Saw II is a 2005 Canadian-American horror film, a sequel to 2004's Saw and the second installment in the seven-part Saw franchise, directed and co-written by Darren Lynn Bousman. Co-written with series creator Leigh Whannell who wrote and starred in the first film, it stars Donnie Wahlberg, Franky G, Glenn Plummer, Beverley Mitchell, Dina Meyer, Emmanuelle Vaugier, Erik Knudsen, with Shawnee Smith, and Tobin Bell. Smith, Bell and Meyer are the only actors to reprise their roles from the first film.The film features Jigsaw being apprehended by the police, but trapping the arresting officer in one of his own games while showing another "game" of eight people — including the officer's son — in progress on TV monitors at another location. It also explores some of Jigsaw's backstory, providing a partial explanation of his reason for becoming Jigsaw.After the financial success of Saw, a sequel was immediately green-lit. Leigh Whannell and James Wan were busy preparing for their next film and were unable to write or direct. Bousman wrote a script called "The Desperate" before Saw was released and was looking for a producer but many studios rejected it. Hoffman received the script and showed it to his partners Mark Burg and Oren Koules. It was decided that, with some changes, it could be made into Saw II. Whannell became available to provide re-writes of the script. The film was given a larger budget and was shot from May to June 2005 in Toronto.Saw II was released on October 28, 2005 and, despite negative reviews from critics, was a financial success, with opening takings of $31.9 million and grossing $88 million in the United States and Canada. It has remained the highest grossing Saw film in those countries. Bell was nominated for "Best Villain" at the 2006 MTV Movie Awards for his role as Jigsaw in the film. Saw II was released to DVD on February 14, 2006 and topped charts its first week, selling more than 3 million units. At the time, it was the fastest-selling theatrical DVD in Lionsgate's history.
Budget ($)
5000000.0
Gross ($)
1.47748505E8
4.47E7
Runtime (s)
5520.000000
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