Tobin Bell

TOBIN BELL

Date of Birth: August 7, 1942

Born in New York City, Tobin Bell was raised in Weymouth, Massachusetts. A graduate of Boston University, he earned his master's degree in Environmental Education from Montclair State College.

However, he decided to follow in the footsteps of his mother, British actress Eileen Bell. He studied at the Actor's Studio in New York with Lee Strasberg, Ellen Burstyn and Estelle Parsons, as well as at the famed Neighborhood Playhouse with Sanford Meisner.

Bell began his career on the New York stage, appearing at venues such as the New York Shakespeare Festival, the New York Public Theater, Ensemble Studio Theater and Playwright's Horizons.

To TV and movie audiences, Bell remained a familiar but nameless character actor until he suddenly shot to fame as the villain Jigsaw in the hit horror flick, Saw (2004). Previous roles include Unabomber Theodore John Kaczynski in the made-for-TV movie Unabomber: The True Story (1996) and Peter Kingsley on the hit series 24, as well as numerous guest appearances on TV shows over the past 20+ years including The Equalizer, Seinfeld, La Femme Nikita, ER, NYPD Blue, The Pretender, The X-Files, Stargate SG-1, Alias and The Sopranos.

Though his screen time was limited in Saw (his voice was heard throughout), his role became a starring one in the subsequent Saw sequels, with him taking up the role once again in the franchise's latest installment, Jigsaw (2017).

Bell's hobbies include playing guitar, wildlife photography and hiking in the mountains. He is married with two children and divides his time between homes in New York and Los Angeles.