Darren Bousman Wasn’t Precious About His Script: Bousman allowed his actors the freedom to change his dialogue if they felt so inclined. “I’ve got a thing as a director and you know some people think it’s taboo and other people loved it. It’s just the way that I worked on this film is that I took the scene, I would rehearse the scene and once the scene was rehearsed I’d say, ‘Throw away the dialogue and say whatever you want to say.’
Once they knew what the scene was, what was supposed to happen in it, I allowed them to say what they wanted to say. 95% of the time they maintained what was written on the page, but the 5% of the time where you get adlibs it made all of the difference in the world. I mean some of the great lines of the script came from adlibs - not to take away from what Leigh [Whannell] and I wrote. Like I said 95% of it’s from the script.
I think that one of the scariest things about horror is the realism, that this really could be happening. People really are in danger. And if you have someone saying lines that are written on the page mechanically, it kind of detracts from that. So by allowing the freedom to make it their own, to breathe life into this, it opens up a whole new level of horror.”
You Don’t Need to be a Fan of “Saw” to Appreciate “Saw II:” Bousman made a sequel which stands on its own, totally separate from the first film. I wasn’t a fan of the original movie yet I loved “Saw II.” Bousman said he’s heard that from fans before. “You know you hear both sides of it. You get the diehard fans that nothing will beat the first one. You have other people who say, ‘You know what? The second one blew the first one out of the water.’
It was important to me to make them different. We pay homage to the first film in the very first scene of the movie. It’s very much an homage to James Wan’s vision but after that, I mean, it’s a completely different take on the ‘Saw’ universe. The colors are the same – it’s dark and grimy – but the directing’s completely different. I think that’s the only way to make a movie like this successful. If you’re going to change directors on a franchise, you can’t have a director try to copy another director. It just won’t work. I think, again, if someone else is going to come in and direct ‘Saw 3,’ him trying to copy James Wan or myself probably would tank the movie. He’s got to have his own vision, his own voice. I think that’s partially why the ‘Saw’ movies have worked thus far is because James had a very clear and strong voice. It was a specific type of movie. I was more into the violent angle. I made a very violent, in your face horror movie.”
Darren Bousman on “Saw 3:” Having said each subsequent “Saw” film needs its own voice doesn’t necessarily mean Bousman’s adverse to directing “Saw 3.” “I haven’t said that. I’m actually working on another movie with Dimension so it limits my availability. However am I opposed to making a third one? No.
You know what? I love the ‘Saw’ franchise. It’s a breath of fresh air for me. It all depends upon the story. If someone came to me with an amazing story that blew me out of the water, then of course I would consider doing a ‘Saw 3.’ What I don’t want to do is make another movie which is just for the cash. I consider myself not a huge Hollywood type of guy. I’m not into the parties or the fame or the money. That doesn’t interest me. I’m a movie geek. I love good movies. I love movies that make me feel something. So if I read a script that was absolutely disturbing, made me squirm and gag, then yeah I’d probably do it. It’s all about the story at this point.”
Darren Bousman on What Fans Can Expect from “Saw 3:” “The one thing I can guarantee about the ‘Saw’ series is that it’s never about what you think it is. It’s always something darker more sinister going on. I think if everyone does their jobs right with the ‘Saw’ franchise, you’ll never be able to guess what’s going to happen next.”
Bousman’s Next Project: Bousman said his next project will make “Saw” look like a Disney film. “It’s not necessarily more violent or bloodier but it’s a different type of horror. I read a script that blew me away. I was mortally disgusted. I was so disgusted that I couldn’t talk for a couple of hours after reading it. And my first reaction was, ‘There’s no way in hell I’m touching this project.’ But the more I thought about it, the more excited I got by it. Again, it’s a different type of horror. It’s not a gorefest. It’s not a bloodfest. It’s just a movie that will make you very uneasy. It will disgust people but not in a blood and gore way.”
