Spiral: From the Book of Saw was something of a fresh take on the Saw franchise, focused more on the cops trying to solve the string of new murders than on the traps or the Jigsaw successor. But despite Tobin Bell's absence from the proceedings, his methods and one of his calling card symbols inspire the cop killer at the center of the mystery: William Schenk, played by Max Minghella (The Handmaid's Tale).
On the side of the police force is Captain Angie Garza (Marisol Nichols, Riverdale), who has taken over the precinct after Samuel L. Jackson's Marcus Banks retired. But while she helps Zeke (Chris Rock) try to uncover the identity of the Spiral Killer, she harbors a dark secret that ties all the characters together. These secrets leave room for a prequel or for further exploration of her motives in future films.
Spiral: From the Book of Saw arrives on Digital July 13 and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, and On Demand July 20 from Lionsgate. Nichols spoke to Screen Rant about the collaborative atmosphere on set and the hopes she has to revisit her character's story.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for Spiral
Screen Rant: How did you first hear about the project?
Marisol Nichols: Actually, my reps called me and let me know that there's a new Saw movie coming out with Chris Rock and there's a role in it that was originally for a man. He thinks that he can get me as it. I was like, "Okay!"
Angie is a really fascinating character because she first appears as the tough-cookie-good-cop, but then we quickly learn she's not what she's cracked up to be. How do you approach playing that multifaceted personality?
Marisol Nichols: I enjoy characters like that. I enjoy characters with two different sides to them, or three or four. I think that's more like how humans are, or at least the ones that I know. I like complicated characters, and I like having to balance things depending on the situation. I can sink my teeth into roles like that.
Even though we didn't get much of it, I loved your partners in cop crime dynamic with Samuel L. Jackson's character. What was it like to work with him and dig into that backstory?
Marisol Nichols: I loved that. Sam Jackson's a hero. He's a god, particularly in my field. I can't say that I wasn't nervous to work with him, because I was a little nervous. I was like, "Oh, God. It's one scene, Marisol, get over it." But it's still Sam Jackson.
He was wonderful. He was everything that I expected him to be, which was on top of his game, easygoing, and collaborative. Just really great. That was a really great day.
I had to fly out there, because I was actually in the middle of filming Riverdale. They called and were like, "Hey, can you come? We're adding a scene for you and Sam." I'm like, "Yeah!" It was not in the original script, but it was good backstory.
You also have a nice, layered dynamic with Chris Rock as Zeke. Was it fun bossing him around in this scene, especially when in real life he's an executive producer?
Marisol Nichols: Yeah, exactly. I think I apologized. I said, "I'm sorry, but I'm gonna really go." He was like, "Yeah, okay!" It was great. I love the fact that he was so willing to go there and to let me go. I'd just met him, and it was the first or second scene we were filming together.
On the opposite extreme, your hot wax scene with the Spiral Killer was truly terrifying. How did you handle that scene, practically speaking?
Marisol Nichols: Practically speaking, I was like, "She is not a wallflower." We're not going to kill the female by having her trapped and crying, and that kind of crap. No, she's pissed. She's the captain, man. You took down the captain in her own house? That's got to piss her off.
I wanted her more mad and frustrated. She's in pain, but the anger and the frustration and the furiousness of it was on top of the fact that she's trapped and in pain. That's how I approached it more than it being a death scene. Because [you're thinking], "Really, maybe she'll get out of it."
And the fact that they let me do that and kept my swear words and cussing and all of that in there was great. I just loved that. I was like, "Thank you."
What I find really fascinating about Spiral is the representation onscreen, and yet the protagonists of color are not only cops, but some of them comprise the worst of the police department. How do you approach that kind of nuance?
Marisol Nichols: I hope that we balanced it out because Chris is a good cop. But Max's character is kind of justified because he did run into a dirty cop.
In real life, I've worked closely with law enforcement. Just like any other thing, there's amazing guys out there that I would call everyday heroes 100%. And then, within those same forces, there's guys that are corrupt. It really sucks, it's a real thing, and it blows. And it's not everyone, but it does exist - as we learned with George Floyd, and we continue to learn every day.
We filmed this in 2019, before this [awareness] happened. When we were gonna release this, I was like, "Wow, this is going to be timely. This is really interesting."
Speaking of real life, you are much more of a hero than your character, especially in your fight against sex traffickers. I think that's so amazing and incredible. How did you find yourself in that field of work, and then how do you ensure your own safety in conjunction with law enforcement?
Marisol Nichols: I never planned on going undercover. My partner is former CIA, former Homeland Security. He works with nothing but ex-Navy SEALs, ex-Green Berets, ex-Special Forces. I have my own nonprofit for human trafficking and, through that, I met him. Then through him, I met the other guys, and they trained me the best that they could.
I go out and do this, and sometimes it's really safe. I have a roomful of law enforcement next to me, I could care less, and I'm not scared. And other times, it's like, "Holy crap, I'm terrified. What am I doing? How did I get here?" I'm second-guessing it all the way along. I'm not gonna lie. I'm totally freaked out and totally scared.
