CENOBITES FROM HELLRAISER MOVIES

The Cenobites are demons who appear in the works of Clive Barker, including the novella The Hellbound Heart and the eight Hellraiser films. They are also mentioned, in passing, in the novel Weaveworld. They are mentioned by Immacolata who calls them, "The Surgeons from Beyond."

The term "cenobite" is an archaic Latin word meaning simply "a member of a communal religious order"; for information on historical cenobites, see cenobitic. Indeed, the original novel mentions the Cenobites as "Theologians of the Order of the Gash;" they are also referred to as "Hierophants". They can reach reality only through a rupture in time and space which is opened and closed using certain unearthly artifacts. The most common form for these artifacts is an innocuous-looking puzzle box.

The Cenobites all have horrific mutilations or body piercings. The best known of the Cenobites in the Hellraiser films is Pinhead, who appears in all eight films and is played by actor Doug Bradley. Pinhead's mutilation consists of pins that have been hammered through his flesh into his skull in a grid pattern and six open wounds on his lower torso with the flesh peeled back. Other Cenobites have much more severe mutilations.

Originally enforcers for Leviathan, Lord of Hell, Cenobites were charged with retrieving anyone who solved the Lament Configuration, also known as the Lemarchand Box, a 3"x3"x3" puzzle box, which if solved opens a gateway between our world and Hell, highly sought after by the greatest of hedonists for its promise of unparalleled pleasures. They were then directly responsible for the pleasure/pain torture of said individual.

Originally believed to have always been Cenobites since the creation of Hell, it was revealed that some Cenobites had once been human, the first four seen who had unlocked the Lament Configuration and others "recruited" by Pinhead. The rest, such as Angelique, the daughter of Leviathan, were never human at the start.

Differences between film and written descriptions

* The leader of the Cenobites, who does not appear until the end of the novella, is the mysterious Engineer. In the film series, the leader of the Cenobites (later known as "Pinhead") appears at the beginning during Frank's initial encounter with them. The title of Engineer does not appear in the film series until Hellraiser: Inferno, in which it is used for an unidentified serial killer who turns out to be the lead character's own dark-side. (A non-Cenobite inhabitant of the Cenobites' realm is seen in the first film chasing Kirsty out of Hell. Although not identified within the film, the film's credits refer to this creature as "the Engineer".)

* Pinhead's head is gridded with incisions, but his counterpart in the novella has a grid tattooed on his head. This counterpart is not the leader of the four initial Cenobites. The leader in the novella is a character whose wounded eyelids and lips are held open by hooks on chains that are woven through the bones of its skull.

Powers and abilities in the films

The physical composition of Cenobites gives them each a number of unique abilities, but there are a few traits common to all. When summoned, they seem to be able to decide exactly when, where, and by what means they will appear. In Hellraiser, the Cenobites appeared immediately in the hospital room where Kirsty called them. Later, they appeared from the darkness of the attic when she led them to their quarry. In Hellraiser II, when the configuration was solved, they caused the rooms they manifested in to take on the stonework and cyclopean properties of their native Labyrinth. They all appear to be telekinetic to a degree, able to control the hooked chains that are their trademark, as well as snatch small objects at a distance (as Angelique recovered the box in Hellraiser IV). Though not entirely confirmed, they seem to be able to summon forth their chains from any nearby shadows. They each seem to possess great strength, heightened resistance to damage, and some degree of super-natural empathy. They also tend to be rather sharp, patient, logical, and discerning.

Individual abilities vary widely. In the two earlier movies, there was little difference among them until Dr. Channard was created, presenting the ability to generate custom tentacles and spears. However, he seemed to represent an element of the shifting powers of the Labyrinth. When the Pinhead character's unhuman evil manifests in the world in Hellraiser III, it seems to have nearly unlimited and highly versatile powers. His human side suggests that he is no longer bound by the rules governing other Cenobites (suggesting others among them might have such power). He can telekinetically control vast areas, transmogrify matter, create and control fire, animate objects, and the like. In any case, he creates Cenobites in both the third and fourth movies that have powers unique to their forms, such as a man that launches razor edged CDs, a pair of twins that can crush people between their bodies, a man with a pneumatic camera eye that can impale targets, and so forth.

