LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: James Wan moved to Western Australia with his family when he was eight years old. By that time, he had already fallen in love with movies thanks to Steven Spielberg and Tobe Hooper's haunting horror classic 'Poltergeist' (1982). That feature has an attribute that would later become a pillar of Wan's work, but getting there wasn't without its challenges.
When Wan first met young Australian actor-screenwriter Leigh Whannell at Melbourne's RMIT University, their shared passion for horror genre movies inspired them to create the independent horror smash 'Saw' (2004). Wan, 46, talked with The Hollywood Reporter about how the idea for 'Saw' ignited the $104 million franchise.
Wan and his co-creator Whannell saw their careers take off after the successful horror franchise destroyed the indie sector and took over the horror industry. Jigsaw, the notorious serial killer, tortures his numerous victims through traps and plots in 'Saw', which follows his intricate preparations.
'What about a movie with two people stuck in a bathroom?'
According to Wan, the inspiration for 'Saw' occurred from a shower and in the bathroom. Jigsaw may have achieved fame, but 'Saw' actually has a somewhat humble beginning. Wan had a shower and thought about two individuals and a toilet, and voila! That is how the infamous killer got his start.
He said, "It was the mid-to-late ’90s, and Leigh and I really wanted to cut through the noise of all the indie movies that were coming out at that time, so we spent a whole year thinking about story ideas. And one day, as I was in the shower, I thought, 'What about a movie with two people stuck in a bathroom with a really grungy toilet? They have no idea how they got in there, and they’re chained to opposite sides of the room.'"
Wan added, "So I only knew the rough setup, and then I knew how I wanted the story to end with Jigsaw, this person who put them in that situation. And so I pitched a really simple setup and finale to Leigh, and he was like, 'Oh, wow. Let me think about it.' So he went off, and he came back to me with Saw."
'Saw' grossed $104 million at the box office
On a budget of just over $1 million, 'Saw's box office receipts in 2004 totaled $104 million. Talking about how successful 'Saw' was, Wan said, "When 'Saw' became this mainstream indie hit, life did change in a big way. It put Leigh and I into the spotlight as these two young guys with genre film ideas that were worth rolling the dice on.
He added, "So we were very fortunate that our first movie was such a big film and has gone on to become one of the biggest franchises ever, not just in the horror genre, but Hollywood in general. So we’re very thankful for what the Saw franchise has done for us."
'Poltergeist' set James Wan's path to the horror genre
Wan explained the origins of his fascination with eerie dolls, claiming that it all started when he was a little boy after watching Tobe Hooper's 1982 horror masterpiece 'Poltergeist'. Wan said, "Poltergeist left the biggest impression on me, and it scared the hell out of me. I was about seven years old when I saw it in theaters, and I was still living in Malaysia, before my family emigrated to Australia, when I was eight."
He added, "It made me realize the power of the horror genre, but also the magic of filmmaking in general. I don’t think I was the appropriate age to see the film. It definitely scarred me for life and made me terrified of dolls and clowns, but since then, I’ve become extremely fascinated by creepy dolls, as you can see in all my work."
In a different conversation with Vulture, Wan admitted that he was grateful for 'Poltergeist'. He said, "Poltergeist was the movie that made me terrified of horror films and made me fall in love with horror films. It terrified me and gave me a good perspective on the power of cinema, and then the power of the horror genre itself."
