WARNING! This article contains spoilers for Hulu's Hellraiser!Hulu's Hellraiser features numerous Easter eggs and nods to the original, and in so doing has successfully demonstrated the most effective way to reboot a franchise: expanding and refreshing the originally established lore in a modern setting while paying tribute to the franchise throughout. The Hellraiser series follows the story of a mysterious puzzle box that, when completed, unleashes a band of deformed, sadomasochistic hell demons who brutally torture and murder any mortal in their path. Known as the Cenobites, this band of horrifying monsters is led by the enigmatic Pinhead in their mission to discover the pleasures of pain and torment. Returning in David Bruckner's reboot, the Cenobites are now hunting down a recovering drug addict, Riley, and her associates, as they desperately try to learn the secrets of the puzzle box and return the demons to Hell, following and yet updating the themes of the original movie.
Pinhead has finally returned to the screen in an incarnation that fans quite frankly deserved since the myriad of subpar Hellraiser sequels plagued the franchise. As with the Halloween soft reboot, Hellraiser has clearly been crafted with fan consideration, and as such, offers several delightful references to the original franchise. Many of these Easter Eggs are appropriately stomach-churning, while others are so subtle, only die-hard fans will likely notice. This kind of attention to detail and reverence for the source material is arguably the reason for the success of Hulu's Hellraiser, even garnering the approval of original Pinhead, Doug Bradley. Here's a look at every Hellraiser franchise Easter egg and reference in Hellraiser 2022.
Same Words, Different Pinhead
The show-stopping performance by Jamie Clayton as Hellraiser during his confrontation with the main character, Kirsty. This line is also repeated in Hellraiser IV: Bloodlines by the cenobite Angelique. Doug Bradley's Pinhead follows this with the claim Cenobites are, "explorers in the further regions of experience," which is repeated subsequently by Jamie Clayton in 2022's Hellraiser, when Pinhead is talking with Riley on the bridge. Another iconic line is echoed in the reboot, "no tears please, it's a waste of good suffering" from the original became "save your breath for screaming" in the Hellraiser reboot.
The Chatterer Has a Thing for Fingers
One of the most unpleasant visuals from the original film is surprisingly absent of gore. During the confrontation with Pinhead, one of the cenobites, The Chatterer, inserts his fingers into Kirsty's mouth. The Chatterer returns in Hulu's Hellraiser, alongside several new Cenobites, first glimpsed while Riley and Trevor are having sex. As Trevor places his thumb into Riley's mouth, the horrifying Cenobite appears. This references the sexual themes of the original and demonstrates the dichotomy between the physical violation and sensuous nature of the original franchise.
Hellraiser's Infamous Flayed Corpses
After arriving at Voight's compound, Riley stumbles upon the ghost of her brother Matt. As they embrace, Matt's body is revealed to be skinless, displaying his muscular system beneath. Fans will recognize this skinless presentation from Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II as how both Frank and Julia appear until they regain their fully reformed fleshy visage. Frank goes through several iterations of this, until the bloodied, flayed corpse - which would become the most recognizable form, often seen throughout the Hellraiser franchise after Pinhead whips the skin of his victims.
"Jesus Wept" - New Cenobites, Old Villains
One of the most iconic lines from the original Hellraiser is not spoken by Pinhead. Frank speaks the line as his face is stretched and pulled by Pinhead's chains before ultimately exploding. This climactic scene is recalled in the physical appearance new Cenobite, The Masque, whose skin has been pulled from his face and stretched over a circular, medical apparatus. It also bears a resemblance to Voight's transformation into a Cenobite at the conclusion of Hulu's Hellraiser.
The Gasp
Another Cenobite which recalls classic Hellraiser iconography is The Gasp. This new Cenobite is an amalgamation of Deep Throat (also known as Female Cenobite) from Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II and Angelique from Hellraiser IV: Bloodlines. The Gasp sports Deep Throat's slashed neck wound and facial piercings and Angelique's head-to-shoulder chains.
The Blade on the Puzzle Box
The blade that snaps out of the puzzle box and cuts the in order to absorb their blood in 2022's Hellraiser reboot also appears in Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth. The protagonist uses this blade to dispatch Pinhead in the same way The Chatterer is stabbed in the reboot. Blood absorption is also a feature of the Pillar of Souls, which features heavily in Hellraiser III, and, like the puzzle box in Hulu's Hellraiser, is connected with feeding demonic powers.
Angels and Demons
Religious themes are abundant throughout both the original franchise and the new Hellraiser. This is hammered home in the original Hellraiser when Pinhead, after his classic "regions of experience" line, says the Cenobites are "Demons to some, angels to others." This is referenced in the remake when Voight's assistant says Voight called the Cenobites angels, but she considers them to be demons.
"What's Your Pleasure?"
In Voight's compound, where Hellraiser's ending unfolds, Trevor sits down at a bar and offers Nora a drink, asking, "What's your pleasure?" This is a direct quote from the original series. It is the very first line in Hellraiser, spoken by the merchant who Frank buys the puzzle box from, who then reappears on the Pillar of Souls to repeat the line at the very end of Hellbound: Hellraiser II. Several references to pleasure permeate the whole franchise, Pinhead even imploring Kirsty to "taste our pleasures."
Hellraiser's Multiple Joey's
While the Cenobites are perhaps the most obvious recurring characters, Hellraiser 2022 also references other figures from the past. For instance, the man tricked into opening the puzzle box at the beginning of Hulu's Hellraiser is named Joey. Joey is also the name of the protagonist in Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth.
Pinhead's Head Pins
Also repeated from Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth is the scene in which when Pinhead pulls pins from their own head. Both Bradley's and Clayton's Pinhead perform this act, though deploy the removed pins in a somewhat different manner. Bradley's Pinhead pierces his hands to resemble the stigmata, while in 2022's Hellraiser, Jamie Clayton's Pinhead inserts the pins into a victim's throat.
