Other Media - Current Projects
Raising Hell: The Visions Of Clive Barker
...Inspired by an interview with Clive which he filmed in April 2009 for the Dream The Impossible commercial project, Joe Berlinger embarked on the creation of this documentary and has been accumulating material in recent months. With plans to capture further material at a convention in March 2010, Berlinger's project has continued to progress and a trailer is now being presented on his site.
Next Testament
...Sparked by a collaborative photoshoot between Clive and Mark Miller, the story of Next Testament (with its title refreshed from the former 'New Genesis') was developed and is set to be published as a 12-issue comic series by Boom! Studios. Written by Mark and with art by Haemi Jang (who also worked on Hellraiser: The Road Below) the series is set to hit shelves in May 2013, with pre-orders for Issue 1 now available in comic stores and direct from Boom! Studios. Cover art below by Goni Montes with B-cover art by Ben Oliver...
Clive : "We're making something that is a radical re-reading of ancient structures. It does have the word Genesis in the title, after all. That should be a dead giveaway. I love the idea of stories being about great beginnings and terrible endings."
Clive Barker creates a dark and biblical 'New Genesis'
By Brian Truitt, USA Today.com, 11 February 2013
Mark Miller : "[The basic concept is what] if God were to come back and tell you how we all got it wrong and what everything really meant."
Clive Barker creates a dark and biblical 'New Genesis'
By Brian Truitt, USA Today.com, 11 February 2013
Matt Gagnon (Editor-in-Chief, Boom! Studios) : "He's sort of going back to Earth and seeing everything for the first time, so he's having all these new experiences; what's really interesting about his story is how the world reacts to his judgment and seeing the world through his eyes."
Clive Barker creates a dark and biblical 'New Genesis'
By Brian Truitt, USA Today.com, 11 February 2013
Mark Miller : "I was fresh off my stint as the writer for Hellraiser and Clive and I work incredibly well together so we were looking for what our next project would be. We'd actually been kicking around ideas for New Genesis for quite some time and it was the right thing at exactly the right time. I was a free agent, BOOM! was asking Clive for original content, and the stars aligned.
"This is something that Clive and I sort of came up with together. I volunteered to be a living canvas for Clive and, when he was finished painting me, what we had was Wick, the primary antagonist of New Genesis. So he's entirely Clive's creation, but from that moment on, both Clive and I were obsessed with finding out who this character was and what his intentions were. Through tossing ideas back and forth, we came up with a brutal story that really stuck with both of us. And as it turns out, Wick's intentions are less than benevolent. Any more and I risk saying too much, so you'll have to read if you want to find out the rest."
Mark Miller on creating a 'New Genesis' with Clive Barker
By Blu Gilliand, FEARnet.com, 4 March 2013
Ross Richie (CEO, Boom! Studios) : "The funny thing about Clive's New Genesis is that it was actually what we got together with him for. Hellraiser came out of the New Genesis discussions. We were talking and talking, and he felt very comfortable. So he said, 'Let's hold on this idea. Why don't we do Hellraiser instead?' And he's so proprietary on Hellraiser that it felt so good. The first time I went over to his house, you think about 'What's this meeting going to be about?' and in your wildest dreams there's no way you think you're going to get Hellraiser. Not right out of the box. So we were talking about doing original projects first, but it's funny how the timing works out."
Richie & Sablik Discuss The Evolution of BOOM!
By Kiel Phegley, Comic Book Resources.com, 6 March 2013
Mark Miller : "As for the story itself, it's huge, so it could really only fit a 12 issue arc. If the title tells you anything, we are sort of inventing our own mythology here. Or... possibly the mythology is inventing us. One never really knows when it comes to a story this powerful."
Some Revelatory Thoughts from Mark Miller
By Phil & Sarah Stokes, 12 March 2013 (note - full text here)
Matt Gagnon (Editor-in-Chief, Boom! Studios) : "For the new Clive Barker series, New Genesis, I found this incredible interior artist, a Korean artist called Haemi Jang. She did a miniseries for us Brandon Siefert wrote called Hellraiser: The Road Below. She's amazing. I gave her her first comic book work ever. She's going to draw this 12-part series and I think she'll be a revelation. People have never seen her before. That's what I'm passionate about, finding new creators...
"We're not doing a lot of [limited incentive issues]. In fact the only one I can think of right now that's a little higher is for New Genesis with Clive Barker. He painted an original cover for the first issue. We're actually going to bring the copies over to his house and he's going to sign all of them. It's a pretty rare, limited item. That's going to be a higher incentive."
