The Jigsaw Franchise (‘Saw XI’ Announced for September 27, 2024)

Next ‘Saw’ Movie Set for Halloween 2023 Release With Kevin Greutert Directing

Darren Bousman’s rebootSpiral: From the Book of Saw pulled in $40 million worldwide last year, reviving the franchise and paving the way for more sequels. Another brand new Saw movie is indeed in the works, with Bloody Disgusting exclusively learning that Kevin Greutert will be directing the next installment. And it’s set for release on October 27, 2023!

Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures re-team for the next installment of the billion-dollar franchise.

The untitled film will be the TENTH installment in the Saw franchise.

Like Bousman, Kevin Greutert is no stranger to the Saw franchise. Greutert directed both Saw VI in 2009 and later Saw: The Final Chapter in 2010, along with the horror movies Jessabelle in 2014 and Jackals more recently in 2017. He also edited Saw I through V and Jigsaw.

While Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures are keeping the plot and characters under wraps at this time, we’re told fans can be assured that the new film will capture their hearts – and other body parts – with all-new twisted, ingenious traps and a new mystery to solve.

Franchise producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules said, “We have been listening to what the fans have been asking for and are hard at work planning a movie that Saw aficionados and horror fans alike will love. And part of that is giving the reins to Kevin Greutert, director of Saw VI, which is still one of the fans’ favorites in the entire series.

“More details will be revealed soon.”

Stay tuned for more on Saw 10 as we learn it.

UltimateMarvel wrote:Fuck yes! He's did a great job on the other movies. The last one with Chris Rock was not good though.

Jigsaw returns! Tobin Bell, who played the maniacal killer known for orchestrating twisted tests in the “Saw” movies, is returning for the next installment in the horror series.

James Wan and Leigh Whannell created the “Saw” franchise, revolving around the mysterious and disturbing John “Jigsaw” Kramer, who puts his victims through deadly games to test their wills to live. Bell played the calculated executioner in the first eight movies, but he wasn’t involved in the ninth film, 2021’s “Spiral,” which instead focused on a copycat killer.

“What a thrill to be reuniting with Tobin,” said producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules. “His performance as John Kramer is part of the magic that made this franchise a phenomenon and his character is an active part of this film.”

The 10th “Saw” movie, which doesn’t have an official title, is going into production later this month. It’s slated to release in theaters on Oct. 27, 2023.

Franchise veteran Kevin Greutert, who directed “Saw VI,” Saw: The Final Chapter” and worked on every movie including “Spiral,” is directing the next chapter.

Kramer was killed in “Saw III,” but he’s continued to appear in the sequels through flashbacks. Though plot details for the latest have been kept under wraps, the film’s backers Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures tease that “the return of Bell to the franchise furthers [our] goal of a film that captures everything ‘Saw’ fans love about the franchise, while also keeping them guessing with all-new traps and a new mystery to solve.”

UltimateMarvel wrote:Nice! Tobin is a legend! As the 10th film in the franchise, this one needs to be special.

WyldeMan wrote:John Kramer will be resurrected from the dead.

UltimateMarvel wrote:

WyldeMan wrote:John Kramer will be resurrected from the dead.

As much as I want him to, how do you survive terminal cancer?

Tyger wrote:Remember the hype for Saw and how unique it was? They really seem to hate the legacy it could have had.

WyldeMan wrote:We've seen Kramer's head peeled back and his brain having been removed from his head, so my only thoughts? Voodoo.

UltimateMarvel wrote:

WyldeMan wrote:We've seen Kramer's head peeled back and his brain having been removed from his head, so my only thoughts? Voodoo.

Yeah, it's probably just going to be more flashbacks. If he's still alive, it's going to be a hell of a twist. I know he's good with prosthetics so maybe that body was not his after all, I wouldn't be surprised.

EXCLUSIVE: Veteran Saw cast member Shawnee Smith is circling the newest installment in the billion-dollar horror franchise from Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures, which is currently in production in Mexico City, Deadline hears. 

While the studio declined to comment on Smith’s casting, we understand that it has continued to expand its cast for the tenth Saw film following the closing of deals for Synnøve Macody Lund (Ragnarok), Steven Brand (The Sandman) and Michael Beach (Dahmer). Then, there’s horror icon Tobin Bell, who will return for another go-round as Jigsaw Killer John Kramer, as previously announced.

Details as to the plot of the new film are under wraps, though we know that franchise veteran Kevin Greuter — who helmed Saw VI and Saw: The Final Chapter, and edited Saw I through V and Jigsaw — has returned as director. While there’s no word yet on the characters to be played by Lund, Brand and Beach, Smith will presumably reprise her role as Amanda Young in some form — perhaps via flashbacks, as in a couple of past installments. 

Introduced as one of Kramer’s victims in the original 2004 film, Young was later revealed to be an apprentice of the killer, known for forcing captives to play deadly games, before meeting her end in Saw III. The tenth Saw is slated for release on October 27, 2023.

Smith has also previously starred in the sitcoms Becker and Anger Management for CBS and FX. Other notable film credits include The Grudge 3, The Island, Armageddon, Leaving Las Vegas and The Blob. She’ll also soon be seen in the Apple TV+ series City on Fire with Jemima Kirke, John Cameron Mitchell and more.

Lund is a Norwegian actress and director who currently stars in Netflix’s series, Ragnarok. Additional TV credits include Riviera for Sky Atlantic; the Scandinavian series Acquitted and Black Widows, the latter of which she also co-produced; and the upcoming Italian Amazon original Everybody Loves Diamonds. Lund has also been seen in Morten Tyldum’s Headhunters, based on the novel by Jo Nesbø, as well as the films Haunted and The Girl in the Spider’s Web.

Brand is coming off directing Joe Baby — an action-thriller starring Dichen Lachman, Willa Fitzgerald, Ron Perlman and Harvey Keitel. He recently appeared in Netflix’s hit series The Sandman and will be seen in the streamer’s show Vikings: Valhalla next year.

Beach currently stars in the popular series Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King and Kingdom Business, having also appeared in Netflix’s smash, Dahmer. His upcoming work includes the HBO Max series Dead Boy Detectives, the horror-thriller feature Shelby Oaks, and Nurse Jackie helmer Brendan Walsh’s comedy I’ll Be Right There toplined by the Showtime series’ star, Edie Falco.

Smith is repped by Link Entertainment and Yorn, Levine, Barnes; Lund by the UK’s The Artists Partnership, Denmark’s Panorama Agency and Felker Toczek Suddleson; Brand by Global Artists Agency, the UK’s International Artists Management and Alexander, Nau, Lawrence; and Beach by Global Artists Agency and Yorn, Levine, Barnes.

Lionsgate Gets Excited About ‘Saw X’: Horror Pic Moves Earlier In Fall; First Look Unveiled

EXCLUSIVE: While there’s been whispers of films possibly moving out of 2023 into 2024 and beyond due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, it’s hands off for horror film franchises, particularly Lionsgate’s Saw X.

The studio is so excited about the next sequel and its testing, they’re moving up the pic’s release date from Oct. 27 to Sept. 29.

In the Twisted Pictures next installment John Kramer (Tobin Bell) is back, and it’s the untold chapter of Jigsaw’s final games. Set between the events of Saw I and II, a sick and desperate John travels to Mexico for a risky and experimental medical procedure in hopes of a miracle cure for his cancer – only to discover the entire operation is a scam to defraud the most vulnerable. The infamous serial killer returns to his work, turning the tables on the con artists in his signature visceral way through devious, deranged, and ingenious traps.

Kevin Greutert directed off a screenplay by Peter Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg. Mark Burg and Oren Koules are producing. The Saw franchise has minted over $1 billion at the global box office. While New Line’s The Nun 2 is set to open in the post Labor Day weekend frame, Saw X is set to open before other big fall horror pics, Universal/Blumhouse/Morgan Creek’s Exorcist: The Believer on Oct. 13 and Uni/Blumhouse’s Five Night on Freddy‘s which is going theatrical day and date on Peacock on Oct. 27.

UltimateMarvel wrote:Cool! With everything getting pushed these days, it's nice to see something getting moved up.

You don't get to just scam John Kramer and live your life. lol

WyldeMan wrote:Everybody Kramer helped die was a shit bag who deserved it. 

Jigsaw = Vigilante Anti-Hero.

UltimateMarvel wrote:

WyldeMan wrote:Everybody Kramer helped die was a shit bag who deserved it. 

Jigsaw = Vigilante Anti-Hero.

He does good work for society. I wonder if it will time jump into the future at some point so pick up the pieces from the end of the last movie.

A Saw movie is actually getting good reviews.

Saw X — the 10th entry in the long-running gory horror franchise that opens this week — has an out-of-the-gate Rotten Tomatoes score of 84 percent “fresh.”

While it’s still early and more reviews will be added (the film has 37 reviews so far, including eight “top critics” like The Hollywood Reporter’s review), the film’s current Rotten Tomatoes ranking is far higher than any other movie in the franchise.

The previous high score was from, unsurprisingly, the first film, 2004’s Saw, which only has a 50 percent freshness rating (arguably unfairly, as the original is now considered a clever and groundbreaking thriller, one that launched the career of director James Wan, co-writer and co-star Leigh Whannell, and a 10-film franchise).

