I can only imagine that the studios looked at the (amusing) abomination they created in the form of "Hellraiser 3" and realized they may have lost a potential cash cow with their half baked entry. Like or hate "Hellraiser 4", there is no denying the effort put into it. It's ambitious, sometimes even innovative. However, during production, the studio clashed with the director, who left the project and ended up using the dreaded Alan Smithee pseudonym in place of his own. His film ended up being chopped apart before they even finished the shoot! I'm not sure the movie would've been a classic had the director been around to express his vision, but the pieces that are left of his work are still surprisingly effective.