BOOM! Studios Editor-in-Chief Matt Gagnon Talks Sales, Series and Success
By Andy Khouri, Comics Alliance.com, 15 March 2013
Filip Sablik (Boom! Studios) : "We also announced a new Clive Barker series launching in May. This is the first time Clive has created and written an original series that launched as a comic book first. It's a real honor to be working with someone of Clive's caliber to begin with, but to have him trust us with launching a new property is really exciting. That one's called New Genesis."
BOOM! Studios' Ross Richie & Filip Sablik Talk to ICv2
By [ ], ICv2.com, 19 March 2013
Ross Richie (Boom! Studios) : "I think the best way to describe [New Genesis] is something that fans of Preacher will enjoy. The way that we pitch it is there's a billionaire who's on walkabout and finds an archaeological dig. There's a tomb with a stone that's sealing the contents and he opens it, even though it clearly is not supposed to be opened. When he opens the tomb, there's a strange person in there who says he is God. We get to see Clive Barker writing about the Old Testament God unleashed on Earth and interacting with modern society. There'll be a lot of chaos and mayhem that ensues."
BOOM! Studios' Ross Richie & Filip Sablik Talk to ICv2
By [ ], ICv2.com, 19 March 2013
Unearthed: The Hellraiser Saga
...Clive is contributing to this comprehensive documentary project on the Hellraiser series. First news of this broke in February 2010, followed the next month with news of Clive's involvement, including sharing the creative process of designing a brand new cenobite. Stefan Hutchinson is directing with our good friend Ryan Rotten on writing duties and shooting apparently got underway the following April. No news since then, save a cryptic tweet from Ryan in July 2012...Ryan Rotten : "Camelot Entertainment Group and MasiMedia are in production on Unearthed: The Hellraiser Saga - an exhaustive documentary on the Clive Barker-created franchise that thrives across various mediums.
"Stefan Hutchinson is directing and I'm writing this beast of a project that will run about 90 minutes but will contain hours and hours of bonus features that delve into the Hellraiser films, comics and more.
"Today, we're happy to announce that Clive Barker is involved in the project and creating a new Cenobite for the documentary. Being Barker's first Cenobite in over a two decades to make it on film, this retrospective will include the complete transformation of a Cenobite from conception to form."
Barker Creating Cenobite for Hellraiser Documentary
By Ryan Rotten, Shock Till You Drop, 16 March 2010
Anthony Masi (Producer) : "This retrospective will be different than the ones we have done for other horror franchises, because the creator, Clive, will be imbuing the project with original and exclusive artwork that will help tell our story. This is something everyone is excited about. Clive's work in the horror genre shares a unique vision that has many complex layers."
Barker Creating Cenobite for Hellraiser Documentary
By Ryan Rotten, Shock Till You Drop, 16 March 2010
Stefan Hutchinson (Director) : "When I was originally thinking about how to approach the material, I came up with the idea of doing it almost as a narrative - as a character explores the universe, we do so with him and find out at the same time as he does. I wanted the character to follow the path of Doctor Channard in the second film - somebody who becomes a Cenobite. At this time, I was simply going to sketch out a new design myself, because I really didn't think we'd get that level of involvement from Clive. Anyhow, Ryan approached him about doing it and he was all for it, which is kinda amazing!"
First Word on 'Unearthed: The Hellraiser Saga'
By Robg, FEARnet, 29 April 2010
The NECA Toys Hellraiser Series
...Having now created three series of 7" Cenobite/Hellraiser character models, together with a growing number of deluxe and variant models (see NECA Models ), the anticipation has been growing for that possible Fourth Series. However, These plans were delayed, temporarily, to make way for a unique collaboration between NECA and Clive Barker - the Hellraiser Cenobite Lair.Despite reports to the contrary from the New York Fall 2005 Toy Fair, NECA have stated (see below) that they have neither announced nor confirmed a fourth Hellraiser series. What is clear, however, is that a Boxed Set Engineer is currently slated for release in 2006. Figures.com report from the recent 2006 Toy Fair that the set will potentially include a Kirsty figure and may incorporate her hospital room and hallway to connect to their Cenobite Lair...
What is perhaps more exciting is the news that NECA are also celebrating Clive's publication of the ultimate Pinhead story in 2007 by turning their attention to the cenobites of The Scarlet Gospels, with Barker writing back-stories for each figure, as he did for McFarlane's Tortured Souls and Infernal Parade series...
