Hellraiser Reboot Director Addresses Franchise's Future (Exclusive)

Director David Bruckner tells us he's still waiting to hear if more Hellraiser movies will happen.

By Adam Barnhardt

Now over a year after the latest Hellraiser reboot found itself released on Hulu, fans of the iconic horror franchise await word on the future of the property. The fans aren't the only ones waiting, with Hellraiser (2022) helmer David Bruckner recently telling ComicBook.com he's prepared to come back for a follow-up whenever he finally gets word the franchise is getting another feature.

"We've been wanting to hear from the audience and I don't know yet, but I certainly hope there's a future there, so we will see," Bruckner says."

This is far from the first time Bruckner has expressed interest in directing more Hellraiser movies. This time last year, the filmmaker said he'd be "honored" to return to the property should it welcome him back.

"I didn't ever imagine I would get to play in the Hellraiser world, so I was very fortunate to land there. I also didn't know that The Night House was based loosely on a pitch [writers] Ben [Collins] and Luke [Piotrowski] had for a Hellraiser movie," Bruckner recalled last September. "They didn't tell me that. The movie was done. And since seeing the pitch, it's true, but we were just following our inspirations with that. So no, stepping into this world, it's all things." 

He continued, "On one hand, of course, the original film is a masterpiece. And diving deeper into the world, I found myself truly in awe of what had been created, and so you want to do that justice, and you want to pay homage where it's due. At the same time, you have to respect your process. A movie is something that takes you away. It carries you off into a place all its own, and so you have to trust your inspirations at the same time. And so, of course, in making this, there's so many things to be excited about Hellraiser. This is what we could get in this film. It's easy to dream beyond these two hours in run time, and if people take to it, I would be honored to go back into this world."

A Hulu exclusive, Hellraiser garnered generally positive reviews from critics, tallying a 66-percent Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences were less favorable when it come to the movie, with the review aggregator's Audience Score sitting at 58-percent Rotten.

Bruckner spoke with us in support of V/H/S/85, which hits Shudder on October 6th.

Related:

This new sequel is described, "An ominous mixtape blends never before seen snuff footage with nightmarish newscasts and disturbing home video to create a surreal, analog mashup of the forgotten '80s."

Filmmakers who have contributed to this latest installment include Scott Derrickson (Sinister, Doctor Strange, The Black Phone), David Bruckner (The Ritual, Hellraiser – 2022), Gigi Saul Guerrero (Bingo Hell, The Purge TV series), Natasha Kermani (Lucky), and Mike P. Nelson (Wrong Turn – 2021).

Trending Now: