It's hard to believe, but it seems the game is up for the Saw franchise, at least temporarily. The much-anticipated Saw XI has been officially delayed and will not hit theaters this fall as initially planned.
This delay, however, isn't due to creative disagreements. According to Saw XI screenwriter Patrick Melton in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, "We haven’t heard anything since May. It’s stalled at a managerial level. It has nothing to do with the creative or anything else. There’s higher-level things at play."
Melton and his writing partner Marcus Dunstan submitted their script draft in spring 2024, nearly a year ago. Melton elaborated, "The reason it’s held up is just, there’s inter-squabbling between producers and Lionsgate. They just can’t quite get on the same page."
Frequent franchise director Kevin Gruetert was set to helm the project back in December 2023, with an original release date set for September 2024. However, fans were devastated when the film's release was pushed back an entire year to September 2025. The hope among diehard fans was that this delay would serve the story well, especially following the success of Saw X. The tenth installment had revitalized the franchise, earning over $120 million globally, which naturally fueled excitement and anticipation for Saw XI.
What makes this delay even more frustrating is that Saw XI was poised to tackle a topical issue. While specific plot details remain under wraps, Melton drew parallels between Saw XI and Saw VI, which he co-wrote with Dunstan and was directed by Gruetert. In Saw VI, John Kramer, aka Jigsaw (played by Tobin Bell), exacts revenge on health insurance executives.
Melton expressed his hopes for the project, stating, "Saw XI may or may not be made, but we have a very timely story in it, and I hope it gets made just because of that."
He elaborated, "It taps into the same themes of Saw VI, where you’re a citizen, you feel angry and frustrated with something, you feel like you can’t do anything, and John Kramer’s going to do it." The potential for the Saw franchise to revisit these themes, given the current state of the world, would have been intriguing. However, it appears we might never get to see this vision come to life.
