David Bruckner Reveals The Secrets Of Hellraiser's Puzzle Box

The "Hellraiser" franchise has been churning out films since the release of 1987's original, though it wouldn't be a stretch to say that the later films didn't exactly inspire as much hype as earlier entries did. But that looks set to change with the upcoming reboot, however, as studio Spyglass Media is set to give fans a modern retelling of the story. Its marketing campaign has certainly been effective thus far, as fans have gushed over the latest "Hellraiser" trailer.

The film, which will premiere exclusively on Hulu, seems to be focusing big time on the famous puzzle box that's appeared in other films, and the trailer shows off the newest iteration of said box in a big way. The puzzle box has always been a mysterious and frightening object in the movies and the short story, "The Hellbound Heart" by Clive Barker, that inspired them. Now, however, the "Hellraiser" reboot's director David Bruckner has revealed some of the secrets of his version of the device.

During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, "Hellraiser" director David Bruckner dove deep into what it was like to try and modernize the franchise in a big way. But he also revealed the secrets of the puzzle box that will be featured in the film, and what exactly makes it work. "Specifically, it's the six iterations of the box and how those represent the extent of human experience, which are explored alongside the Cenobites," Bruckner said. "thought that was a wonderful expansion of the mythology and something we hadn't seen before."

This definitely seems like a big widening of the lore in a new and exciting way, especially in the way it connects to humanity. How that will be explored remains to be seen, but it's a fascinating way to enhance the mythology. Bruckner revealed that he extensively studied the previous 10 films in the franchise, as well as the source material itself, and tried to look for ways to do something fresh while staying true to the spirit of "Hellraiser." 

Interestingly enough, he also made it clear that the boxes that appear in the film are all done with practical effects, though some CGI was used to enhance certain aspects of the film. Still, the goal was always to keep things believable. "In horror especially, CGI can really pull you out of the experience," he said. "You really need that extra 10 percent of belief when you're watching something to really ingest the anxiety and the fear of a particular image. Your lizard brain has to believe, so to speak."