10 Great Horror Movies That Started Out As Short Films

2. Saw

Horror Movies That Started As Shorts
Evolution Entertainment

Even if you don't like horror movies, chances are you will have seen at least one scene from the Saw franchise. Or, at the very least, you will have had one described to you against your will. 

The trap-setting adventures of Jigsaw are nothing short of a phenomenon, having raked in millions of dollars worldwide and made the words "Do you want to play a game?" among the most sinister in the English language. 

For most fans, it all started with the original film, which came out in 2004, but the real genesis of the series came a year earlier. 

Writers James Wan and Leigh Whannell were having trouble attracting a producer to their original script, so decided to shoot a short based on the movie's now infamous jaw trap scene. The picture, also called Saw, caught the eye of producer Gregg Hoffman, who helped fund the finished product. The rest, as they say, is history. 

At the time of writing, the Saw franchise consists of 10 films (with an eleventh on the way), two more shorts, video games, comic books, and just about anything else you could possibly think of.

 
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Jacob Simmons has a great many passions, including rock music, giving acclaimed films three-and-a-half stars, watching random clips from The Simpsons on YouTube at 3am, and writing about himself in the third person.