The success of the Chatterer III bust has also led to the development of a lifesize Pinhead bust - originally planned for a possible 2005 release.
Latest news is of a Pinhead figure as part of NECA's limited edition Cult Classics Hall of Fame - in development now for release in 2007 (see below...)
Not content simply with models, NECA's licence includes every kind of merchandise imaginable - from lunchboxes to prop replicas - together with their 'Head Lites' and 'Head Knocker' series. Look out for lines of Hellraiser clothing...
NECA have a dedicated Hellraiser site featuring upcoming products and pre-production images at www.hellraiserthemovie.com but head over to www.necaonline.com for an early look at forthcoming products...
"The Scarlet Gospels stuff won't come until I deliver Scarlet Gospels, but they wanted to do one last definitive Hellraiser 'Clive Barker-verified' scene so that you'd have all four of the Cenobites in the scene at the top of the Cottons' house and they've done a really nice job with it so I agreed to be part of that. It irritated me a little that all that stuff was getting done - and getting done very nicely, I thought the NECA stuff was very lovely - and that I couldn't be a part of it. And I guess it was just miscommunication because as soon as I spoke to Randy over at NECA I immediately liked him and we got on famously! I have a few of them to sign for the limited editions and so forth, but yes, that's definitely happening."
The Lazarus Muse: Nights Of Magic, Days Of Gore
By Phil and Sarah Stokes, 2 June 2005 (note: full text here)
Randy Falk : "We have a new exclusive figure planned for later this year - hopefully around Halloween. Like Chatterer II this figure will be offered at the various conventions we attend and through the Hellraiser Collector's Club. We will also make every effort to make them available to collectors outside the US through other means."
Answers
By Randy Falk, posted at Movie Maniacs Asylum, 23 March 2004 (note - full text online at www.mm-asylum.net)
Randy Falk : "We announced this line at Toy Fair and now we are ready to reveal more. NECA's Horror Mini Busts will
start shipping around June of this year. Expect to see all of your horror genre favorites with a new Mini Bust introduced every 4-6
weeks. Each Mini Bust is made of resin and features insane amounts of detail along with bases that are specific to each character.
"Yes - Pinhead will have real metal pins in his head - over 100 of them! And real metal chains with his base!!"
NECA Horror Mini Busts
By Randy Falk, posted at Movie Maniacs Asylum, 7 April 2004 (note - full text online at www.mm-asylum.net)
Randy Falk : "Pinhead Mini Bust: Expect to find this limited edition resin mini bust in stores later this November. A brand new sculpt featuring the combined talents of Ray Santoleri and Kyle Windrix bring the Prince of Pain to life."
[Hellraiser] Pre-Halloween Treats!
By Randy Falk, e-mail newsletter, 29 October 2004
Randy Falk : "We have been working on the functioning lament for over a year - very tricky to pull off. They use five different versions in filming since it is so problematic... We are still working on it and we have more Hellraiser goodness coming so it will happen but not until it is perfect."
Chat Transcript: Randy Falk of NECA
By Johnny Butane, Dread Central, 4 November 2004 (note - full text online at www.horrorchannel.com)
Russ (Movie Maniacs) : "As for Series 4, you may be waiting a while. While Randy definitely does not discount the possibility of Series 4, they are working pretty Hardcore on Cult Classics right now as you've seen from everything at Toy Fair, and as was alleged in the article, they have some things under development from Barker's new Hellraiser Novel."
Where Is Hellraiser, Series 4?/ Hellraiser Playset From NECA!
By Russ, posted at Movie Maniacs Asylum, 25 April 2005 (note - full text online at www.moviemaniacs.net)
Randy Falk : [Re. Report of Engineer in Hellraiser Series Four] "We have not announced or confirmed a Series 4 at this time. We have confirmed we are working on an Engineer Boxed Set for release sometime in 2006. The Engineer would be a separate stand alone item - not part of a series."
Hellraiser Series Four
By Randy Falk, by e-mail to Revelations, 14 November 2005
>Randy Falk : "I wanted to give you the news first that later this Fall NECA will release a limited edition Cult Classics Series entitled
Hall of Fame. This collection will be produced in limited quantities and is comprised of characters that were previously only available in deluxe
boxed sets or in some cases we have sculpted new pieces to make some of the figures different from versions previously released...
