Tobin Bell
| Tobin Bell | |
|---|---|
.jpg.htm) Bell at the 2007 Scream Awards |
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| Born | Joseph Tobin August 7, 1942 (1942-08-07) (age 67) Queens, New York, USA |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1980–present |
Tobin Bell (born Joseph Tobin; August 7, 1942)[1] is an American film and television actor. He is best known as John Kramer, a.k.a. Jigsaw/Billy the Puppet in the Saw franchise.
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Life and career
Bell was born in Queens, New York and raised in Weymouth, Massachusetts. His mother, Eileen Bell Tobin, is a British-born actress.[1]
He studied liberal arts and journalism in college, with the intention of becoming a writer and entering the broadcasting field. He credits hearing a seminar by Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy at Boston University with inspiring him to enter acting.[2]
Bell is a member of the Actors Studio [3] and has done work throughout his career ranging from background extra to small parts in prominent television shows and movies. Bell has portrayed a variety of characters such as a doctor or music store owner, but currently often plays villains or serial killers, and is distinguished in all his roles by a very soft, deadpan voice.
He was cast as a hitman in Sydney Pollack's The Firm and as Unabomber Theodore John Kaczynski in the made-for-TV movie Unabomber: The True Story. Most recently he has played the role of the nefarious "Jigsaw", a serial killer who wants others to appreciate the value of life via twisted "games" in the 2004 film Saw and its sequels, Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, Saw V, and Saw VI. He provided his voice for the Jigsaw character in the Saw video game as well.[4]
Aside from appearing in made-for-TV movies, Bell has guest starred in many TV series such as Charmed, Seinfeld, La Femme Nikita, The X-Files, Stargate SG-1, Alias, The West Wing, The Pretender, The Sopranos, NYPD Blue, 24, ER, and Walker Texas Ranger.
He received MTV Movie Awards nominations in 2006 and 2007 for "Best Villain", and a winning nomination for "Best Butcher" in the Fuse/Fangoria Chainsaw Awards.[5] On October 3, 2009, Bell was given the "Best Villain in a Film Series" title at the Chiller-Eyegore Awards.[6]
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes | Award & Nominations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Tootsie | Waiter | uncredited | |
| The Verdict | Courtroom Observer | uncredited | ||
| 1988 | Mississippi Burning | Agent Stokes | ||
| 1989 | An Innocent Man | Zeke | ||
| 1990 | False Identity | Marshall Errickson | ||
| Loose Cannons | Gerber | |||
| Goodfellas | Parole Officer | |||
| 1992 | Ruby | David Ferrie | ||
| 1993 | Boiling Point | Roth | ||
| The Firm | The Nordic Man | |||
| In the Line of Fire | Mendoza | |||
| Malice | Earl Leemus | |||
| 1995 | Serial Killer | William Lucian Morrano | Direct-to-video | |
| The Quick and the Dead | Dog Kelly | |||
| 1996 | Cheyenne | Marshal Toynbee | ||
| 1998 | Brown's Requiem | Stan the Man | ||
| Overnight Delivery | John Dwayne Beezly | |||
| Best of the Best: Without Warning | Lukast Slava | |||
| 1999 | The 4th Floor | The Locksmith | ||
| 2000 | The Road to El Dorado | Zaragoza | Voice | |
| 2001 | Good Neighbor | Geoffrey Martin | ||
| 2002 | Power Play | Clemens | ||
| Black Mask 2: City of Masks | Moloch | |||
| 2004 | Saw | John Kramer/Jigsaw/Billy the Puppet | Lead role | |
| 2005 | Saw II | John Kramer/Jigsaw/Billy the Puppet | Lead role | Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Villain Nominated - MTV Movie Award for Best Villain Nominated - Scream Awards for Best Villain |
| 2006 | Saw III | John Kramer/Jigsaw/Billy the Puppet | Lead role | Nominated - MTV Movie Award for Best Villain Nominated - Scream Awards for Best Villain |
| 2007 | Buried Alive (2007 film) | Lester | ||
| Decoys 2: Alien Seduction | Professor Erwin Buckton | Direct-to-video | ||
| The Haunting Hour: Don't Think About It | The Stranger | Direct-to-video | ||
| Boogeyman 2 | Dr. Mitchell Allen | Supporting role | ||
| Saw IV | John Kramer/Jigsaw/Billy the Puppet | Lead role | Nominated - Scream Awards for Best Villain | |
| 2008 | Saw V | John Kramer/Jigsaw | Lead role | Chiller-Eyegore Awards for Best Villain |
| 2009 | Saw VI | John Kramer/Jigsaw | Lead role | |
| 2010 | Highway 61 | Devil | Also executive producer Post-production |
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| Saw VII | John Kramer/Jigsaw | Filming | ||
| Bump | Sheriff Lundy | Announced |
Television
