Spiral: From the Book of Saw (2021) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Schenk is revealed to be Emerson, the son of a man Pete murdered. Pete, Banks' former partner, killed Emerson's father after he agreed to testify against a corrupt officer. Emerson orchestrated the murders to punish the corrupt police force and draw Banks into his revenge scheme.

Foreshadowing: Earlier, a box arrives at the precinct containing skin with Schenk's tattoo, leading the team to believe he was dead.

• schenk killer identity
• emerson spiral movie
• spiral saw killer reveal

Schenk used the corpse of the thief who lured Boswick into the subway tunnels. He swapped the body with the thief's corpse to make it appear he had been killed, while he secretly became the killer operating behind the scenes.

Foreshadowing: The timeline shows the thief's body was available after Boswick's death, providing the opportunity for the switch.

• schenk fake death
• butcher shop body switch
• spiral saw twist

After Banks shoots the target to release Marcus from his restraints, the SWAT team arrives and storms the warehouse. Marcus, who has a hidden weapon on him, is pulled upward by his restraints. The SWAT team perceives him as a threat and shoots him, killing him despite Banks' efforts to save him.

Foreshadowing: Emerson specifically rigs the final test with a concealed weapon on Marcus, anticipating the SWAT arrival.

• marcus banks death
• spiral saw ending
• swat team kills marcus

The conspiracy involves corrupt police officers who covered up a murder. Pete killed Emerson's father after he agreed to testify against a corrupt officer. Rather than holding Pete accountable, Marcus Banks and other senior officers allowed the murder to be concealed, prioritizing fighting crime over police integrity.

Foreshadowing: The investigation reveals Fitch ignored a distress call from Banks, hinting at deeper corruption within the force.

• police corruption spiral
• pete murder cover-up
• emerson father killed

Fitch is targeted because he represents the corrupt police culture. Earlier, Fitch ignored Banks' distress call, which led to Banks being nearly killed. This reflects the film's theme of cops who prioritize their own survival over doing what's right, making Fitch a deserving target in the killer's eyes.

Foreshadowing: Fitch's earlier decision to ignore Banks' call establishes his character as self-serving.

• detective fitch trap
• spiral saw fitch death
• corrupt police target

Banks faces an impossible choice: shoot the target to release his father's restraints, or shoot Emerson and doom his father. Banks chooses to shoot the target, believing he can save Marcus. However, this choice leads to Marcus's accidental death when SWAT arrives, showing the killer's test was designed to create tragedy regardless of Banks' decision.

Foreshadowing: Emerson frames the test as a choice between family and justice, preying on Banks' love for his father.

• banks choice target
• spiral saw final test
• father son sacrifice

The butcher shop was a hangout spot from Banks' childhood that he shared with his father Marcus. Since Marcus was involved in the cover-up of Emerson's father's murder, the killer (Emerson) was able to connect this personal location to Banks through his investigation of Marcus's past.

Foreshadowing: The mysterious box arrives with a piece of skin and directs police to this specific location from Banks' past.

• butcher shop banks childhood
• spiral saw location
• emerson knows banks past

Garza becomes trapped in the precinct's cold storage with hot wax dripping onto her face. A recorded message instructs her that the only way to stop the wax is to sever her own spinal cord. She follows the instructions and frees herself, but the severe injuries prove fatal.

Foreshadowing: The killer's traps always require victims to make a gruesome sacrifice to survive, following the Jigsaw methodology.

• captain garza trap
• cold storage spiral
• garza fatal injuries

The killer uses Jigsaw-style traps to punish corrupt police officers through tests of survival, similar to Jigsaw's philosophy. However, unlike Jigsaw who targeted victims he deemed guilty of moral failures, this killer targets officers who abused their power, covering up crimes and protecting corrupt colleagues.

Foreshadowing: Early in the investigation, Banks notes the murders mirror the Jigsaw Killer's modus operandi.

• jigsaw traps spiral
• pig mask killer
• spiral saw copycat

Boswick is suspended by his tongue in a subway tunnel with a recorded message giving him the choice to tear out his tongue or wait for the train. He is unable to make the gruesome choice in time and is killed by the oncoming train. The trap requires immediate, extreme action that most people cannot bring themselves to take.

Foreshadowing: The first trap establishes the killer's pattern of giving victims an impossible choice with a time limit.

• boswick subway trap
• tongue pierced spiral
• fourth of july parade murder

Pete is Banks' former partner who was dismissed after Banks exposed a murder Pete committed. The killer (Emerson) brings Pete to the warehouse as part of Banks' final test. The trap forces Banks to choose between freeing Pete or letting him die, testing whether Banks will extend mercy to someone who betrayed him.

Foreshadowing: Banks' history of exposing corrupt cops is established early, explaining why Pete would be targeted.

• pete former partner
• warehouse trap spiral
• banks exposes pete