Joseph Henry Tobin, Jr. (born August 7, 1942), known professionally as Tobin Bell, is an American film and television actor best known for his role in the Saw franchise.
He played John Kramer in Saw, Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI, Saw 3D, Jigsaw, and Saw X and voiced him in Saw: The Video Game and Saw II: Flesh & Blood.
Early Life[]
Tobin Bell was born in Queens, New York, and raised in Weymouth, Massachusetts. His English-born mother, Eileen Julia Bell, was an actress who worked at the Quincy Repertory Company. His American-born father, Joseph H. Tobin, built and established the radio station WJDA in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 1947 and once ran for mayor of Gloversville, New York. Bell's maternal grandmother, Julia Gandon Bell, was born in Cork, Ireland. He has one sister and one brother.
Bell studied liberal arts and journalism in college to become a writer and enter broadcasting. He is also interested in environmental matters, holding a master's degree in environmental science from Montclair State University. In addition, he used to work for the New York Botanical Garden. However, a seminar by Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy inspired him to begin an acting career.
Later, Bell joined the Actors Studio, where he studied with Lee Strasberg and Ellen Burstyn, and joined Sanford Meisner's Neighborhood Playhouse. He played background roles in the late '70s and early '80s in over 30 films, including films by Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese, while also performing on Broadway. Bell said that other actors at the Actors Studio thought doing stand-in and background work was "stupid or degrading," but he never felt that way.
Career[]
In 1982, Bell had a short uncredited scene in the Sydney Pollack film Tootsie, playing a waiter at the Russian Tea Room. He told Movieline: "You know, when you're talking about Tootsie, it's the tip of the iceberg because those other twenty-nine films I did aren't even on the IMDb." The same year, he worked on The Verdict for two weeks as a courtroom reporter in the trial. Bell recollected it as a "great opportunity" to watch Sidney Lumet and Paul Newman while learning the technical aspects of acting. He keeps a journal of various questions about and motivations for his character for every role he plays, starting with the initial reading of the script to the final shot of a production.
Later that year, Bell landed his first speaking role in the last few moments of the drama Sophie's Choice, starring Meryl Streep. In the mid-1980s, he said: "I was doing off-Broadway plays three nights a week, working on my craft. And a director at the Actors Studio said, 'You know, Tobin, you've been doing that for a while. I think you should go to Hollywood and play bad guys.'"
Bell moved to Los Angeles and was cast in his first feature film, Mississippi Burning, in 1988 as a "tough, street-smart FBI agent." In 1993, he played an assassin called The Nordic Man in another Pollack film, The Firm. In an episode of the sitcom Seinfeld titled The Old Man, he played a record store owner. Furthermore, Bell appeared in two episodes of NYPD Blue, playing different characters.
In 1994, Bell played a hospital administrator in the first season of ER and appeared in an episode of Chicago Hope, playing a terminally ill inmate on death row. That same year, he portrayed the Unabomber in the TV film Unabomber: The True Story. In 1997, Bell guest-starred in an episode of La Femme Nikita and Nash Bridges. The following year, he guest-starred in an episode of Stargate SG-1 and a two-part episode of Walker, Texas Ranger. He also appeared as villain Peter Kingsley during the second season of 24.
In 2004, Bell was cast as the infamous Jigsaw Killer, an engineer who wants to teach his victims the value of life via twisted "games" in the horror film Saw. The low-budget movie was a box office success, spawning numerous sequels. In addition, he provided his voice and likeness for Jigsaw in Saw: The Video Game and its sequel, Saw II: Flesh & Blood. Even though Bell spent three weeks lying on a floor and had very few lines in the first film, his role was pivotal to the plot. For his role as Jigsaw, Bell received MTV Movie Awards nominations in 2006 and 2007 for Best Villain, won Best Butcher in the Fuse/Fangoria Chainsaw Awards, and was given the Best Villain in a Film Series title at the 2010 Chiller-Eyegore Awards. Although he considers his role in Saw to have been "a great blessing," he hopes for the opportunity to be cast against type.
In 2016, he starred as hermit Yo Ling on the soap opera Days of Our Lives, revealed to be John Black's long-lost father. He later starred as the voices of cultist Doctor Alchemy and the evil speedster Savitar on the third season of The Flash and reprised his role in the ninth and final season.
In April 2017, Bell was cast in My Pretty Pony, a short film based on Stephen King's eponymous story. Later that year, he reprised his role as Jigsaw in the eighth installment of the Saw series. Bell was also featured in other horror films released in October 2017, including the television film The Sandman, the Mexican film Belzebuth, and the Italian film Gates of Darkness.
In May 2021, Bell played Dr. Lasher in an eight-part found footage fictional podcast series titled The Gloom. The series is about a string of unsolved crimes committed in the 1990s and an investigative journalist who uncovers a supernatural cover-up tied to her past.
In March 2023, he played Von in the indie psychological thriller ReBroken. The same year, he played Jigsaw again in Saw X, released on September 29. The film received positive reviews, with critics praising Bell's performance and his return as a main character. Bell was nominated for the Best Actor in a Horror Movie award at the 4th Critics' Choice Super Awards in 2024.
Personal Life[]
Tobin Bell has two sons. He was formerly married to Elizabeth Bell until his wife filed for divorce in January 2018 after 25 years of marriage. When not acting, he coaches a Little League Baseball team and flag football. His other hobbies include hiking and playing guitar.
