Initial development on the horror/thriller film, The Collector, named it as a prequel to the Saw franchise under the working title The Midnight Man. Differing opinions then shifted the concept to an original film, entirely separate to Jigsaw's universe; however, theories began to arise that The Collector and Saw were set in the same universe, despite the removal of the direct "prequel" association.
Starring Juan Fernández as the titular villain, and co-starring Josh Stewart, Michael Reilly Burke and Andrea Roth, The Collector focuses on the Chase family, who are the victims of an attempted robbery by their handyman, Arkin (Josh Stewart), who plans to steal a valuable ruby in order to pay the debt that his wife owes to loan sharks. Upon entering the household, Arkin discovers that another masked assailant, one who has a particular obsession with homemade traps, has already broken in.
It is later revealed that the masked man is a "collector" of people, but he only collects one person in a household and kills all others. Additionally, The Collector is a fond lover of kidnapping and torture, clearly enjoying the suffering of others.
Originally surfacing on Reddit for Bi0_B1lly, the theory that The Collector and Saw are linked gained some recognition for its believability. Firstly, Jigsaw and The Collector opt for convoluted traps to incapacitate their victims. Although their motives are divided, the methods used to achieve their goals are strikingly similar. Aside from this analogy, there is not much else that associates The Collector with John Kramer. However, another interesting take on the theory states that The Collector was a lone survivor of Kramer's trials, identical to Amanda Young, aka The Pig.
Amanda survived her horrific torment and became Jigsaw's protégée, and she took over the "business" of torturing the unworthy and ungrateful after John passed away. Therefore, if Amanda can do it, there is no reasonable doubt as to why The Collector should be any different. If John had seen the will to live and untapped potential in The Collector, he could take another successor under his wing. By that logic, The Collector and Amanda Young could be like-minded partners.
Additionally, further exploration of the theory points to the strong possibility that Mark Hoffman, the secondary antagonist of Saw IV and the main antagonist of Saw V, VI and 3D, became The Collector, which is an entirely possible conclusion, given that all four movies were set around the same time as The Collector. Hoffman also exhibits traits similar to Kramer, so he is another contender for continuing his legacy. Not much proof supports these branching theories, but, it makes for a fascinating debate, and the sheer possibility is still food for thought.
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