The “Hellraiser” franchise includes 11 films and various comic books, merchandise and media. It centers around the demonic beings, The Cenobites, led by lead villain, Pinhead.
Actor Doug Bradley has starred as Pinhead in eight of the “Hellraiser” films. The Pittsburgh native has also narrated several songs by extreme metal band, Cradle of Filth. In a recent interview with Metal Hammer, Bradley talked about the influence of “Hellraiser” on heavy metal, and he also revealed some of his favorite metal bands.
“I mean, in [Dani Filth’s] case, he was something of a trailblazer with the kind of music that Cradle were doing, and I just love him as a guy,” Bradley said. “He’s a great performer. Where the hell he produces those two voices from — that basso profundo growl and then that falsetto — without completely wrecking his vocal cords is a mystery to me. He’s a smart writer, and that shines out. And that’s really the reason I’ve kept going back to work with him. I’ve also chatted with Corey Taylor.”
Bradley also commented on how many metal musicians are big fans of the horror genre, and Metal Hammer reminded him that Taylor knows his horror.
“Yes, he does. But they all do! I was just at the Silver Scream convention in Danvers, Massachusetts just outside Boston. It’s really a convention built around Ice Nine Kills, and I was talking to (vocalist) Spencer [Charnas] and he’s completely immersed in horror. Kirk [Hammett] from Metallica was reputed to have one of the biggest private horror collections around. It just goes to show you, folks: it’s a small, horrific world, after all.”
Bradley also talked about how the metal genre has borrowed from the aesthetic of “Hellraiser” over the years. “Well, yes, I suppose!” he said. “I’m trying to remember specifically which member of Slipknot has the Pinhead-esque mask [Craig Jones]. But when Slipknot appeared, I got a lot of people asking, ‘Have you seen this? Have you seen this?’
“Quite a lot of metal costuming seems to nod fairly heavily towards ‘Hellraiser.’ The leather, the disfiguration, the metal! The female Cenobite has that metal construction around the neck. Pinhead’s flesh is literally hooked to his costume. So, all the elements are there, I suppose.”
Alice Cooper was also once photographed with a Pinhead shirt.
“That’s one of the proudest moments of my life,” Bradley said. “I think it was a Sunday Times interview. You know, the big interview — the two-page interview that they used to do, with Alice Cooper. And I thought, ‘Well, that’s cool. Alice with his Pinhead shirt on!'”
Bradley also starred in Motörhead’s video for “Hellraiser.”
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