Quotes

Acting is like a game of tennis. The better your opponent, the better you're going to play. I've had some of my best tennis matches with Tobin [Bell] because he's relentless about truth and has an incredible work ethic.

(On the jaw trap in Saw (2004)) It was heavy. I had this mouth piece I had to clamp down and they padded it up to try and get it as tight to my head as possible because I really had to fling myself around. If I do something like that, I just go all the way with it.

(On the role of "Amanda" in Saw (2004)) Amanda's been a great part to play over the years. She's my lucky strike. I take the scream queen title as an honor. I went from Becker (1998) to this character and they were so vastly different. Amanda's really changed, too. She gives a few, but she gets you. With any character I play, I gravitate to the juxtaposition and humor. It has been a fun ride.

(after winning a 2007 Eyegore award) This scares me [referring to the award statue], I can't bring it home because of my children, I can't watch my own clip, the ghouls at the entrance of tonight upset me, but I do want to say thank you to everyone.

(in reference to horror films) I don't like to see a scary image because it sticks in my mind. Which is maybe why I get hired to do the scary movies because I'm truly scared and upset.

(On the Smith and Pyle fanbase) I think the horror fans are surprised when they listen to the record and they actually like it. I mean it's country music, kind of, but it's produced by Chris Goss of Masters of Reality. It crosses a lot of boundaries.

(Comparing songwriting to acting) When you write a song you're writing it from your gut, so it's easier to connect with that than someone else's part that you're acting.

I remember being at the first screening [of Saw (2004)] at Sundance and you could feel the energy in the theater. It was incredible. You knew right there that this thing was going to be a hit. The first one was a really creative idea.

(On the role of "Amanda" in Saw (2004)) The great thing about Amanda is she gets to kick ass but she's also a woman of substance and depth and she's struggling. There is real drama. I see a lot of myself in her. The desire to build, the desire to serve something higher, and also the destructiveness.

As a woman I'm very endeared to her [Amanda Young] and I'm hoping other women will be endeared to her. Hopefully we can all learn something or be inspired in some positive way.

[on John Candy] I did get to know him a bit while we filmed Who's Harry Crumb? (1989). If he could have been a fraction as kind, supportive, and giving to himself as he was to every single person around him then I think he'd still be with us today. That was the tragedy. I think [Candy's performance in] Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987) best defines who he was as a person. It breaks your heart.

Music is so much fun because each song is like a film in itself. You get to go from beginning to end and interact and exchange energy with a live audience.

They're [TV and film] very different. TV is obviously a lot quicker paced. I think film requires a lot more patience and concentration and each day you're keeping the entire picture in your head throughout a two to three month film shoot. Whereas TV, especially half hour, is like doing a play a week or live theater.

[on working with Ted Danson] There's no bigger star than him in TV and he couldn't be more of a self-effacing, down-to-earth team player. He sets the tone and it's just a pleasure.

[on hiding her pregnancy while filming Saw II (2005)] It was for the best not to tell them because they would have made changes and it would have been a different movie.

People need people, and nothing else. That's from a children's book which I read to all three of my children. It kind of simplifies things: Put your attention on the person in front of you. Pretty simple, huh?