But me and my partner work really well together and we can do things that you can't do outside of the forces and the rules and regulations of law enforcement. Being out of that, and working in conjunction with law enforcement, allows us to do different things that allows us to rescue more people. So, it ends up being worth it. I just tell him, "Get me home to my kid." That's all I care about.
That's really incredible. Back to Spiral, I know the home release is coming. Is that something your family will be watching?
Marisol Nichols: My kid is never seeing this, like ever. It will traumatize her for life. I took my boyfriend to see it; we went and saw it in the theater. I didn't tell him that I died in it, and he's like, "Oh, my God. Why didn't you tell me?" I was like, "Because I wanted you to have the whole experience of the film. It's kind of cool!"
This might be a morbid question, but do you have a favorite "trap" or murder sequence from the Saw franchise overall?
Marisol Nichols: I know it sounds stupid, but I'm a girl that's always cold. So, that whole ice trap one? I was like, "Oh, that would suck!" Even though it's not bloody, I felt that on a visceral level.
Of course, it's highly unlikely that Angie would return. But could we see more of her backstory in the future?
Marisol Nichols: Originally, there was talk about a prequel, to be honest. I have no idea if they're going to do it, or if Lionsgate is going to do it. But I think it'd be amazing, and I hope they do. I really do. But we'll see. I know that there was talk about that when we were filming it.
I read that you're a horror fan in general. What do you find most exciting or inspiring about the genre?
Marisol Nichols: I really like a good psychological thriller. I love a good Se7en or Silence of the Lambs - and The Exorcist, even though it's pure horror. It's just evil, and it's terrifying. It's more of a roller coaster ride to me when it's done correctly.
I'm never going to be like, "Alright, let's go watch Texas Chain Saw Massacre again." It's not my thing; I don't really get into that. That's just brutal and disgusting and horrifying. But a good psychological thriller, that's what I really enjoy. Like Jake Gyllenhaal in Zodiac.
I imagine that it's a lot of fun to film thrillers, too. There must be a lot of physicality involved in your performance.
Marisol Nichols: Well, I just didn't want it to be stupid. There's nothing worse than watching a horror film where the person who hears the noise was downstairs doesn't turn on the lights and just goes to investigate. You're like, "Come on!" It's kind of like, "Whatever, they deserved it."
I wanted it to be smart. Approaching it, I was like, "I don't want to be the victim, and I don't want the audience to roll their eyes." And being the only female in the film, I definitely don't want to be less than the smartest around.
Originally, it was an anonymous text saying, "Go investigate the files downstairs." I was like, "Really? In the middle of a serial killer getting dirty cops, I'm gonna just go down by myself as the captain? And not send a junior?" And I was supposed to leave my gun. I'm like, "No."
Fortunately, Josh [Stolberg] was open to it. I was like, "Look, we need a reason for her to go down there in the middle of this." And I'm like, "Why wouldn't she keep her gun? Of course, she'd keep her gun. They're targeting cops." And Josh, God bless him, was willing to do all that and change these things and work with me. Plus, I know this world very well. I was able to speak from an educated viewpoint.
It sounds like it was a really welcoming and collaborative environment for you.
Marisol Nichols: Yeah, it was really great. Especially the writer. You'd think it'd be like, "Okay, what kind of guy has written these movies over and over again?" But he's the jolliest, nicest guy. It was so funny to me.
As a connoisseur of not only the genre but real-life detective work, were you surprised by the twist in the film?
Marisol Nichols: I was really surprised. I did not know. It wasn't foreshadowed for me at all. And Max is also such a brilliant actor. He's a good, subtle, smart actor - and I knew he would kill it. I was like, "He's not gonna leak any of this."
Maybe I'm an idiot, but I was also reading it like, "What's my role? What's my role? Do I have a scene with Sam Jackson?" That was my viewpoint; I was geeking out on reading it first.
Congratulations on successfully completing your run in Riverdale, by the way. I love Hermione, and I couldn't be happier about her getting away from Hiram. I know you had said you wanted to wrap up her story in the right way. What was it like for you to say farewell to such an iconic character?
Marisol Nichols: It was hard, because I really like Hermione Lodge. I thought that she had a lot more to do and I wanted to see her fight for herself more, be a little stronger and take down Hiram. But I'm still hoping that, from time to time, she can come back. It's not up to me; it's up to Roberto [Aguirre-Sacasa] and whatever he writes.
But I've really enjoyed the fans and how much they've embraced her. They've been wanting her to stick up for herself and wanting her to be this strong female badass. I really love that.
Finally, what's next for you?
Marisol Nichols: I actually just wrapped another film for Lionsgate, [The Valet]. It was really fun. It was really good. And it's a comedy, believe it or not.
Spiral will be available July 20 via 4K UHD Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray, DVD, and On Demand.