to be a hard R and I\’m sort of bummed to see this canceled.
The unfortunate thing about Barker\’s film is that the budget limited his original vision. A larger budget would\’ve allowed for more exploration of the world set out in the novella, and I was excited to see Farmer and Lussier tackle this. They are certainly successful in their respective field, and although I think Hellraiser is above shticky grindhouse throwbacks, I think it would be at least interesting to see them do something new with it.
This article deserves a graphic from the first Hellraiser film… 😐