October 23: Clive Barker talks new HELLRAISER
HELLRAISER fans spent their weekend in either a state of dribbling puzzlement or utter elation following last Friday’s announcement of a new Pinhead film. If you’re now catching up, to sum up the drama in one word: remake. Yes, Dimension is moving ahead with a redux of the ’87 film, and Clive Barker is back to pen the update (for his reasons, see that news item). Fango happened to catch up to the man last night during the Screamfest Awards dinner (where Barker accepted a Lifetime Achievement nod, pictured above), where he also revealed that his latest novel, THE SCARLET GOSPELS (which will chronicle Pinhead’s demise), is now weighing in at 3,000-plus pages.
With a definitive end to this project in sight soon enough, where does that leave room for Barker to pen that new HELLRAISER—especially with so many other irons in the fire? “When I’m done with GOSPELS, I’ll begin writing HELLRAISER 1 while I’m doing the paintings for ABARAT part three,” Barker laughs, the insanity of such an undertaking not lost on him. “I just wouldn’t be at peace with myself if I gave this [remake] writing gig to somebody else, and I’ve always had in the back of my head what I wanted to do. There are things which are going into the movie which I’ve had tucked in my brain for years.
“I haven’t talked to anybody else [involved in the original] about this,” he adds, instantly answering those fans pondering Doug “Pinhead” Bradley’s place in the new film. “I’m going to write it and see how it goes. I’m hoping Doug will be back [but] this will be a different Pinhead.” That said, will the new HELLRAISER reflect any themes, characters or events revealed in GOSPELS? “Oh yeah, of course!” Barker teases. “Do you really think I wouldn’t do that?” —Ryan Rotten
