49 Fun Facts About Saw

In which country did Saw's two creators write the script, only to find nobody there would fund it?

Australia passed on it, so the pair went abroad with a short film made from one of the script's scenes, and producers signed on almost at once.

What does Jigsaw's puppet ride when it appears before his victims in the Saw films?

A tricycle, an old-fashioned red one, carries the puppet into view; later films fixed him to it with magnets so that he could ride it on cue.

Why is Saw's killer nicknamed Jigsaw?

He cuts a jigsaw piece from victims' flesh when they fail his tests; in Saw II he says the shape marks what they lacked, a vital piece of the human puzzle: the survival instinct.

Which actor plays the Jigsaw Killer in the Saw films?

Tobin Bell took the part because the script's ending caught him by surprise, and he reckoned that if he hadn't seen it coming, audiences wouldn't either.

What is the name of the puppet Jigsaw uses to deliver his messages in the Saw films?

Billy is never called that on screen: the name is the one his creators and the crew use for the puppet, whose first face was built from clay, papier-mâché and ping-pong balls.

In the first Saw, what does Dr. Lawrence Gordon do to escape the bathroom?

He saws off his own foot with the hacksaw left in the room, and Saw 3D later reveals he survived by cauterising the stump on a steam pipe.

Who plays Dr. Lawrence Gordon in the original Saw?

Cary Elwes was sent the makers' short film on DVD and read the full script in one sitting; he later sued the producers over his share of the profits, then came back for Saw 3D.

Which co-creator of Saw also plays Adam, the photographer chained in the bathroom?

Leigh Whannell wrote the script as well, and during $400 worth of do-it-yourself reshoots he stood in for two other members of the cast.

In the first Saw's twist, Jigsaw turns out to have been posing as what?

The corpse on the bathroom floor stands up in the final minutes: the supposed suicide lying between the two prisoners had been their captor, listening all along.

Roughly how much did the first Saw cost to make?

About $1 million: the pair turned down bigger studio offers to keep the director's chair and a lead role, and their producers put a second mortgage on their office to pay for it.

In which city was the first Saw shot in just 18 days?

Los Angeles hosted the whole 18-day shoot at one production facility, where the bathroom was the only set that had to be built; the first sequel moved to Toronto.

At which festival did Saw premiere in January 2004?

Sundance gave it three packed midnight screenings, and the reaction persuaded Lionsgate to drop its direct-to-video plan and put the film in cinemas that autumn.

Which two low-budget hits inspired Saw's creators to fund a film themselves?

The Blair Witch Project and Pi showed them a film could be made for almost nothing; they reasoned the cheapest script to shoot would be two actors in one room.

Who plays Amanda, the survivor of a Jigsaw trap, in the first Saw?

Shawnee Smith, no horror fan, first turned the part down, calling the script 'horrific'; the director had named her on a whim, having had a crush on her since his teens.

What is the title of the instrumental theme heard over the twist endings of the Saw films?

'Hello Zepp' is named for the character Zep, though the script spells him with one P; written for the first film's finale, it was reused in every sequel.

Which former Nine Inch Nails member composed the Saw score?

The first film's score took six weeks; a Megadeth track was planned for the film but never used.

What is Zep Hindle's job in the first Saw?

Hospital orderly Zep looks like the villain until a tape reveals he was another victim, poisoned and following rules to earn the antidote.

What is the name of Jigsaw's ex-wife, who ran a rehab clinic in the Saw films?

Jill Tuck lost her unborn son at the clinic for recovering addicts where she worked; years after the divorce she is left a box holding his final instructions.

Which Saw police lieutenant is blackmailed into becoming Jigsaw's apprentice after avenging his sister?

Mark Hoffman killed his sister's murderer and dressed it up as a Jigsaw trap; the real Jigsaw abducted him for it and forced him to help build the games.

In Saw II, the house full of victims is slowly filling with what?

A deadly nerve agent gives the captives two hours to find the antidotes hidden around the house; among them is the teenage son of the detective questioning Jigsaw.

Who finally kills Jigsaw at the end of the third Saw film?

A grieving father he is testing is offered a last choice, to kill him or forgive him, and cuts his throat with a power saw; a tape then reveals that the game goes on.

Where is a cassette tape found during Jigsaw's autopsy in Saw IV?

In his stomach: the wax-coated microcassette turns up during the autopsy, and it tells the detective who plays it that the games have only just begun.

The game in Saw VI targets William Easton, an executive in which industry?

Health insurance: his company's policy of turning down claims had once denied Jigsaw himself cover for medical treatment, which is why its staff end up in the game.

In Saw 3D, Bobby Dagen is punished for what lie?

Claiming he survived a Jigsaw trap made him a rich self-help guru; his final test makes him attempt the ordeal he invented, and the hooks tear free.

Which device kills Jigsaw's ex-wife at the end of Saw 3D?

The reverse bear trap used is the original headpiece from the first film, and her killer is repaying her: she had locked him into one, which he escaped.

