Random Cenobites From The 'Hellraiser' Films By Nastiness (15 items)

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  (#1) Chatterer

  • Boogeymen: The Killer Compilation

  A fan favorite, the Chatterer Cenobite has a particularly grisly appearance and a hauntingly tragic implied backstory. His face appears to be a featureless mass of scars except for his teeth, which are exposed by wires that pull his lips back into an eternal chattering grin. His origins are perhaps even more disturbing than his appearance. In Hellbound: Hellraiser II we get a glimpse of what the Cenobites were before they became what they are, and it is revealed that the Chatterer was a little boy who had solved the puzzle box and found himself at the mercy of the Cenobites.

  Appearances: The original Chatterer Cenobite was only in Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II, where he was slain by Dr. Channard, but several similar-looking Cenobites have shown up in later Hellraiser sequels including Hellseeker, Deader, and Hellworld, as well as the 2022 reboot. 

  Origins: In the movies, we're given very little insight into Chatterer's origins, other than that he was a young boy before becoming a Cenobite.

  What Makes Them Nasty: In later films, it is revealed that the Chatterer Cenobite was especially favored by Leviathan for his ability to remake others into Cenobites, often in his own image, thus leading to the creations of other Chatterer-like Cenobites, including the Torso, "one of the most brutally altered former humans" among all the Cenobites.
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  (#2) Pinhead

  • Hellraiser Franchise

  The nastiest of the Cenobites has to be Pinhead, who has been played by Doug Bradley in no less than eight Hellraiser films. Pinhead wasn't always going to be the main antagonist of the series, though. Credited in the first film simply as "Lead Cenobite," even as the sequel was being made, the creators still planned to position Clare Higgins' Julia Cotton as the main villain. It wasn't until fans reacted to Pinhead with such enthusiasm the studio and the filmmakers realized they had a star on their hands.

  While working as the screenwriter for the 1985 film Underworld, Clive Barker had envisioned a special effect in which syringes sprouted from a person's skin. Combining that imagery with elements from nkondi figures of the Congo, he created the character who would become known as Pinhead on set, a name that would ultimately stick and become canon. As the leader of the Order of the Gash, Pinhead is the lead Cenobite, and as played by Barker's friend Doug Bradley,  he gets all the best lines. 

  Appearances: Pinhead is the only Cenobite who shows up in literally every Hellraiser movie, from the first to the most recent. In all but the latest two, he is played by Doug Bradley.

  Origins: In his previous life, Pinhead was Captain Elliot Spencer, who fought in the Battle of Somme during WWI. The bloodshed and loss of life he saw on that battlefield ultimately pushed him to seek the Lament Configuration and become a Cenobite. In Hellraiser III, Pinhead and Captain Spencer are split into two separate entitites, only to be gruesomely fused back together before the end of the film.

  What Makes Them Nasty: As the lead Cenobite for no less than 10 films, Pinhead has orchestrated all sorts of nastiness, though he may never have topped the visceral gruesomeness of his revenge against Frank Cotton at the end of the first film. When he's confronted by two security guards who are, unwittingly, about to become Cenobites themselves in Hellraiser IV, Pinhead memorably informs them that "pain has a face" and this is it.
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  (#3) Angelique

  While most of the Cenobites were once human, Angelique was a demon, the princess of hell and the daughter of Leviathan. When she was summoned to earth by  Duc de L'Isle, she possessed a female corpse and was later transformed into a Cenobite by Pinhead. As a Cenobite, she wore a slinkier-than-usual leather outfit and had the top of her head peeled open, exposing her cranium.

  Appearances: Angelique appears in Hellraiser: Bloodline where she is attempting to put an end to the descendants of Phillipe Lemarchand, a French toymaker who created the Lament Configuration.

  Origins: Angelique is unique (so far as we know) among Cenobites, in that she was never human. Her human body was part of a ritual to summon the demon princess Angelique, who was the daughter of Leviathan. 