The Saw franchise’s critical low point is 2010’s erroneously titled Saw: The Final Chapter, which has only a 9 percent freshness rating. Even an attempt to take Saw in a classier direction, 2021’s Spiral: From the Book of Saw, which starred Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson, only topped out at 37 percent.

Right now, Saw X is the only entry in the franchise to get the coveted “fresh” designation, which is extremely likely to hold as it only requires a 60 percent positive score.

A common thread in the reviews is that Saw X is the strongest since the original, with praise for Tobin Bell (who plays the franchise’s villainous Jigsaw, aka John Kramer). The film is a prequel that takes place between the first two Saw films, with Bell given notably more screen time in the new film than in past entries. Saw X was directed by Kevin Greutert, who previously helmed 2009’s Saw VI and 2010’s Saw 3D.

Here are a few spoiler-free critiques about Saw X:

The Hollywood Reporter: “None of this would work nearly as well without Bell, whose raspy voice and menacing gravitas are so riveting that he makes Jigsaw’s oft-repeated declaration, “I’d like to play a game,” scary as hell. He’s made the character truly iconic, much like Robert Englund did with Freddy Krueger. Accept no substitutions.”

The Independent: “Ten films in and it’s a routine we’re so intimately familiar with that it’d be hard to call any element of Saw X original but returning director Kevin Greutert knows what’ll satisfy his audience: a few buckets of blood and the gag-inducing sound of crunching bone. Here, they’ll get exactly what they want.”

Bloody Disgusting: “Saw X delivers a franchise high, and that’s no small feat ten installments deep. There’s a comfortable sense of awareness and humor found in a sequel that utilizes its pared-back simplicity to showcase the characters and gore.”

DigitalSpy: Saw X has delivered the most effective Saw sequel yet … Saw X might still deliver the gore you’d expect from a Saw outing, yet in attempting to do something new and not just the same-old, it’s potentially injected the series with fresh blood.”

IndieWire: “People have got to stop fucking with John Kramer. … After a decade as Halloween’s most hyped-up annual release in the aughts, Saw is finally back this October to tell Taylor Swift she’s not the only one doing vigilante shit. Congrats, Tobin. You deserve this one. … Most agonizing, suspenseful Saw sequel yet.”

UltimateMarvel wrote:I don't trust Rotten Tomatoes that much but it's still nice to read that everyone is enjoying it.

‘Saw XI’ Announced for September 2024 Release Date

Lionsgate wants to play another game. The studio made a surprise announcement of “Saw XI” on Monday afternoon, along with plans for the 11th entry in the long-running horror franchise to hit theaters just nine months from now.

The project was confirmed through an Instagram post, which feature Roman numerals against a spooky “Saw” backdrop spelling out a Sept. 27, 2024 release date. It was shared alongside a simple caption: “The game continues.”

Setting a date for next fall is a pretty astounding feat, as the last franchise entry, “Saw X,” hit theaters just over two months ago on Sept. 29. That represents a quick turnaround — less than one year — for the franchise. It’s not an achievement that the series hasn’t notched before though. After the first “Saw” took off, “Saw II” was quickly greenlit and just barely hit the benchmark, hitting theaters 364 days after the original. In fact, each following “Saw” entry made it to release less than a year after its respective predecessor up to the seventh installment, “Saw 3D,” which had to settle for coming 371 days after “Saw VI.” After that, the franchise took a seven-year hiatus before the 2017 revival “Jigsaw.”

“Saw X” put up a strong performance at the box office, grossing $53 million in North America and $107 million globally against a $13 million production budget.

Lionsgate did not announce any details regarding who is involved with “Saw XI.” A representative for the studio was not immediately available for comment.

The tenth “Saw” featured franchise star Tobin Bell returning to the role of John Kramer, the serial torture-contraption crafter and arguable self-improvement guru Jigsaw. The 81-year-old actor, who first appeared in the original “Saw” in 2004, took on a lead role for the latest entry, which took place between the first and second installments of the series and explored Kramer’s adventures below the border seeking treatment for a brain tumor — and striking back against a group of medical con artists. Shawnee Smith also returned as Jigsaw’s apprentice Amanda Young. Kevin Greutert, who began with “Saw” as an editor before helming the sixth and seventh entries, directed the feature.

“There’s a version that picks up immediately where this one leaves off, but it’s way too early to tell,” Greutert said, discussing potential sequel plans on The Director’s Cut – A DGA Podcast just three weeks ago. With plans to hit theaters nine months from now, it’s probably not so early anymore.

UltimateMarvel wrote:Nice! Have you seen X yet? I'll try to watch it this week.