The Shocking Inspiration Behind The Original Saw

On the special edition of "Saw II," there's a featurette where James Wan and Leigh Whannell discuss how they came up with Jigsaw's character and, specifically, the way he forces his victims to mutilate themselves. Wan revealed that he was inspired by a real-life criminal case he heard about when he was 17. The case apparently involved a serial offender who broke into people's houses to tickle their children's feet, which made an impact on the "Saw" filmmaker. "It was the creepiest thing I'd ever heard," Wan admitted. "I was so frightened. I remember after hearing that story, I slept for the next two, three nights with a hammer by my bedside." 

The serial tickler was eventually caught, and Wan says that it was the offender's comments to the police that influenced the Jigsaw character. "The cops interrogated him and he said he didn't do this on his own. He did it because he was forced to do it, " Wan revealed. Upon further research, Whannell discovered that the criminal had been sent a jigsaw piece telling him to do it. Wan later explained that the tickler "became the template for the Zep character," who Jigsaw forces to carry out horrific acts in the first "Saw" film in order to make him look like the real killer.

Meanwhile, when they were promoting the first film, the "Saw" duo says that someone sent the crew a letter marked with a jigsaw drawing that read, "Dear friends, I liked the film haha. I like to see my work on-screen. The actor playing me was very good. I have dark hair though. Hope to see more on-screen, should ask for some money haha." It's a terrifying end to an already unnerving story, and somehow, it manages to make the entire "Saw" franchise just a little bit creepier.