In May 2011, 7 students from Aaron O'Keefe's music academy near Cincinnati, Ohio, recorded a cover version of "Painkiller" at Reba McEntire's Starstruck Studios in Nashville, Tennessee.
Japanese band Babymetal performed an abridged version of the song at the 2016 Alternative Press Music Awards alongside Rob Halford, with an accompanying performance of popular Judas Priest song "Breaking the Law."