New Pinhead actor on how to be a Hellraiser

It’s kind of like a Hellraiser Halloween.

Sure, any Halloween is a good Halloween to watch a Hellraiser movie, but there’s a brand new one this year: The night house Director David Bruckner’s reboot-style sequel to the Clive Barker series, starring Jamie Clayton as the legendary Pinhead.

Clayton is the latest actor to slip on Pinhead’s hand-stitched leather boots. Polygon was lucky enough to meet Clayton and Bruckner via Zoom, where they explained what it actually takes to play a Pinhead and gave us a step-by-step guide on how to become a “Hellraiser” yourself.

[Ed. note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.]

Step 1: Check out the original Hellraiser

Image: Anchor Bay Entertainment

Clayton watched Clive Barker’s acclaimed 1987 film the night before she auditioned for Bruckner’s version, but would-be cenobites should watch it as often as they like (on Prime Video, Shudder, or free with promotions on Tubi and Pluto TV). It’s one of the best horror films of all time, as Bruckner will tell you, it’s a small miracle that it even exists.

“I’m thinking of the original Hellraiser and I find it a wonder that all these images were released in one film at once,” he says. “It came out and we had never seen anything like it before.”

After watching the original, Clayton said she had “many, many, many” discussions with Bruckner over the smallest of details, like Pinhead’s posture and voice.

“I was very grateful to David for all the time he took,” she says. “He worked in Serbia for months before either of us even arrived. David took so much time on Sundays until late at night to plan with me […] to help me get to a place where I could actually become a priest.”

Step 2: Spend half the day dressing up in costumes

Image: Spyglass Media Group/Hulu

To the HellraiserBruckner reunited with the Russell FX makeup artists who worked with him The night house and The ritual. Clayton estimated that it took between four and six hours to apply the Pinhead makeup, depending on the day, and another hour to completely remove it at the end of the day.

What did she do during this long wait? Listen to music (Nina Hagen, Depeche Mode and The Sisters of Mercy have been repeated) and unwind. Clayton says working with the Russells has been “phenomenal.”

“I couldn’t have asked for a greater makeup artist and confidante,” says Clayton. “I always say that getting your makeup done is a very intimate experience. I mean you got someone like that on your face [gestures right in front of face]. And with prosthetics, it’s a whole different level of intimacy.”

“It’s a testament to the makeup effects team because we have a lot of cenobites,” says Bruckner. “They really were on the brink the whole time. It was amazing what they were able to achieve.”

Step 3: Enter the set and surprise the crew

Image: Spyglass Media Group/Hulu

So you’ve done your research, spent your time in the makeup chair – now all you have to do is get out there and do your thing. But that’s harder than it sounds when you’re wearing so much makeup.

“I remember saying to David a few times, ‘Is any of this working?'” says Clayton. “‘Reading any of this, do I even have a facial expression?’ It’s all glued down and I can’t really move my face.”

That wasn’t a problem for Bruckner, who was Clayton’s “eyes and ears” and reassured her during filming.

“From the very first reading we saw, it scared me to death,” says Bruckner. “Pinhead is etched into our memories in so many different ways. […] We knew you couldn’t make an impression on Doug Bradley. It’s too iconic. We have to find something that makes sense to us, something personal. Jamie immediately dived into certain aspects of the character and had her own thing going. She detected a curiosity in the Priestess, a sensuality, as if there was a sense that the Priestess could to some extent indulge in her designs, whatever they may be, especially when she is holding a subject in her hands. It was really compelling for our story, but it was also kind of hypnotic for me to watch.”

Although Clayton couldn’t say it during filming, everyone else took note. Bruckner said she would become “possessed” in due course, leading to a noticeable energy on set.

“You can always feel that on the set,” says Bruckner. “A silence falls over the crowd as the crew pay their respects. Her Majesty is here. And it is her turn to speak.”

Step 4: Raise Hell

After the mental preparation, dressing and shooting, there is only one thing left – to send it out into the world. And Clayton’s excitement is hard to contain.

“I’ve been sitting here for a year and I don’t know what’s going to happen,” she says. “And finally people are starting to see it and I’m starting to get caught [up in it] and get really emotional. I was just really worried and really scared. i mean i liked it. Even David said to me after I saw it: “I’m so glad you like it.” We’re all just, you know, on pins and needles.”

Hellraiser is available for streaming Hi.