Word on the horror cinematic streets is that after seven installments, a soft reboot, a spinoff, and an… inbetweenquel, ‘SAW 11’ has reportedly been cancelled by Lionsgate.
via: Bloody Disgusting
After two decades, ten films, and over a billion dollars grossed worldwide, Saw remains one of horror’s most popular and enduring franchises. Unfortunately, the series’ iconic villain Jigsaw may have already set his last trap, according to an anonymous source BD has verified as being close to the production of its newest sequel.
“It’s totally dead,” the source tells us. “It’s 100% over. Almost a year now.”
After the commercial and critical success of 2023’s Saw X, Lionsgate announced Saw XI with a teaser image and a September 27th, 2024 release date. Not long after, Saw X director (and franchise veteran) Kevin Greutert was revealed as the upcoming sequel’s director, with previous series scribes Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan on scripting duties.
In addition, Saw stars Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith and Costas Mandylor were to return to their roles for this outing. However, the release date was eventually pushed back by a year in the spring of 2024, placing its new release date at September 26th, 2025.
So what happened?!
According to the source, “Everything went sideways in January 2024 … the producers started fighting.” While one producer attempted to “plow forward” with the film, the other “put up roadblocks,” stifling Saw XI’s production.
But what about Lionsgate? Surely the company that Saw helped build would have stepped in to steer its lucrative ship back on course? Our source suggests, “[Lionsgate] didn’t have anyone to smooth over the disagreement.”
As it stands, the series still has a number of dangling plot strands left to be tied up. With Saw XI effectively canceled, so too is the franchise, robbing its fans and creators of a proper ending. What becomes of the series after this?
The insider notes that the franchise might sell somewhere else, but it will likely “start over,” if so.
In the end, Jigsaw was thwarted not by cancer or a circular saw to the throat, but a persistent plague to creativity and filmmaking. As the source concludes, “Greed and ego won.”
*****
While I would have loved for another Saw movie, if this is the end of the road for this franchise, at least they went out on a high note.
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