Game Changer: The Legacy of Saw

James Wan (born 26 February 1977) is a Malaysia-born Australian film director, screenwriter, producer, and comic book writer. He has primarily worked in the horror genre as the co-creator of the "Saw" and "Insidious" franchises and the creator of "The Conjuring" universe. Wan is also the founder of Atomic Monster, which has produced film and television projects. After directing the micro-budget film "Stygian" (2000), Wan made his professional feature directorial debut with "Saw" (2004). The film was a hit and launched a franchise that has grossed more than $1 billion globally. Following a period of setbacks with the underperforming titles "Dead Silence" and "Death Sentence" (both 2007), Wan returned to commercial success with the PG-13 supernatural horror-fantasy "Insidious" (2010), and went on to direct "Insidious: Part 2" (2013) and to produce further sequels in the series. In between his two "Insidious" projects, Wan directed the more traditional supernatural horror film "The Conjuring" (2013), which achieved enormous critical and commercial success and spawned a sprawling set of sequels and spin-offs collectively known as The Conjuring Universe. Wan served as the director of "The Conjuring 2" (2016) while producing subsequent films in the franchise such as "Annabelle" (2014) and "The Nun" (2018). The Conjuring Universe is the second highest-grossing horror franchise at over $2 billion. Outside of horror, Wan directed "Furious 7" (2015), the seventh installment in the "Fast & Furious" franchise, and the DC Extended Universe superhero film "Aquaman" (2018). Both grossed over $1 billion, making Wan the eighth director with two films to reach the milestone. He is the 20th highest-grossing director of all time as of 2021, with his films having grossed over $3.6 billion worldwide.

Leigh Whannell (/ˈli ˈwɑːnɛl/; born 17 January 1977) is an Australian filmmaker and actor. He has written multiple films that were directed by his friend James Wan, including Saw (2004), Dead Silence (2007), Insidious (2010), and Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013). Whannell made his directorial debut with Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015) and has since directed two more films, Upgrade (2018) and The Invisible Man (2020). Whannell and Wan are the creators of the Saw franchise. Whannell wrote the first installment, co-wrote the second and third installments, was the producer or executive producer for all the films, and appeared as the Adam Stanheight character in three of the installments. He was also the writer of the Saw video game (2009) and co-writer of the 2014 film Cooties. Description above from the Wikipedia article Leigh Whannell, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Kevin Greutert (born March 31, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for his work on the Saw franchise.

Joseph Henry Tobin Jr. (born August 7, 1942), known professionally as Tobin Bell, is an American actor and producer. He has appeared in a number of television shows and films, but is most recognized for his role as John Kramer / Jigsaw in the Saw films franchise, which has earned him five award nominations and two wins. An American film and television character actor. After years of work doing stand-ins and background work on films, he got his first major acting job in Mississippi Burning (1988) and went on to star in made-for-television films and guest star in television shows throughout the 1990s. Bell is best known as the villain John "Jigsaw" Kramer of the Saw film series. He provided his voice in two video games based on the films, Saw and its sequel, Saw II: Flesh & Blood, in which he also provided his likeness.

Eli Raphael Roth (born April 18, 1972) is an American film director, producer, writer and actor. He is part of the group of filmmakers dubbed the Splat Pack, because of their association and their focus on the horror genre. Roth is an award-winning actor, most known for his role as Donny Donowitz in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, for which he won both a SAG Award (Best Ensemble) and also a BFCA Critics Choice Award (Best Acting Ensemble).

Alexandre Jouan-Arcady (born August 7, 1978, in Paris, France), known professionally as Alexandre Aja, is a writer-director who has worked primarily in the horror genre, beginning with his acclaimed French-language breakthrough slasher film "High Tension" (2003) before making the transition to American films with his remake of Wes Craven's "The Hills Have Eyes" (2006). He has gone on to direct other notable horror films such as "Piranha 3D" (2010), "Horns" (2013), "Crawl" (2019), "Oxygen " (2021) and "Never Let Go" (2024). He is the son of French-Algerian filmmaker Alexandre Arcady.

Shawnee Smith is an American actress and musician. She is best known for her role as Amanda Young in the Saw franchise.

Cary Elwes (born October 26, 1962) is the third son born to interior designer/shipping heiress Tessa Kennedy and the late portrait painter Dominick Elwes, and is the brother of producer/agent Cassian Elwes and artist Damian Elwes. He was born and raised in London and attended Harrow. After graduating from Harrow, he moved to the US and studied drama at Sarah Lawrence College. He left school after two years to begin his film career. Cary is well respected by colleagues and fans alike and considered by many to be one of the finest young actors working today. He is interested in history and says, "It's deliberate that a lot of my films have been period pieces". He is politically active for causes he believes in, such as protecting the environment and helping Native American peoples. He is married to Lisa Marie Kurbikoff, a stills photographer.

Oren Koules (born January 31, 1961) is an American entrepreneur and film producer. He is the co-founder of Evolution Entertainment and produced the Saw film series as well as the CBS television series Two and a Half Men. Koules is also the former owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Helena Bighorns.

Mark Burg is an American film producer, manager and actor. He is the co-founder of Evolution Entertainment and produced the Saw film series as well as the CBS television series Two and a Half Men.