"The new version of Pinhead features the original Pinhead figure body from Series I with new chest deco and
the weapons from Hellbound Pinhead. Pinhead comes with an interchangeable head that features his Elliot Spencer likeness from the
end of Hellraiser II and a brand new custom display base that can be connected to the Clive Barker's Hellraiser Cenobite Lair Playset.
This is the first time Pinhead has been part of the Cult Classics line."
Cult Classics Hall Of Fame
By Randy Falk, NECA MySpace.com, 22 June 2006 (note - full text online at www.myspace.com/necafans)
IDW Projects - Dark Delicacies
...Steve Niles - Clive's long-time collaborator from the days of Arcane and Eclipse and, of course, the creator of the awesome 30 Days of Night among other treasures - has announced he's hoping to adapt Haeckel's Tale for a new comics anthology drawn from the two volumes of Dark Delicacies stories edited by Del Howison and Jeff Gelb.Steve Niles :
"I had been invited to write stories for the first two Dark Delicacies anthologies. And at the same time I'm looking at what people are doing in horror comics, and every time anyone does an anthology there, it's a nod to EC. So I talked to Del Howison, and I'm saying, 'Look, you're editing this book where you've got Stephen King, Clive Barker, Peter Straub, David Schow, you've got all the hard core horror writers. Why don't you do a version of what you're doing in the books in comics? I'll help you out. I know what I'm doing with artists and getting it to IDW.'
"So I guess I'm really 'producing' the comics. Really what I'm trying to do here is help Del, and just get a solid horror anthology out there that's on the level of the books....
"I'll be adapting, hopefully, Clive Barker's and at least one per issue."
Steve Niles' Supernatural Summer
By Kiel Phegley, Comic Book Resources, 29 July 2008 (full text at www.comicbookresources.com)
IDW Projects - Torakator
IDW's Chris Ryall has announced that he also has firm plans to adapt Everville and The Damnation Game as well as, 'many of [Clive's] upcoming projects, from movies [Clive]'s developing and financing himself to The Scarlet Gospels, his final Pinhead tale, to some of his back catalog as well.'
The IDW site has a wealth of content that's well worth checking out.
See our pages on IDW's Thief of Always and Great and Secret Show adaptations here...
December 2007 sees Chris Ryall announce (see below) the next project to hit the blocks - Torakator. Co-written by Clive and Chris, this is an original title which the pair have been considering since the success of The Great And Secret Show graphic novel series.
"I'm hoping we all get to work on The Great and Secret Show and Everville. I'd love Sacrament as a comic project. I mean, you know how much I love comics. They've always been a part of my life. I'm sitting here in my library surrounded by books and comics! And painting and image-making has always been a part of my life, so it's definitely something I want to be doing with you guys again, as soon as possible."
An Interview With Clive Barker
By [ ], The Thief Of Always graphic novel, Book 3, May 2005
"I am delighted to be working with IDW, adapting some of my works could be a massive undertaking which I know IDW will meet head on. One I am most looking forward to is a planned adaptation of The Great and Secret Show, a very visual novel of violence, sex and intimations of Apocalypse. I can't wait to see the result, and no one is better suited to deliver then IDW."
Press Release
By [ ], IDW Publishing, 5 July 2005
"I had always wanted to do the Great and Secret Show mythology-the 'Quiddity' mythology, if you will-with Eclipse
Comics way back when. They had done some beautiful adaptations of the Books of Blood, and they actually started on
an adaptation of The Great and Secret Show years ago when they went under... But the story is a very visual story, and
lends itself not only to obviously being depicted visually, but, and this is aimed in your particular direction, to expand the
mythology beyond The Great and Secret Show and Everville, and the third book to come, into other areas. I think the idea
of the Dream-Sea is something that could be explored further. I have always wanted to explore this world in comics, and
see an artist as we have use beautifully presenting the imagery to show this world and perhaps use it as a jumping-off
place for further exploration.
"I'm not one of those people-you know I'm not one of those people who sort of has an, 'oh, comics are beneath me'
attitude-you know, tomorrow's Wednesday, and that's new comics day. I take real pleasure in the medium. I'm a
53-year-old guy, but last night, I had a choice between taking a big, solid handful of backissues to read or a novel, and I
said 'fuck it, I'm gonna read comics.' Now, I wonder how many 53-year-olds still grab a handful of comics to read at night.
I bet you it's more than we think."
Talking Comics With Clive Barker
By Chris Ryall, Newsarama, 3 February 2006 (note: full text online at www.newsarama.com)
"I'm doing another collective project with IDW because I really liked what they did with The Great And Secret Show. I think they
did a great job on a very difficult project...