Cenobites In Hellraiser series

Hellraiser (1987)

* Pinhead — Lead Cenobite, The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Female Cenobite — Sister Nikoletta
* Butterball — Laslo
* Chatterer — A young boy transfigured by the Lament Configuration
* The Engineer — (note — not actually a Cenobite but a demon that stalks Hell's corridors. The Engineer is a Cenobite in the original novella.)
* Puzzle Guardian — (note — the tramp that follows the girls around is also not actually a Cenobite but an entity which protects the Lament Configuration. These were explored further in the EPIC comic series)

Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)

* Pinhead — Captain Elliott Spenser, The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Female Cenobite — Sister Nikoletta
* Butterball — Laslo
* Chatterer — The Angel of Suffering
* Channard Cenobite — Philip Channard becomes a Cenobite in Hellraiser II

Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992)

* Pinhead — Captain Elliott Spenser, The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Camerahead Cenobite — Daniel Erwin "Doc" Fisher. Formerly a cameraman for Channel 8 and Joey's friend. He was decapitated in the Boiler Room by Pinhead and remade into a Cenobite, with a camera lens where his right eye should be.
* CD Cenobite — Jimmy "See-Dee" Hammerstein. A former DJ of the Boiler Room, killed/converted by Pinhead.
* Barbie Cenobite — Richard "Rick" Bloodstone, once barman at the Boiler Room. As a Cenobite, he has barbed wire wrapped around his body and face, and he carries a glass and mixer filled with gasoline. He breathes fire, which ignites the gasoline. His eyes are shut.
* Dreamer — Terri, a homeless girl who found the Pillar of Souls for JP at the Pyramid Gallery. She was made into a Cenobite by Pinhead, with a cigarette coming out of a neck wound and the skin of her hands peeled back.
* Pistonhead — JP Monroe, the owner of the Boiler Room. A collector of strange art, he acquired the Pillar of Souls for his collection. He was among those killed/converted by Pinhead.

Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996)

* Pinhead — The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Angelique — The Princess of Hell. She was demon who arrived on Earth centuries ago, taking the skin of a girl sacrificed for her coming. She was eventually sent back, becoming the only demon to be turned into a Cenobite.
* Siamese Twins — Formerly twin brothers who worked as security guards for Merchant's office building. While doing a routine security check , they ran into Pinhead who intended to assure the two would "never be parted from each other", turning them into conjoined Cenobites.
* Chatter Beast

Hellraiser: Inferno (2000)

* Pinhead — The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Wire Twins — Leviathan's Sisters of Tormented Pleasures
* Torso
* Faceless Killer — aka "The Engineer" aka "Joseph Thorne" (note — not actually a Cenobite but a being representing Joseph's desires)

Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002)

* Pinhead — The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Stitch — Gabrielle
* Surgeon — Deacon Vranian
* Bound
* Chatterer III — The Angel of Suffering

Hellraiser: Deader (2005)

* Pinhead — The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Chatterer III — The Angel of Suffering
* Little Sister
* Stitch — Gabrielle
* Bound II
* Spike — (cut from film)

Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005)

* Pinhead — The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Bound II
* Chatterer III — The Angel of Suffering

Cenobites In Hellraiser fan films

No More Souls (2004)

* Pinhead — The Angel of Suffering, The Dark Prince of Pain
* Chatterer III — The Angel of Suffering
* Bound II

The Hellraiser Chronicles: A Question of Faith (2005)

Skankobite (2005)

* NasTcar
* Hunter
* Waitress
* Krystalbite

Hellraiser: Prophecy (2006)

* Angelique — The Princess of Hell
* Butterball — Laslo
* Spike
* Bound

-In the Extreme Ghostbusters episode "Deadliners", the antagonist monsters closely resemble Cenobites

The artwork used on this page was done by David Hartman. For more information on this artist view our "DARK ARTIST OF THE MONTH " section of this website.

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