  What Makes Them Nasty: Angelique spent 400 years trying to destroy the bloodline of Phillipe Lemarchand so they could never complete his dream of creating a sort of anti-Lament Configuration, know as the Elysium Configuration. If that's not enough, in a deleted scene from the movie, she creates several pseudo-Cenobites which lure in and knock off Lemarchand's best friend. They then present Lemarchand with a drum made from his friend's face.
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  (#4) Wire Twins

  True to their name, the Wire Twins are twin Cenobites in revealing costumes whose frames and faces are pierced with thin wires. They also have long, black, serpentine tongues. 

  Appearances: Along with Pinhead and the Torso Cenobite, the Wire Twins appear in Hellraiser: Inferno where they torment a crooked police detective named Joseph Thorne.

  Origins: The packaging of a toy line featuring the Wire Twins calls them, "Leviathan's sisters of tormented pleasures, two perfect twins in their human form who stumbled into the dark world of the Labyrinth." Elsewhere, we're told that one or both of them may have been a centerfold in their former life, "who worshiped at the altar of beauty myth but found herself wanting."

  What Makes Them Nasty: More than perhaps any of the other Cenobites, the Wire Twins seem to really relish the sadomasochistic ideals of the Order of the Gash, mixing sensual pleasure with exquisite pain.
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  (#5) Torso

  The later Hellraiser sequels are (mostly justifiably) dismissed by fans of the franchise, but they did contribute a few new Cenobites, including this variant on the fan-favorite Chatterer from the first couple of films. According to the packaging that accompanied a toy line featuring the Torso, he is "one of the most brutally altered former humans" among the Cenobites, being little more than a torso, head, and arms.

  Appearances: The Torso Cenobite appears in Hellraiser: Inferno where it is one of a handful of Cenobites (including Pinhead) who torment a unscrupulous Denver police detective named Joseph Thorne.

  Origins: According to the packaging for the Torso toy, this twisted Cenobite was created by the Chatterer "in his own image" and now searches the corridors of the Labyrinth in search of his master.

  What Makes Them Nasty: His face has been peeled back to mimic the Chatterer Cenobite, his skin is scored with gashes, and from the waist down his body is missing entirely. That's pretty nasty.
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  (#6) Female Cenobite

  • Boogeymen: The Killer Compilation

  Sure, she doesn't get many ines, but the "Female Cenobite," sometimes referred to by fans as "Deep Throat" due to the peeled-open throat wound she sports, gets to deliver some particularly chilling dialogue during her two appearances, helping Pinhead to explain to Kristy how Cenobites work. 

  Appearances: She never gets a real name, but the Female Cenobite shows up alongside Pinhead and the rest of his original crew in both Hellraiser and Hellbound: Hellraiser II. A different Female Cenobite also appears in Hellraiser: Revelations.

  Origins: The films don't give the Female Cenobite an origin, but like the other Cenobites, she reverts back to her human form when she is slain by Dr. Channard in Hellraiser II.

  What Makes Them Nasty: Because she wasn't covered over with as much prosthesis as some of the others, the Female Cenobite is the only one of the original group besides Pinhead who has any lines, meaning that she gets to say things like, "Perhaps we prefer you," when Kristy offers to lead them to Frank.
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  (#7) Dr. Channard

  Even before he is transformed into a Cenobite, Dr. Channard is no angel. Obsessed with the Lament Configuration, Channard uses his connections at the mental hospital where he works to resurrect Julia Cotton and bring home mental patients for her to feed on. He also has a puzzle-obsessed young patient solve the box for him, so that he can dodge the Cenobites who will come calling - or so he thinks. Betrayed by Julia, Channard is gruesomely transformed into a Cenobite by Leviathan, the god at the center of the labyrinth that waits on the other side of the puzzle box.

  When Kristy, the protagonist of the first and second Hellraiser films, reveals that Pinhead and the other Cenobites were once human, they try to fight Channard, but he defeats them all, making him certainly one of the nastiest Cenobites around.

  Appearances: Dr. Channard only shows up in Hellbound: Hellraiser II.

  Origins: Before his transformation, Dr. Channard was a neurosurgeon who had a lust for blood and had enjoyed dissecting animals at a young age. His obsession with the Lament Configuration and Leviathan drove him to experiment upon his patients.

