Mark Hoffman

Saw character
File:Wiki Hoffman.JPG
Mark Hoffman
Gender:	Male
Relationships:	Jigsaw (mentor) Angelina Hoffman (Sister)
Enemies:	Agent Peter Strahm Seth Baxter
M.O.:	Cleverly constructed traps mimicking those of the Jigsaw Killer
First appearance:	Saw III
Portrayed by:	Costas Mandylor

Lieutenant Mark Hoffman is a fictional character in the Saw film series. He is portrayed by Costas Mandylor. While his character began as a legitimate police officer in Saw III, Hoffman went on to become Jigsaw's apprentice and have a major role in the Saw films. Hoffman is the only character to survive past three films.

Appearances in films

Saw III

Saw III briefly showed Hoffman during the investigation of Troy's chain trap. Hoffman was shown to be listening in on Lieutenant Rigg's conversation with Kerry about Jigsaw's ability to continue his work. Hoffman simply grabbed one of the chains from the traps' aftermath and commented as to why the door had to be cut open by the police to secure the crime scene. He was very apathetic and glib while speaking to Rigg and Kerry. Rigg showed that this bothered him.

Saw IV

During Saw IV, Hoffman is called to the police morgue to hear a cassette tape that is found in Jigsaw's stomach during his autopsy. It is later discovered that the events of Saw III and Saw IV occurred at the same time, so this scene actually happened at the end of Saw IV.

Afterwards, Hoffman knocks out Lieutenant Rigg and makes it seem that Eric Matthews and himself have been captured by Jigsaw, and that Rigg must save them both. Rigg completes a series of tests, leading him to Jigsaw's lair and the location of Hoffman and Eric Matthew's trap. Despite previous warnings, Rigg enters the room of their trap before the timer expires, which supposedly kills both Eric and Hoffman. Instead, Eric is killed and Hoffman releases himself from his bonds, revealing to Rigg that Hoffman is Jigsaw's second accomplice and was never in any real danger. Hoffman leaves Rigg for dead and seals in Jigsaw's lair. The morgue scene replays with a more detailed message to Hoffman, stating that Jigsaw's work is not over, and that Hoffman will not go untested.

Saw V

Hoffman had a much more significant role in Saw V. FBI Agent Peter Strahm was locked in Jigsaw's lair following the events of Saw IV, when Hoffman left Rigg for dead and sealed Jigsaw's lair. Strahm finds a hidden door in Jigsaw's sick room and finds a cassette warning not to proceed any farther. The warning is ignored so someone abducts Strahm and puts him into a water head trap. Much to Hoffman's bewilderment, Strahm escapes his trap and is carried away on a gurney while Hoffman tells everyone he was the hero and is responsible for ending the Jigsaw murders.

Strahm goes on to pursue Hoffman as a five-person trap that he set up plays out. As the movie progresses, Hoffman is making it seem to others that Strahm is actually the last Jigsaw apprentice. Hoffman eventually gets Strahm's superior, FBI Agent Dan Erickson to put out an all points bulletin for Strahm's immediate arrest for the Jigsaw murders.

Meanwhile, Strahm trails Hoffman to a dark basement with the hopes of finding Hoffman there. Strahm instead finds a glass box with a cassette tape from Hoffman. The tapes states that Strahm will need to trust him and jump into the box if he wishes to live. Strahm chooses not to heed the warning and instead throws Hoffman into the box as he attempts to intercept him. The box safely lowers Hoffman down into the floor while the walls slide together, crushing Strahm. Hoffman is left as the hero from the Jigsaw murders and Strahm is now considered a suspect as Jigsaw's second apprentice.

Saw VI

It has been reported that Costas Mandylor will reprise his role as Hoffman in Saw VI. Also, it has been confirmed that Hoffman will once again have a leading role in the upcoming film.

Characterization

Saw V more deeply reveals Hoffman's original ties with Jigsaw. It shows how the murder of his younger sister Angelina Hoffman by Seth Baxter led him to go become vengeful and kill Seth. Hoffman chose to make Seth's murder appear like a Jigsaw murder, so as not to incriminate himself.

From there, Hoffman is shown to be kidnapped by Jigsaw and blackmailed into helping him capture his test subjects. Eventually, Hoffman realizes this is the best way to rehabilitate criminals, so he becomes a willing apprentice to Jigsaw.

Unlike Jigsaws other apprentice, Amanda Young, Hoffman obeys and believes in Jigsaw's mantra of teaching people lessons to appreciate life. This is confirmed when at the end of Saw V, Hoffman uses Jigsaw's methods of human predictability to ensure that Strahm fails his trap by allowing himself to be thrown into the glass box trap. Jigsaw once told Hoffman while they were setting up the nerve gas house from Saw II, "If you're good at anticipating the human mind, it leaves nothing to chance."

Symbolic representations

Emulation of Jigsaw's icons

After becoming an apprentice to Jigsaw, Hoffman often adopted many of Jigsaw's iconic symbols. For instance, he often wore a pig mask when capturing his victims. Also, in Saw V, he appeared wearing Jigsaw's iconic red and black theatrical robe to assist Jigsaw in capturing Paul.

Jigsaw Imitation

Initially, Hoffman imitated Jigsaw's M.O. with the murder of Seth Baxter. Hoffman followed suit of Amanda Young and made that trap inescapable, despite the fact that Seth did everything he was asked to do. Jigsaw also pointed out he used poor tools in the trap, making it an even worse recreation of a Jigsaw murder.

Hoffman eventually adopted Jigsaw's M.O., in which the traps he set were meant to allow victims to learn a lesson to free themselves.