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | The Equalizer | Episode: "The Day of the Covenant" | |
| 1989 | Perfect Witness | Dillon | TV film |
| 1990 | Alien Nation | Brian Knox | Episode: "Crossing the Line" |
| Jake and the Fatman | Vic | Episode: "More Than You Know" | |
| Broken Badges | Martin Valentine | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 1991 | Love, Lies and Murder | Al Stutz | TV film |
| The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage | TV film | ||
| Disney Presents The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage | Tony Gianini | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| Vendetta: Secrets of a Mafia Bride | Barman | TV film | |
| 1992 | Mann & Machine | Richards | Episode: "No Pain, No Gain" |
| Calendar Girl, Cop, Killer? The Bambi Bembenek Story | TV film | ||
| Silk Stalkings | Emil Rossler | Episode: "Hot Rocks" | |
| 1993 | Seinfeld | Jack | Episode: "The Old Man" |
| Sex, Love, and Cold Hard Cash | Mansfield | TV film | |
| NYPD Blue | Donald Selness | Episodes: "Personal Foul" "He's Not Guilty, He's My Brother" |
|
| 1994 | Deep Red | Warren Rickman | TV film |
| Dead Man's Revenge | Bullock | TV film | |
| ER | Hospital Administrator | Episode: "Day One" | |
| Mortal Fear | Dr. Alvin Hayes | TV film | |
| New Eden | Ares | TV film | |
| 1995 | Under Suspicion | Ron O'Keefe | Episode: "A Haunting Case" |
| 1996 | The Babysitter's Seduction | Det. Frank O'Keefe | TV film |
| The Lazarus Man | Episode: "Among the Dead" | ||
| Murder One | Jerry Albanese | Episode: "Chapter Twenty-Two" | |
| Unabomber: The True Story | Theodore Kaczynski | TV film | |
| Chicago Hope | Luther Evans | Episode: "A Time to Kill" | |
| 1997 | La Femme Nikita | Perry Bauer | Episode: "Love" |
| Nash Bridges | William Boyd | Episode: "Payback" | |
| 1998 | Stargate SG-1 | Omoc | Episode: "Enigma" |
| One Hot Summer Night | Vincent "Coupe" De Ville | TV film | |
| Walker, Texas Ranger | Karl Storm | Episodes: "The Wedding: Part 1" "The Wedding: Part 2" |
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| Vengeance Unlimited | Teddy Hix | Episode: "Bitter End" | |
| 1999 | Strange World | Owen Sassen | Episode: "Eliza" |
| The Pretender | Mr. White | Episode: "The World's Changing" | |
| 2000 | The X Files | Ashman | Episode: "Brand X" |
| Harsh Realm | Slater | Episode: "Reunion" | |
| 2001 | Once and Again | Man in Suit | Episode: "Aaron's Getting Better" |
| The Sopranos | Maj. Carl Zwingli | Episode: "Army of One" | |
| The Guardian | Episode: "The Funnies" | ||
| Alias | SD-6 Agent Karl Dreyer | Episodes: "Time Will Tell" "Mea Culpa |
|
| 2002 | Charmed | Orin | Episode: "The Eyes Have It" |
| The West Wing | Colonel Whitcomb | Episode: "Process Stories" | |
| 2003 | 24 | Peter Kingsley | Episodes: "Day 2: 2:00 a.m.-3:00 a.m." "Day 2: 3:00 a.m.-4:00 a.m." "Day 2: 6:00 a.m.-7:00 a.m." "Day 2: 7:00 a.m.-8:00 a.m." |
| 2004 | Revelations | Nathan Volk | Episodes: "Hour Two" "Hour Three" "Hour Four" "Hour Five" "Hour Six" |
| 2007 | The Kill Point | Alan Beck | Episodes: "Who's Afraid of Mr. Wolf, Part 1" "Who's Afraid of Mr. Wolf, Part 2" "No Meringue" "Pro Patria" "Visiting Hours" "The Great Ape Escape" |
Further reading
- Voisin, Scott, "Character Kings: Hollywood's Familiar Faces Discuss the Art & Business of Acting." BearManor Media, 2009. ISBN 9-781593-933425.
References
- ^ a b Barbuto, Dana (2008-10-24). "Weymouth native puts the buzz in Saw movies". The Patriot Ledger. http://www.patriotledger.com/entertainment/x1157495265/Weymouths-Tobin-Bell-is-star-of-Saw-V. Retrieved 2008-10-28.
- ^ Dobuzinskis, Alex (2009-10-22). "A Minute With: Tobin Bell of the "Saw" horror films". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE59L3MF20091022. Retrieved 2010-01-31.
- ^ Buchanan, Kyle (2009-10-16). "The Only Tobin Bell Interview You'll Ever Need". Movieline. http://www.movieline.com/2009/10/tobin-bell-interview.php?page=1. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
- ^ Berardini, César (2009-07-04). "Konami Signs Tobin Bell To Voice Jigsaw In Saw Game". Team Xbox. http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/19877/Konami-Signs-Tobin-Bell-to-Voice-Jigsaw-in-Saw-Game/. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0068551/awards
- ^ Dread Central at the 2009 Chiller-Eyegore Awards and Halloween Horror Nights
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tobin Bell |
- Tobin Bell at the Internet Movie Database
- Tobin Bell at FEARnet
- Tobin Bell at Allmovie
- Saw III: Jigsaw Cuts Loose Video interview with Tobin Bell on MTV.com (U.S. only)
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