  What Makes Them Nasty: Channard seems to take a vile pleasure in his new state after he has been transformed into a Cenobite, but nothing he does is ever quite as nasty as his own metamorphosis, in which wires are wrapped around his face and a dripping, phallic tentacle tipped with a whirring blade fastens itself onto his head.
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  (#8) Butterball

  As his name might suggest, Butterball is an obese Cenobite who was part of Pinhead's coterie in the original Hellraiser films. He wears round sunglasses, and when he takes them off, reveals his eyes are sewn shut. He also has a bloody gash in his stomach held open with hooks. 

  Appearances: Butterball showed up in the first two Hellraiser films and was slain by Dr. Channard in the labyrinth at the end of Hellbound: Hellraiser II.

  Origins: The films don't tell us much about Butterball's origins before he was a Cenobite, but we know that he, like the other Cenobites, was once human.

  What Makes Them Nasty: Obese in life, Butterball has taken that corpulence to disturbing lengths as a Cenobite, his skin appearing as waxy folds and bulges of flesh. His eyes are sewn shut, and a bloody gash disfigures his stomach. He was also originally intended to utter the line that ultimately went to the "Female Cenobite," when she tells Kristy "perhaps we prefer you," but the actor was under so much makeup that speech was impossible.
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  (#9) Chatterer Beast

  A doglike monster created in the image of the Chatterer Cenobite, the so-called "Chatterer Beast" was formed from human flesh to act as a pet for Pinhead.

  Appearances: In Hellraiser: Bloodline the Chatterer Beast first appears to stalk the wife of John Merchant, the descendant of the man who first created the Lament Configuration.

  Origins: The film doesn't make clear where the Chatterer Beast came from.

  What Makes Them Nasty: It's a big dog monster with chattering teeth made out of human flesh. What doesn't make it nasty?
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  (#10) Siamese Twins

  Formerly twin security guards, Mark and Michael Norrington had the misfortune of walking in on a conversation between Pinhead and Angelique. After that, they were transformed into the Siamese Twins Cenobite because Pinhead sensed they never wanted to be apart. The flesh of their faces are melded and twisted together, so that one face looks happy and one looks sad, reflecting masks that are used to represent drama.

  Appearances: The Siamese Twins Cenobite shows up in Hellraiser: Bloodline, along with Angelique and the Chatterer Beast.

  Origins: Twin brotherrs who became security guard partners, Mark and Michael Norrington were afraid of ever being separated - so when Pinhead transformed them into Cenobites, he made sure they never would be.

  What Makes Them Nasty: When the Siamese Twins Cenobite encounters Captain Edwards on the Space Station Minos, they separate briefly into two individuals and then reattached with Captain Edwards in-between them, crushing him gruesomely.
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  (#11) Barbie

  Called Barbie because he was a bartender, or because he has barbed wire wrapped around his face, or because he barbecues people - or maybe all three of those reasons - this "pseudo" Cenobite created by Pinhead in Hellraiser III seems like the replacement for Butterball, even though we have to admit that he looks kind of cool with the barbed wire and all. Plus, Molotov cocktails are a better weapon than CDs or cigarettes or cameras.

  Appearances: The Barbie Cenobite is one of the footsoldiers created by Pinhead when he comes to earth in Hellraiser III , where he is played by series screenwriter Peter Atkins.

  Origins: Barbie was formerly the bartender (also played by Peter Atkins) at the Boiler Room nightclub, and he was one of Pinhead's targets when Pinhead attacked the club.

  What Makes Them Nasty: Being wrapped in barbed wire is pretty intense. Plus, he can breathe fire.
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  (#12) Pistonhead

  "I always wanted to go further with the Cenobites, right from day one, and we've certainly done that with Hellraiser III," Special Effects Coordinator Bob Keen said in the press kit for the film. For Hellraiser III, Keen and his effects team created a new band of "pseudo" Cenobites to accompany Pinhead. The story has Pinhead being resurrected in America, where he causes a lot of havoc in a nightclub called the Boiler Room - including creating a bunch of homebrew Cenobites from the club's patrons and others who happen to be nearby.

