The Real Life Inspirations Behind 'The Ring', Explained (2025)

‘The Ring’ instills a kind of fear that makes you believe that omens and danger can be found even in the most simple everyday activities. Starring Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson (‘Virgin River‘) and Daveigh Chase (‘‘), the film is known for featuring some of the most iconic horror scenes that stay with you long after you’ve seen it. And what makes it even better than most horror films out there is the fact that it never relies on cheap jump scares or unnecessary gore to scare a viewer and instead, creates a very inclusive and scary atmosphere.

We all know that horror movies tend to be scarier when they are based on real-life stories and although many films and even books use this “trick” just to fool viewers, there are others that are actually inspired by unexplained incidents or folklore. ‘The Ring’ never really claims to be based on a true story but you’ll be surprised to know what we have in store for you. Read on further to know all about the real-life inspirations behind ‘The Ring.’

What is ‘The Ring’ About?

A young journalist named Rachel unknowingly sparks a chain of terrifying events after she ends up watching a cursed videotape while investigating the mysterious death of her niece. Realizing that the videotape kills its viewers within seven days, she must now race against time to save not only her own life but her son’s as well.

Is ‘The Ring’ Based on a True Story?

The Real Life Inspirations Behind 'The Ring', Explained (1)

Well, I’m pretty sure that if ‘The Ring’ was based on a true story, we would know about it by now. However, believe it or not, the inspiration for the film comes from some real-life events. We’ll discuss that further down in the article. Most would know that it is a remake of a Japanese horror film titled ‘Ringu’ which released back in 1998, but the Hollywood remake is not an entirely loyal adaptation and only involves the basic ideas and themes of the source.

You’ll be surprised to know that even ‘Ringu’ has been adapted from a Japanese novels series. When ‘The Ring’ first premiered in the U.S, the English translated version of the novels was not available and was only published in 2003, which was one year after the release of the film. Apart from that, ‘The Ring’ also has its own series of manga (Graphic novels) that have a total of seven volumes. Most of the volumes of the manga were published after the release of ‘Ringu’.

There’s also a lesser-known TV series version of it which has not been adapted from the novels but was popular enough to get a second series as well. It also has gaming adaptations, most of which, are visual novels where you get to choose your own adventure. In Japan, there’s also a weird crossover movie series in which Sadako from ‘Ringu’ and Kayako from ‘Ju-On’ (‘The Grudge‘) are featured battling against each other. Both the original movies have been successfully adapted by Hollywood and we’re just thankful that this crossover never came into the picture. Also, think about it, if the curse did actually exist, wouldn’t all these remakes further spread it.

How Different are the Movies From the Original Novels?

The Real Life Inspirations Behind 'The Ring', Explained (2)

There are a total of 6 volumes of the original novel series, out of which, five were released before Hollywood’s ‘The Ring.’ Roughly, five out of six volumes of the novel series have adapted into Japanese movies. Hollywood, so far, has created 3 installments of ‘The Ring’ franchise, however, none of them are adaptations of the novels. The first movie, in some ways, has a lot of similarities with the first novel but, for the most part, it is quite different.

The key difference between the novels and the films is that the novel has more a “sci-fi blended with horror” storyline where the antagonist, Sadako (Samara in ‘The Ring’), not only serves as a curse but is also a kind of virus. The ones who get affected by this virus don’t die but are actually sent to a simulated reality created by a group of scientists. But this itself goes out of control later on and begins to grow on the scientists as a form of cancer.

The novel series also has other volumes that deal with the origins of Samara’s curse and the people who created it. One of the books, titled “Spiral”, alludes to the shape of the “ring” and it might also remind you of Junji Ito’s renowned manga ‘Uzumaki’. Even the iconic scene in which Samara/Sadako walks out of the television is only a part of the movies and has not been featured in the original novels.

The Real-Life Inspiration Behind Samara

The Real Life Inspirations Behind 'The Ring', Explained (3)

And finally, it’s the moment you’ve been waiting for: Yes, Samara’s character has been inspired by a real person. Back in the early 1900s, anassistant professor of psychology at Tokyo University, Tomokichi Fukurai, firmly believed in the supernatural and even took many “nensha” practitioners under his wing. Nensha, more commonly known as thoughtography or projected thermography in English, is the ability to use your thoughts to burn out images on physical objects or even into the mind of a person. Sounds something straight out of Stan Lee’sX-Men‘, doesn’t it? Well, “nensha” is exactly what Samara from the movie uses to haunt her victims.

Initially, when Tomokichi Fukurai first carried out his experiments, he came across a couple of people who claimed to be thoughtography practitioners, but later were proved to be complete frauds. However, this wasn’t the end of it and things got a little freaky when, much later, a woman named Sadako Takahashi started working with Tomokichi and claimed to possess the ability of nansha and even clairvoyance (extrasensory perception.) She added an incredible amount of heft to Fukurai’s studies and research through her breathing and mental exercises, making his claims even more believable.

Tomokichi Fukurai later published all of his studies in a book titled “Toshi to Nensha” (“Clairvoyance and Thoughtography” in English.) Unfortunately for him, his work remained unappreciated and in 1919, he retired from the university to devote his life to his studies. He even found the Fukurai Institute of Psychology later on, which is an organization that inquires scientific thoughtography and various supernatural phenomena. Just so you know, the organization still exists.

Even though Tomokichi Fukurai did not receive the acclaim that he deserved, his research and his patient, Sadako Takahashi, led to the inception of one of the most terrifying characters known to the world. So let’s just hope that if these thoughtography practitioners actually exist in real life, they don’t plan to take over the world anytime soon.

