ROTTEN TOMATOES: Weinsteins' Hellraiser Remake Has Its Writers

Weinsteins' Hellraiser Remake Has Its Writers

Dunstan, Melton climb aboard the reboot.

by Jeff Giles | February 19, 2008

Hollywood's never-ending remake party had to take a brief hiatus during the writers' strike, but now that the lights are back on in Tinseltown, studios are moving forward with their plans to reboot all the franchises you know and love...like Clive Barker's Hellraiser, for instance.

ShockTillYouDrop reports that Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton, writers of Feast, Saw IV, and Saw V, have signed on to pen The Weinstein Company's forthcoming Hellraiser remake. According to the report, TWC has the new Hellraiser penciled in for January 9, 2009, on account of it being "evident [that] directors Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury were never going to make the initial (unrealistic) September bow."

A horror remake...coming out in January. Not exactly the most promising setup, but we've learned never to count out those crafty Weinsteins, so we'll reserve judgment for now (and draw a little Pinhead on our calendar's 1/9/09).

Source: ShockTillYouDrop

Related Items

Movie:	Feast
	Saw IV
	Saw V
Celeb:	Clive Barker
	Patrick Melton
	Marcus Dunstan
	Alexandre Bustillo
	Julien Maury

(1-17 of 17 posts) | Reply

rustdog writes:
on Feb 19 2008 05:57 AM

The biggest problem with Feast was the script and it had lots of problems. Why do they even try?

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John Z. Delorean writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:08 AM

Not exactly the guys I would be checking for to get a halfway decent script done. I'm sure they'll just be rehashing ideas from the other 20 hellraiser movies anyway.

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LordVapor writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:08 AM

This will not even be something that I will be waiting for on DVD...

Didn't they say all they needed to with the first 14 Hellraiser movies??

How about a Police Academy/Hellraiser Crossover movie. Police Academy 6 Demons On Patrol??? That could work. lol.

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Elixor writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:22 AM

I think they should remake Hellraiser 31 first.

Seriously though, I've liked some of the later direct-to-DVD Hellraiser movies. I can't think of the names of them off-hand, but they weren't all bad. Remaking the original is really going to be hit or miss. I don't like the writer's resumes, we'll see.

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Elixor writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:24 AM

As far as long-running series crossovers, how about Hellraiser/Leprechaun. Pin-head steals the Leprechaun's gold and then forces him to kill-himself after preaching endlessly to him. "There is no gold, only flesh!"

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Gimy writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:27 AM

this should be one of the easier remakes because there really wasn't much to tell about in the original. but then 'gain...Halloween should have been pretty simple as well and that was horrible. it was a very 80's, simplistic, kind of horror. that doesn't always translate nowadays. i want a Leprechaun remake...or a Children of the Corn. they're already doing Child's Play so...they've pretty much hit on all my favs, combine midgets and country people...two things that scare the crap out of me, and i'll be happy

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Synyster_Gates writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:45 AM

No! First, to many damn remakes of classic films, and second. Halloween. Need I say more? Plus, they guys behind the two newest Saw films? Good god. Feast was an alright film. The Wienstiens suck! I would rather see them make Kevin Smiths horror film. (Which I am waiting for impatiently) The first three Hellraiser flicks are classics. How dare Hollywood tarnish such film classics. I would rather see Sam Raimi make his new Evil Dead film with Bruce Cambell, and an Evil Dead remake. Sam said we would take charge a lot on that one. MAn, Hollywood sucks!

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BigEarn writes:
on Feb 19 2008 07:18 AM

In reply to this comment (#1586329)
Hellraiser was a terrific horror movie - I agree. Saw 4,5 writers? Jesus Christ, this is why I watch mostly documentaries and cooking shows anymore. I'm only freaking 34 years old and I watch cooking shows......and on primetime TV no less. And of course, Beerfest...like 20 times.

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cahbauer writes:
on Feb 19 2008 08:07 AM

I can't see how anyone could or would want to try to remake Hellraiser.

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TombstoneHellHound writes:
on Feb 19 2008 09:32 AM

I'm still trying to figure out why Hellraiser needs the remake treatment. Let's be honest you can't replace Doug Bradley as Pinhead. And its not his fault the film makers ran out of fresh ideas. Although his role was limited in Inferno when you actually understood the story the full mystique of Pinhead was realized. After Inferno though they got unwatchable.

