Pinhead
Pinhead is a fictional horror character who appears as the main antagonist in the eleven Hellraiser films, played by Doug Bradley in the first eight films.
Fictional character biography
Pinhead can be recognized by the pins he has in his head, hence his name. His origins are explained in the film Hellbound: Hellraiser II.
Pinhead was originally a man named Elliot Spencer. He was a captain for the British Expeditionary Force. After witnessing many deaths in the war, Spenser developed post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and survivor's guilt. As a result of this, he lost faith in God, for letting these deaths happen, and in humanity, for being cruel enough to kill itself. Spenser decided to wander the Earth to find himself. He eventually ended up in India, where he found the Lament Configuration, a puzzle box which, if solved, can open a portal to Hell. Spenser solved the puzzle and as a result, was turned into Pinhead and, somewhat ironically, wanted to kill the human race for being so cruel.
Pinhead controls a group of demons, known as the Cenobites to help him carry out his murders. His method of killing is mainly by tearing people apart using hooked chains. He also enjoys sending people to a world of eternal suffering, instead of killing them.
He is eventually defeated by being sent back to Hell.
Filmography
A tattoo of Pinhead.
- Hellraiser (1987)
- Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)
- Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992)
- Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996)
- Hellraiser: Inferno (2000)
- Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002)
- Hellraiser: Deader (2005)
- Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005)
- Hellraiser: Revelations (2011)
- Hellraiser: Judgment (2018)
- Hellraiser (2022)
Pinhead is played by Doug Bradley in Hellraiser 1-8, He's played by Stephen Smith Collins in the 9th film and Paul T. Taylor in the 10th film, all due to Bradley rejecting to reprise his role. Bradley says that he's still opened to play Pinhead again, he's just waiting for the right time, Bradley also claimed that he would really like to play Pinhead in a movie adaptation of The Scarlet Gospels.
Remake
In the upcoming Hellraiser Remake, Pinhead will be a woman, played by Jamie Clayton. In the original novel The Hellbound Heart, it was implied that Pinhead was a woman.
In other media
Pinhead is a playable DLC character in the video game Dead by Daylight. Pinhead was added to the game in August 2021.