Read More: The Ring Ending, Explained

The Real Life Inspirations Behind 'The Ring', Explained (2025)

FAQs

The Real Life Inspirations Behind 'The Ring', Explained? ›

But it turns out that this tale is based on a similarly tragic set of events taking place 700 years ago: It is claimed that a woman named Okiku worked in the dungeon of Himeji castle, and was the servant to a samurai. Among her tasks was looking after a set of 10 golden plates.

What was The Ring inspired by? ›

The Ring is based on the novel by Koji Suzuki and the old Japanese ghost story 'Banchō Sarayashiki,' both of which involve cursed videotapes and vengeful spirits.

What is the background story of The Ring? ›

The Ring films revolve around a cursed video tape; whoever watches the tape dies seven days later, unless the tape is copied and shown to another person, who then must repeat the same process. The video tape was created by a psychic, Sadako Yamamura, who was murdered by her adoptive father and thrown into a well.

What is Samara from The Ring based on? ›

Samara Osorio, better known as Samara Morgan, is the main antagonist of The Ring franchise, which was a remake of the Japanese psychological horror franchise Ring. She is the vengeful ghost of a young mass murderer and her character is based on Sadako Yamamura, who shares a similar backstory.

What is the backstory of Ring? ›

The Backstory of Samara and the Morgan's: Samara, when alive, was a very powerful psychic child with a terrible sadistic streak. She could implant her nightmarish mental images into photograph film. This specific ability is labelled by Eola County Psychiatric Hospital as "projected thermography".

What was the real life inspiration for Lord of the Rings? ›

Tolkien's experiences in fighting in WWI's Battle of the Somme inspired the action and intensity in The Lord of the Rings. Although the battles in The Lord of the Rings are riveting, it's very clear that Tolkien's negative beliefs on war were clear in the books.

What did The Ring symbolize? ›

Created by the evil Sauron, it is at first synonymous with its maker's evil power. Those who encounter the ring are overcome with longing for power over others, and the ring could give more power to Sauron. For all, the ring suggests the dangerous urges that lurk even in the most pure-hearted beings of Middle-earth.

Why does Samara never sleep? ›

Samara struggled to fall asleep every night due to the noises that the horses made. In a fit of psychotic rage, Samara burnt gruesome images into the minds of the horses and drove them to commit suicide by causing them to jump off a nearby cliff.

Why is the tape cursed in The Ring? ›

The video tape's curse was created by Samara likely after her death in the well. Having a miserable and lonely life, Samara was nearly drowned at birth by her mother Evelyn, nearly drove her adoptive parents mad, and was eventually pushed down a well to her death seven days later.

What does Samara do to her victims? ›

Samara possesses the power of nensha like Sadako, capable of burning images onto surfaces and into the minds of others. Unlike Sadako, Samara psychically disfigures her victims' faces before they finally die of a heart attack. Samara's history is covered through the American films.

Why did Samara spare Rachel? ›

back home, Aidan, who has psychic tendencies, tells Rachel that Samara will “never stop.” Indeed, Noah dies the next day, his seventh day. Rachel was only spared because she had made a copy of the tape, helping Samara circulate her evil. She forces Aidan to make a copy so he, too, may be spared.

How old was Sadako when she died? ›

Sadako folded cranes throughout her illness. The flock hung above her bed on strings. When she died at the age of twelve, Sadako had folded six hundred and forty-four cranes. Classmates folded the remaining three hundred and fifty-six cranes, so that one thousand were buried with Sadako.

Is Sadako a real name? ›

Sadako is a girl's name of Japanese origin. This name means "proper" or "child" and was made more popular with the film The Secret World of Arrietty.

What does pocket full of posies mean? ›

Ring around the Rosie meant the itchy rash around the infected sore of a person sick with the plague. Pocket full of posies were the flower pedals that plague doctors showered upon their deceased patients, which also helped to ward off their odor. Ashes, ashes meant the cremated remains of the deceased.

What is the true story of The Ring? ›

But it turns out that this tale is based on a similarly tragic set of events taking place 700 years ago: It is claimed that a woman named Okiku worked in the dungeon of Himeji castle, and was the servant to a samurai. Among her tasks was looking after a set of 10 golden plates.

What is the dark meaning of baa baa black sheep? ›

The stuff of nightmares

Baa Baa Black Sheep is about the medieval wool tax, imposed in the 13th Century by King Edward I. Under the new rules, a third of the cost of a sack of wool went to him, another went to the church and the last to the farmer.

What inspired The Ring in Lord of the Rings? ›

Tolkien's use of the Ring was influenced by Norse mythology. While at King Edward's School in Birmingham, he read and translated from the Old Norse in his free time. One of his first Norse purchases was the Völsunga saga.

What is the one ring based on? ›

As Tolkien was an enthusiast of Norse Mythology, he probably used the cursed ring of Andvari as inspiration. The ring was also called Andvaranaut. The ring belonged to the Dwarf Andvari and had the ability to create gold. Once the trickster god Loki persuaded Andvari, to lend him the ring.

What inspired Tolkien's Lord of the Rings? ›

Thomas Kullmann and Dirk Siepmann write that The Lord of the Rings imitates "epic poetry from ancient Greece, Ireland and England; early modern romances, folklore and fairy tales; rhetorical traditions and popular poetry", adding that the tradition Tolkien uses most is none of those, but the often overlooked influence ...

Is Sadako based on a true story? ›

The story of Sadako Sasaki, a young girl who lived through the bombing of Hiroshima, and eventually died from leukemia, is just one of many stories from Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. Yet, Sadako's story still resonates with many people today. Sadako and family lived a little over one mile from the bomb's hypocenter.

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