Now the first Hellraiser is a genuine classic. We're not sure how the uncle escapes from hell but what hunts him down is much more interesting. Hellraiser is one of those films that can be enjoyed because of its subtleties. I would hate to see such a great film ruined by a modern update. I guess its a good thing we have the classic masterpiece on dvd

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mcquadjp writes:
on Feb 19 2008 12:52 PM

Hellraiser remake? Really? Well, for all the gore-hounds, you'll likely get another bucketful of blood and guts without any story. Or scares. Or atmosphere. Can I just watch Saw IV again? Oh wait, I fell asleep during it.

I think Hollywood has given up on scaring people. Remakes, by their definition, don't scare because the story has already been told (The only caveat is when Hollywood remakes an obscure film (or one so old that nobody remembers the plot anyway)).

Oh, the good ol' days when horror movies tried to scare you. Reminds me of when I walked to school uphill both ways in the snow...

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CenoBiteMe2000 writes:
on Feb 19 2008 02:12 PM

I'm guessing that this time around, in a very poor attempt to appeal to a younger audience and ruin a beloved classic, the cenobites are going to be unleashed from a computer screen instead of a Lemarchand's Configuration. We follow a group of emo college students as they get hold of pirated software from a torrent site (or log onto , that when executed, opens a gateway to hell. Think of Carrie meets Strangeland (or any teenage slasher/revenge flick made in the past 20 years); the Ceno-Bytes (pun intended) wreak havok and revenge on the students/fraternities/jocks that ridiculed them earlier. In the end, the gateway is closed, and similar to the ending of Poltergeist, the entire campus is sucked into hell.

I'd like my $20 million now, please.

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rsav1976 writes:
on Feb 19 2008 02:34 PM

In an ideal world, this "remake" would instead be a true adaptation of "Hellbound Heart" which was the book that Hellraiser was based on. It had some stark character differences compared to the movie and Pinhead was sort of an androgynous cenobite not the main focus, and was only in the story for about 1/10 of it. It was a much darker story about infidelity and the boredom that plagues some people who want to keep pushing the boundaries and definitions of pleasure/pain. I think that with the right producers and writers, it could be a great remake, but I have zero faith the the Weinsteins have the guts nor the desire to make a horror film that takes any chances and veers too far from the original, and that's sad. It seems all these Hollywood suits want is to water down great horror brands. I wish Clive Barker would stop this from ever happening, but I'm not holding my breath. At least they can't take the original away from me.

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TombstoneLawDog writes:
on Feb 19 2008 02:48 PM

I'm just here to go on record: I am NOT TombstoneHellhound.

Though I applaud his taste in names and generally coherent, spell-checked post.

Re Hellraiser movie: I think RT said it best-
A horror remake in January.

f#cking 'WHEEE'
This is my *excited* face.
[makes face that does not remotely indicate excitement or any human emotion other than staggering lack of interest]

Wasn't there a point where the Weinsteins took chances? Or is this the new 'balls-free' Weinstein company? I mean, I'm sorry you guys got nailed with 'Grind House' but c'mon...

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tomwaitsjr writes:
on Feb 19 2008 03:28 PM

Pinhead will be played by Tobin Bell

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Hurts2Watch writes:
on Feb 19 2008 05:12 PM

In reply to this comment (#1587158)
And you guys, I know no one wanted to say it out loud due to the grinding heart ache of hearing this, but there WILL be CGI and plenty of it! I'm even betting on a few scenes of a zoomed-in badly done Pin-Head CGI face thats screaming a la The Mummy/I Am Legend...Yes thats right, the zoomed-in screaming badly done CGI face, the cinematic equivalent of shaking a doll in a babies face and saying "looky hherree!! Loooggy-looggyy-looggyy! Looggy at tha scawy dowllyy!!"...one of the most disrespectful images a movie can subject its audience to.

Sssiigghhh... I just got depressed.

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cuteview writes:
on Feb 19 2008 06:12 PM

What's next...a remake of "Harry and the Hendersons?" What the Hell...Hollywood some movies just need to be left the F-CK ALONE!!!

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