HBO acquires series rights to Hellraiser, David Gordon Green attached
While David Bruckner (The Night House) is busy developing a new film for the Clive Baker horror franchise, HBO has struck a deal with producers Dan Farah (Ready Player One) and Roy Lee (It) for a series adaptation of Hellraiser, according to Deadline.
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Lee and Farah acquired the TV rights rights to the long-running horror franchise last June and now the plan is to created a continuation and expansion of the previously-established Hellraiser mythology, with Pinhead still remaining the center of the universe alongside the demonic Cenobites while not acting as a remake of the 1987 film that was written and directed by Barker himself.
The series is set to be scripted by genre masterminds Mark Verheiden (Daredevil) and Michael Dougherty (Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Trick ‘r Treat), with David Gordon Green (Halloween) attached to direct the pilot and several other early episodes should it get picked up for a full season.
Verheiden and Dougherty are set to executive produce alongside Farah Films’ Farah, Vertigo Entertainment’s Lee, Lawrence Kuppin and David Salzman, Panacea Entertainment’s Eric Gardner, Rough House Pictures partners Green, Danny McBride, Jody Hill and Brandon James. Farah Films exec Andrew Farah and Adam Salzman are attached as co-executive producers for the series.
Hellraiser originally told the story of an unfaithful wife who attempts to assist her dead lover in his escape from hell. Pinhead is the notable villain and one of the movie’s demons called Cenobites. The horror character is summoned using an antique puzzle box.
“For generations, [Barker’s] brilliantly twisted and imaginative Hellraiser haunted the minds of moviegoers with its searing imagery of Pinhead,” Spyglass chairman and CEO Gary Barber previously said. He also added that Goyer was the right storyteller to reimagine Barker’s original vision.
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Spyglass will finance, develop, and fast track the Hellraiser film reboot from Bruckner for worldwide theatrical distribution. Keith Levine will produce alongside Goyer via the Phantom Four banner. VP of development and production for Spyglass, Chris Stone, will oversee the project.
(Photo Credit: Getty Images)
