Event Horizon was clearly influenced by Hellraiser when it put horror in space, but could there be more to it than that? Could Event Horizon and Hellraiser even exist in the same universe?
Hellraiser, based on the book The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker, was released in 1987 and changed the face of horror. It introduced the world to not only a new kind of body horror, but also a vision of Hell very different from traditional ideas. In many ways, it raised the bar on horror filmmaking, not to mention setting the character Pinhead loose on popular culture.
Event Horizon came out ten years later in 1997, with a premise similar to Ridley Scott's Alien, but with more overt horror elements. Although some saw it as a ripoff of ideas that had already been done before, it has become something of a cult classic. Unlike other sci-fi films such as Blade Runner and 2001: A Space Odyssey, its reputation is based not so much on its quality as a stand-alone piece, but in what is emulates from other films. As it begins, it feels a bit like Solaris and borrows entire shots from both Alien and The Shining. And yes, much of its imagery and dialogue come from or are at least highly influenced by Hellraiser.
In Event Horizon, things go horribly wrong for a crew isolated in space when it turns out that one of the crewmembers, Dr. Weir, has built a warp drive that opens a doorway into Hell. Because of this, crewmembers are tortured by visions from their pasts. Dr. Weir, on the other hand, goes into Hell itself and emerges with supernatural powers, having embraced its glory. His body is physically changed as well, his eyes sealed shut and his face covered in jagged wounds. Dr. Weir's transformation is all too similar to the process of becoming a cenobite in Hellraiser.
If the starship and space elements are removed from Event Horizon, the plot and message are the same as Hellraiser. Lamarchan's Lament Configuration in Hellraiser opens a portal into Hell where cenobites (or demons) emerge to drag the unsuspecting away to be tortured. In both films, disfigurements of the flesh are a right of passage into Hell and a mechanism created by human hands condemns its victims. Those who embrace it, such as the cenobites in Hellraiser and Dr. Weir in Event Horizon, return talking about pleasurable and more-insightful states of being. For these reasons, it's quite possible both films could exist in the same universe.
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