Through interviews with Shawnee Smith, it was revealed that Amanda's evolution into the killer she was at the end of "Saw III" was in part due to a horrible childhood. Smith stated on numerous occasions that Amanda was severely abused and neglected when she was a child. This had been confirmed by "Saw" series writer and co-creator Leigh Whannell, who also commented on Amanda's past in a commentary for "Saw III". In the original script of "Saw III", dialogue between John and Amanda made references to her past; in a scene she explains to John that "When I was a little girl, my father would lock me under the stairs. I was terrified of the dark, and he would leave me in there alone. For hours." The scene had explained Amanda's emotional turmoil with the Bathroom Trap.