In Jigsaw (2017), who is revealed to be the new copycat killer?

Logan Nelson, the coroner, once mislabelled Jigsaw's X-rays, so the cancer went undiagnosed; Jigsaw judged it an honest mistake, spared him and made him his first apprentice.

Which comedian stars as Detective Zeke Banks in the Saw spin-off Spiral (2021)?

Chris Rock brought the idea to Lionsgate himself, wanting to try horror, and served as an executive producer as well as its star.

The Jigsaw copycat in Spiral (2021) targets which group?

Corrupt police officers are picked off one by one by the hero's own rookie partner, whose father was shot for agreeing to testify against a dirty cop.

In the tenth Saw film, Jigsaw travels to which country for a supposed miracle cancer cure?

Mexico is where he pays for a miracle operation at a clinic outside the capital, then finds no scar under his bandages: the surgery was faked, and the traps come out.

Which Saw film was the first to win generally positive reviews, scoring about 80% on Rotten Tomatoes?

Saw X put Jigsaw himself back at the centre, in a story set between the first two films, and was directed by the man who had edited six of the earlier ones.

As of 2025, which Saw film is the highest-grossing in the series worldwide?

Saw III took about $164 million worldwide on a budget of roughly $10 million; no later entry, not even the 3D one, has matched it.

In 2010, Guinness World Records named the Saw series what?

The most successful horror franchise in history was the title announced in July 2010, three months before a seventh film billed as the final chapter, which it was not.

Which UK attraction opened the roller coaster "Saw – The Ride" in 2009?

Thorpe Park's coaster hauls riders up a 100-foot vertical lift and drops them at a beyond-vertical 100 degrees, a fall it advertised as the steepest in the world.

Which Japanese company published the two Saw video games?

Konami picked up the first game when its original publisher went bankrupt, and hoped Saw would become a horror series to stand beside its own Silent Hill.

The 2018 Saw chapter of Dead by Daylight added which character as a playable killer?

Amanda Young joined the game as a killer called The Pig, named for the mask she wears; a detective from the first film was added as a survivor.

The 2003 short film used to pitch Saw is often referred to by what nickname?

Saw 0.5 is the fans' name for the short the creators shot from one scene of their script to win over producers; it was later included on the uncut DVD.

Which VH1 reality show had actresses competing for a role in Saw VI and Saw 3D?

Scream Queens gave its first winner, Tanedra Howard, a part in Saw VI and its second, Gabby West, one in Saw 3D; Howard's character survived and came back too.

According to the makers of the Saw films, the traps are what?

Real working objects, not CGI: a writer said a scalping chair really had gears that turned, and one of the most dangerous was a water box in which an actor held his head under for real.

Which production company bought Twisted Pictures' stake in the franchise in June 2025?

Blumhouse bought out the producers who had made every Saw film, while Lionsgate kept its half; the deal brought the first film's director back into the creative fold.

Which Saw detective, played by Danny Glover, becomes obsessed with catching Jigsaw after his partner dies?

David Tapp is thrown off the force after his partner's death and keeps watching the home of his chief suspect, convinced the doctor is the killer.

Roughly how much did the first Saw gross worldwide?

About $100 million worldwide made it one of the most profitable horror films since Scream, and a sequel was approved straight after its opening weekend.

The Saw II: Flesh & Blood video game was released for which consoles in 2010?

Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 owners got it on 19 October 2010, ten days before Saw 3D reached cinemas: the game was timed to ride the film's release.

Which low-budget horror hit beat Saw VI to number one on its opening weekend in 2009?

Paranormal Activity, already weeks into its run, took first place with $21 million; Saw VI's $14 million was the weakest opening the series had yet seen.

Which former New Kids on the Block singer plays Detective Eric Matthews in Saw II?

Donnie Wahlberg plays the detective whose teenage son is among Jigsaw's captives, and he came back to the role in later Saw films.

What was John Kramer's profession before he became the Jigsaw Killer?

Civil engineer: flashbacks in Saw IV show him as a successful one with a wife and a child on the way, the life whose collapse turned his skills to building traps.

Which drug addict's actions cause Jigsaw's wife to lose her unborn son in the Saw films?

Cecil slammed a door into her while robbing the clinic where she worked; Saw VI reveals that Amanda had put him up to the robbery, a secret later used to blackmail her.

Which star plays Marcus Banks, the retired police chief and father of the hero, in Spiral (2021)?

Samuel L. Jackson joined the Saw series as the hero's father, a former chief whose past catches up with him when he goes after the killer alone.

Which 2004 film gave Lionsgate a bigger opening weekend than Saw's $18.3 million?

Fahrenheit 9/11 came to Lionsgate after Disney ordered its Miramax arm to drop Michael Moore's documentary; it opened to $23.9 million that June.

Which publisher released the 2005 prequel comic Saw: Rebirth?

IDW published the one-shot to promote Saw II, telling how John Kramer became Jigsaw; Saw IV later rewrote much of that backstory on screen.