Is Hellbound: Hellraiser II the best sequel in horror history? With Hellraiser back in the cultural spotlight this year — Halloween Horror Nights' 2026 and the long-awaited Hellraiser Revival game both dropping this fall — we figured it was the perfect time to revisit the film many fans consider the series' high point. Film critic Robert Brian Taylor (Collider) joins The Cinema Psychos Show to make the case for Hellbound, arguing it does exactly what a horror sequel should: expand Clive Barker's world without breaking its rules.
We break down how Hellraiser 2 deepens Julia's transformation into one of horror's most compelling villains, sends Kirsty Cotton into the Leviathan's labyrinth, and expands the mythology around Pinhead and the Cenobites first introduced in the original 1987 Hellraiser.
🩸 WHAT WE COVER
• Why Hellbound expands on Clive Barker's world instead of repeating it
• Julia's rise as the series' central villain
• Kirsty's journey through the Leviathan's labyrinth
• Doug Bradley's Pinhead and the Cenobites' expanded role
• Ranking Hellbound against the rest of the Hellraiser franchise
CHAPTERS:
Introduction [00:00]
A birthday descent into Hellbound [01:23]
Why the Hellraiser franchise keeps losing its way [03:10]
The sterile pleasures of the Hulu reboot [06:45]
How Hellbound became a horror obsession [11:09]
The sequel that blows open Clive Barker's world [18:22]
A perfect recap and Pinhead's human beginning [21:55]
Welcome to Channard's nightmare hospital [31:40]
Julia rises from the mattress [47:43]
Every road leads back to Hell [54:00]
Julia claims her place as Hellbound's true queen [57:27]
The labyrinth and the many faces of Hell [01:04:07]
The Cenobites remember who they were [01:20:50]
What Hellraiser lost after Hellbound [01:29:42]
Why Hellbound remains a perfect horror sequel [01:33:49]
Where to find Robert Brian Taylor [01:37:20]
🎙️ ABOUT OUR GUEST
Robert Brian Taylor is a film critic and editor at Collider.
Read his writing at https://rbtwrites.com/
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