  Unfortunately, most of these "pseudo" Cenobites came out pretty goofy, in no small part because the designs simply reflect what the Cenobite did while they were a person - the DJ has CDs sticking out of him, the cameraman now has a camera in his head. At least Pistonhead, the Cenobite formed from club owner JP, gets back to the sadomasochism that lies at the heart of the original Cenobite designs, the constantly thrusting piston in his head representing, well, we probably don't have to tell you what.

  Appearances: Like all the other "pseudo" Cenobites, Pistonhead only appears in Hellraiser III.

  Origins: Previously a sex-obsessed club owner named JP Monroe, who worked to release Pinhead from the Pillar of Souls in which he was trapped after the events of Hellraiser II. JP planned to sacrifice his ex-girlfriend Terri to free Pinhead, but when she got the upper hand on him, he became the sacrifice instead, turning into Pistonhead.

  What Makes Them Nasty: JP was a pretty bad guy in life, and Pinhead implies heavily that he slayed his own parents in order to inherit their money. As Pistonhead, we don't get to see him do much besides torment Hellraiser III's protagonist Joey, but that piston in his head looks pretty gnarly.
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  (#13) Dreamer

  When Pinhead needed minions on Earth, he created a crew of "pseudo" Cenobites, including the Dreamer Cenobite, who was formed from a homeless girl named Terri who had always longed for the ability to dream. When her boyfriend (who became the Pistonhead Cenobite) tried to sacrifice her to Pinhead, she instead overpowered him, but Pinhead made a deal with her, offering to give her the ability to dream. She took him up on his offer and, well, in her own words, "you wouldn't believe what I can dream of now..."

  Appearances: The Dreamer "pseudo" Cenobite shows up in Hellraiser III, when Pinhead uses some of his victims to create new minions to serve him on Earth.

  Origins: A homeless girl named Terri who had drifted from place to place and fallen in with JP, the owner of the Boiler Room club who discovered Pinhead after the events of Hellraiser II, Terri befriended Joey, the protagonist of Hellraiser III, only to be lured back to her boyfriend's side after a misunderstanding. JP tried to sacrifice her to Pinhead, but Terri got the upper hand and ultimately made a deal with Pinhead in exchange for being able to dream.

  What Makes Them Nasty: We guess it's hard to represent "dreaming" as a theme for a Cenobite, so instead the Dreamer looks a lot like the Female Cenobite from previous films, only with a lit cigarette - which she uses to burn people - in the hole in her neck.
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  (#14) CDhead

  Generally regarded by fans as a real low point in Cenobite design, when you mention Hellraiser III to casual horror fans, they'll usually respond with some variant of, "Is that the one with the CDhead Cenobite in it?"

  Appearances: Thankfully, CDhead only appeared in Hellraiser III , along with the other "pseudo" Cenobites created by Pinhead.

  Origins: He was the DJ at the nightclub that Pinhead attacked, slaying everyone inside. To transform him into CDhead, his own CDs rose up and went after him.

  What Makes Them Nasty: Looking like something that was designed exclusively to sell action figures in the '90s, he ejects CDs from himself and throws them at people. Beyond that, we've got nothing.
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  (#15) Camerahead Cenobite

  • Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth

  When Pinhead needed to make "pseudo" Cenobites from his targets in order to serve him on earth, he used the raw materials he had on hand. Not quite exhibiting the same fiendish creativity he had shown in other films, these "pseudos" mostly just incorporated some aspect of what they had done in life - such as the TV news cameraman who ended up with a camera in his face and utters dumb quips like "ready for your closeup."

  Appearances: Like all the other "pseudo" Cenobites, Camerahead appears in Hellraiser III .

  Origins: Daniel "Doc" Fisher was a cameraman for the same news agency where Hellraiser III 's protagonist Joey worked, and he was coming down to help her with a story when he ran afoul of Pinhead and was transformed into Camerahead.

  What Makes Them Nasty: Well, the camera in his face seems to shoot something that causes explosions. That's kinda nasty.

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