"Yeah - [it's an original project] I can't talk about it right now - well, just because the contract isn't signed, and I'm always a little
superstitious... Chris and I are going to do something - I gave him an idea which addresses the life of the story. People never talk
about the politics of it as opposed to the, well... let's just leave it that way. But I feel, strongly feel, the urge to address the
political issue of why are we telling this story..."
Hellfire And The Demonation
By Phil and Sarah Stokes, 7 September 2007 (note - full text here)
"I have gone to [IDW] with a proposal for a 12-issue, completely original story which I have now titled and I just wanted you to
have the title and the announcement rights of the project. It's called Torakator. What and where and how Torakator is, is
secret right now...
"This is interesting actually... I, in a way, pitched this to Chris [Ryall]: he wanted to adapt something else
and he came up to the house, he lives in San Diego and he came up to the house to talk about what we would next do. I
said, well, before we get into sort of other novels, can I pitch something? So I laid it out for him, a half-hour pitch maybe and
his first question when we were done was, 'Why?' and I said, what do you mean, 'Why?' He asked why I would give him a
new story that could be a book or a movie. And I said the future of comic books depends on having unique work, I said I love
this idea and I very much want it to become a work of art and I have great faith in both Chris and Gabriel. The trouble, the
detail that Gabriel put into the creation of Quiddity and all the various pieces of The Great and Secret Show are extraordinary
and I thought, you know, you guys deserve an idea I'm really passionate about, I said, and we're going to start off with
something you'll love and not just be warming up something. And so that was my answer to 'Why?'"
Pivotal Voices: Was, Is And Will Be
By Phil and Sarah Stokes, 11 April 2008 (note - full text here)
Chris Ryall (IDW) : "The chance to work with a true talent like Clive and bring new life to his existing works, as well as to offer comic extensions of his upcoming movies and some new, original projects besides is definitely a highlight of my tenure at IDW."
Press Release
By [ ], IDW Publishing, 5 July 2005
Chris Ryall (IDW) : "The artist I wanted [for Great and Secret Show] is a guy named Gabriel Rodriguez... "I started to lay out the samples for Clive. Gabe's was first, which, I suppose, was me stacking the deck just slightly... I started to reach for the next sample when Clive said, 'This is our guy. I want him, and only him.' I tried to hide my smile. He agreed it'd be fair to look at all the other samples, just to see if he passed someone better. He liked what others had to offer, and thought some might be good for future projects (in the middle of '06 will be Damnation Game, and I've already got a good, established comic writer signed up for that one), but he never faltered in his belief that Gabe was the guy to make this project happen."
The (Hopefully) Great And (Not-So) Secret Show, Part I
By Chris Ryall, Movie Poop Shoot, 10 October 2005 (note - full text online at www.moviepoopshoot.com)
Chris Ryall (IDW) : "Personally, as far as Clive's stuff goes, TGASS is the one I most wanted to work on (along with Everville, and I'd love to do a sort of 'Tales of Quiddity' book, too). But I also think Imajica would be great. That was the first Barker book I ever read. No idea how an adaptation would work, but if I survive TGASS, I think I could handle it... "
Great and Secret Show
By Chris Ryall, Forum post, www.idwpublishing.com, 1 June 2006
Chris Ryall (IDW) : "Before I left [town] last week, Clive Barker asked me to co-write a brand-new project with him. Which is an amazingly flattering thing to hear, let me tell you. So now we're gonna write the Great American Graphic Novel together, just you wait and see."
Detox
By Ryall, MySpace.com, 2 September 2007
Chris Ryall: "I'll be hanging with Clive Barker at Mysterious Galaxy this Thursday, for his Mister B. Gone signing. I'll be bringing the first copies of The Complete Great and Secret Show collection, both in TPB form and hardcover, too... Maybe Clive will talk a little more about our upcoming new comic series that we're co-writing (which just feels ridiculous to even type, I have to say)."
Call Your Mom And Tell Her You Love Her
By Ryall, MySpace.com, 12 November 2007
Chris Ryall: "That's right, Torakator (Tor-ah-kah-tor, not tora-cater). Coming in 2008 from Clive Barker and Chris Ryall. Created by Clive,
co-written by both of us. Actual co-writing. An all-new epic series about which I will say no more for a while. Although I'm excited as hell.
Torakator...
"Torakator. Say it out loud - it's fun to say."
Torakator
By Ryall, MySpace.com, 5 December 2007