Filmography[]
Films[]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Manhattan | Man on Street |
| 1981 | Storie di ordinaria follia | Bar Patron |
| 1982 | Tootsie | Waiter |
| The Verdict | Courtroom Observer | |
| Sophie's Choice | Reporter | |
| 1985 | Turk 182! | Sergeant on Bridge |
| 1988 | Mississippi Burning | Agent Stokes |
| 1989 | An Innocent Man | Zeke |
| 1990 | Loose Cannons | Gerber |
| False Identity | Marshall Errickson | |
| 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 | The Quick and the Dead | Dog Kelly |
| Serial Killer | William Lucian Morrano | |
| 1996 | Cheyenne | Marshal Toynbee |
| 1998 | Overnight Delivery | John Dwayne Beezly |
| Best of the Best 4: Without Warning | Lukasz Slava | |
| Brown's Requiem | Stan the Man | |
| 1999 | The 4th Floor | The Lock Smith |
| 2000 | The Road to El Dorado | Zaragoza |
| 2001 | Good Neighbor | Geoffrey Martin |
| 2002 | Black Mask 2: City of Masks | Moloch |
| 2003 | Power Play | Clemens |
| 2004 | Saw | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2005 | Saw II | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2006 | Saw III | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2007 | Decoys 2: Alien Seduction | Professor Erwin Buckton |
| The Haunting Hour: Don't Think About It | The Stranger | |
| Boogeyman 2 | Dr. Mitchell Allen | |
| Buried Alive | Lester | |
| Saw IV | John Kramer/Jigsaw | |
| 2008 | Boogeyman 3 | Dr. Mitchell Allen |
| Saw V | John Kramer/Jigsaw | |
| 2009 | Saw VI | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2010 | Saw 3D | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2014 | Haunted | Seth |
| Phantom Halo | Smashmouth | |
| 2015 | Manson Family Vacation | Blackbird |
| Unbelief | Frank | |
| Run | Man at Bar | |
| 2016 | Rainbow Time | Peter |
| 2017 | 12 Feet Deep | McGradey |
| Belzebuth | Vasilio Canetti | |
| The Sandman | Valentine | |
| Jigsaw | John Kramer/Jigsaw | |
| My Pretty Pony | George Banning | |
| 61: Highway to Hell | The Devil | |
| 2019 | The Way We Weren't | Jerry |
| Ice Cream in the Cupboard | Pop | |
| Gates of Darkness | Monsignor Canell | |
| 2020 | The Call | Edward Cranston |
| The Old Man and the Pond | Billy Ford | |
| 2021 | Let Us In | Mr. Munch |
| Aileen Wuornos: American Boogeywoman | Lewis Fell | |
| 2022 | Wolf Mountain | Dr. Avery |
| Sleep No More | Smashmouth | |
| 2023 | ReBroken | Von |
| The Cello | Vincent | |
| Saw X | John Kramer/Jigsaw | |
| Clown Motel | Mr. Wilson | |
| 2024 | Altered Reality | Cooper Mason |
Television Series[]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1987-1988 | The Equalizer | Weber / Cronin / Deputy Secretary |
| 1990 | Alien Nation | Brian Knox / Dr. Death |
| Nasty Boys | Finley | |
| Jake and the Fatman | Vic Fargo | |
| Broken Badges | Martin Valentine | |
| Vendetta: Secrets of a Mafia Bride | Barman | |
| 1991 | Love, Lies and Murder | Al Stutz |
| The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage | Tony Gianini | |
| 1992 | Mann & Machine | Richards |
| Silk Stalkings | Emil Rossler | |
| 1993 | Seinfeld | Ron |
| 1994 | ER | Hospital Administrator |
| 1995 | Under Suspicion | Ron O'Keefe |
| 1996 | The Lazarus Man | |
| Murder One | Jerry Albanese | |
| Chicago Hope | Luther Evans | |
| High Incident | Garland Birsic | |
| 1993-1996 | NYPD Blue | Donald Selness / Jerry the Artist |
| 1997 | La Femme Nikita | Perry Bauer |
| Nash Bridges | William Boyd | |
| 1998 | Stargate SG-1 | Omoc |
| Walker, Texas Ranger | Karl Storm | |
| Vengeance Unlimited | Teddy Hix | |
| 1999 | The Pretender | Mr. White |
| Strange World | Owen Sassen | |
| 2000 | The X Files | Ashman / Darryl Weaver |
| Harsh Realm | Slater | |
| 2001 | Once and Again | Man in Suit |
| The Sopranos | Major Zwingli | |
| The Guardian | Mr. Pierce | |
| Alias | Karl Dreyer | |
| 2002 | Charmed | Orin |
| The West Wing | Colonel Whitcomb | |
| 2003 | 24 | Peter Kingsley |
| 2005 | Revelations | Nathan Volk |
| 2007 | The Kill Point | Alan Beck |
| 2014 | Criminal Minds | Malachi Lee |
| Wilfred | Charles | |
| 2016 | Days of Our Lives | Yo Ling |
| 2019 | Creepshow | Chief |
| 2020 | MacGyver | Leland |
| 2016-2023 | The Flash | Savitar / Doctor Alchemy |
Television Films[]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Svengali | Waiter |
| 1989 | Perfect Witness | Dillon |
| 1991 | The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage | Al Stutz |
| 1992 | Calendar Girl, Cop, Killer? The Bambi Bembenek Story | Dan Cushman |
| 1993 | Sex, Love and Cold Hard Cash | Mansfield |
| 1994 | Deep Red | Warren Rickman |
| Dead Man's Revenge | Bullock | |
| Mortal Fear | Dr. Alvin Hayes | |
| New Eden | Ares | |
| 1996 | The Babysitter's Seduction | Det. Frank O'Keefe |
| Unabomber: The True Story | Theodore Kaczynski | |
| 1998 | One Hot Summer Night | Vincent "Coupe" De Ville |
| 2014 | Finders Keepers | Dr. Freeman |
Video Games[]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Saw: The Video Game | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2010 | Saw II: Flesh & Blood | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
| 2022 | Dead by Daylight | John Kramer/Jigsaw |
Gallery[]
