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Silent Hill 2The creature’s original artist revealed that the inspiration for the game’s most iconic enemy can be traced back to an often-forgotten 1990 horror film.

Pyramid Head began life as infernal penance personified. A walking manifestation of one’s guilt, ready to punish those who want it most with strange moans and a rusty scythe. But the big boss has since become the closest thing Silent Hill has to a series mascot, so publisher Konami can thank 1990s Jacob’s Ladder for its cash cow.

Taking to social media, original Silent Hill 2 artist Masahiro Ito gushed over the cult classic once again. “If I hadn’t seen a teaser of this on TV, I would have never gone to see the movie, never made the other world school in SH1, or never come up with the Pyramid Head background,” he tweeted. “Fuck!”

Jacob’s Ladder might not be the most common cultural touchstone — it was barely a success at first — but it’s pretty easy to connect the dots between the two projects. Jacob’s Ladder follows a Vietnam War veteran who is haunted by otherworldly apparitions, tentacled monsters, and alternate realities that blur the line between what is real and what is merely a manifestation of Jacob’s psyche. Very Silent Hill-y.

When it comes to Pyramid Head in particular, Ito say that a very specific line in the film gave him the idea to create a physical representation of guilt and judgment. “The only thing that burns in Hell is the part of you that doesn’t give up on life, your memories, your attachments. They burn them all. But they don’t punish you. They free your soul.” is the line, which is itself a quote from the German philosopher Master Eckhart.

On the topic of influences, Ito also said that the Fukuro Lady in Silent Hill was actually inspired by a BDSM magazine.