Hellraiser FAQ: Q1: What is a "cenobite"? A1: A cenobite is a demon from the realm known to us as Hell [Servants of 'Leviathan' - the "Satan" like figure], thought to be, more specifically, the "jailors" of 'Leviathan' by some. However more likely to be Explorers who, if anyone tries to open the box, take back with them to their realm (Hell/Leviathan's Labrinth) to impose pain, sensation, extremity beyond all ill imagination on them ['them' being the captors from the other realm - the box player e.g. Frank from Hellraiser]. They possess no humanity [human 'qualities' as such] or remorse and appear to be "dead" in every sense of emotional value, but still retain physicalities of human beings - humanoid appearance, speech, movement. However other life forms such as dogs can become cenobites as seen in Hellraiser IV: Bloodline. "Pinhead" is a "cenobite" and appears to be the leading member throughout the series except for the time he is challenged by new cenobite Channard - and defeated too for that matter, but Pinhead returns and Channard disappears into the shadows, not to be seen in either HR 3 or HR 4 to regain his role… Q2: Who was "Pinhead" before he became a "cenobite"? A2: Pinhead was actually a normal human being before he became the atrocity he is in the films. And apparently not an evil or unsavoury person who deserved the pain inflicted upon him, but just an unfortunate individual who "played with the box". His name was Elliot Spencer and he was a Captain in World War One. He played with the box and opened something which changed him for eternity. His head of hair was shaven, a grid of squares engraved into his skull with some kind of torture tool designed and created by Hell's "Engineers" and then a nail was driven into his skull at each point where two separate lines on the grid met [on his head]. His blood was sucked dry via a tubing system purged into his vein system and replaced with a liquid of no warmth or life, just emptiness and numbness and he became a symbol and tool of pure evil and effectively of 'Leviathan'. He became a pain monger thirsty for inflicting the same kind of pain his past self received for playing with the box, he became "Pinhead". Q3: Does playing with the box just have negative repercussions? Or does it also have good consequences as well? A3: As far as the Hellraiser movies are concerned playing or tampering with the puzzle box would only result in bad consequences, being the appearance of some scary looking demons - e.g. Pinhead, Butterball, Chatterer etc - who are going to "tear your soul apart" and so on. However there is also good consequences too in my opinion. I feel where there is good there is evil and vice versa and the only reason we haven't seen any positive "heavenly" examples in the actual movies is simply because they are horror movies and about horrific demons sucking life and feeling from victims with incredibly imaginative visual images and concepts. Anything otherwise would be very out of place to say the least. "Angels to some, demons to others…". Q4: If Pinhead is so powerful how was he and his three Cenobite side kicks defeated in the finale of Hellbound by a sole new Cenobite - Channard - ? A4: Pinhead was having serious issues at this point in the film, he was presented with his past, his humanity, the fact that he once felt and had emotion. Qualities which he, at that time, had been taking away from other beings. He learned he was once somebody else and this was a big blow to his killing performance. Being the leader of his merry little band, once Pinhead hesitated so did his soldiers who also began to recall past virtues. Hence giving the extreme advantage to Channard who has a new found occupation which, it appears, he had taken to very well and with great enthusiasm.