A New Saw Film?

[Mitch Henessey]

Saw is making its return to theaters for one week only beginning October 31st. The occasion? Believe it or not, it’s the 10th anniversary. And today, following a press conference for the film, I sat down with producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules to reflect on the series. Inevitably, the discussion led to the “future of Saw.”

Since the seventh and “final” chapter, buzz of an eighth film has been omnipresent in the Internet press, however, the producers have never commented on it.

Would it be a sequel? A reboot? Both a sequel and a reboot with someone else carrying on Jigsaw’s legacy? None of that has been decided, but both Burg and Koules believe the time is right to get the ball rolling on another film and it sounds like series creators James Wan and Leigh Whannell might be along for the ride.

“James and Leigh…when Saw came out they were so afraid of being ‘the Saw guys’,” Koules told Shock Till You Drop, “and they were trying to make their own mark. Now that they’ve made their own mark, they’re very comfortable to come back. We’re getting there. James and Leigh are absolutely going to put their mark on it.”

“Who knows?” Burg said, adding with a tinge of hope, “We’re getting closer.”

“It’s one of the reasons we agreed to do this again,” Koules continued, referring to the first Saw‘s return to theaters. “We kind of wanted to build it up. Our goal is to go to Comic-Con, not next summer but the summer after [2016] with our heads up saying, ‘Here we go.’ James and Leigh are comfortable with the success they’ve had. And it’s time. James is in post on his movie. Leigh’s on post on [Insidious Chapter 3]. Everyone has time and it’s time.”

The Saw legacy ran 2004 to 2010 and has become one of the most successful horror franchises ever.

“I’ve entertained the idea,” Wan told me later when asked about possibly back in the director’s chair for another film. “But that’s more of a fantasy, I think. It’s a story Leigh and I really like and…who knows?”

http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/news/367851-exclusive-producers-believe-time-new-saw-film/

After the release of Saw 7/3D, rumors for another Saw film would pop up every other year, but after a few weeks or months, all the Saw talk goes back to the crickets stage again. But this is first time I remember hearing anything directly from James Wan and Leigh Whannell.

If you asked me about another Saw film back in 2011 or 2012 (Saw 7/3D was released in 2010) my answer would be a definitive "hell no." With the exception of the new Friday The 13th film, when I look at the landscape for mainstream horror, I don't see anything that's capable of pulling genuine feelings of excitement out of me.

Paranormal Activity is a mediocre franchise overall, and they pushed the new film, Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension, to 2015. Amityville: The Awakening (because we really need another shitty Amityville film) was supposed to hit theaters in January, but the future of the film is up in the air after Dimension Films removed Awakening from the upcoming releases schedule.

Insidious 3? Chapter 2 was atrocious, so I'm not foaming at the mouth for another Insidious film. Annabelle is no where near as bad as the critics are making it out to be, but I'm still uneasy about The Conjuring 2. Personally, I didn't have a big problem with the movie, but Annabelle lost the battle for #1 to Gone Girl on its opening weekend, the movie received a good amount of negative reviews, and you have to believe they were relying on that momentum to carry over to the release for The Conjuring 2.

So with the way things are now, a new Saw film could spark some buzz. Yes, six sequels for any franchise is too much, but I think we're at a point were enough time has passed for fans to move on from any negative feelings towards the franchise.

Although, I don't know if Wan will return to direct. He's the director for Fast & Furious 7, and a while ago, Wan announced his plans to take a break from the horror genre. Wan was very vocal about Hollywood typecasting him as a horror guy, so he wanted to take a big step outside of his comfort zone to show off his versatility.

Are you interested in another Saw film?

 

[TheICChampion]

I am interested, but mainly because I want to see where they could possibly go from the Saw 7 ending. Jigsaw's dead, and his final wish was carried out by Dr. Gordon. Do they reboot the franchise? Do they re-tell the story from someone else's perspective? There are many questions that still need to be answered, and I think most people will look at it in a way that's similar to mine inasmuch as they want to see how they could possibly continue the series. As far as I know, I heard Tobin Bell was going to be in it, so there will most likely be some flashbacks at the very least, which has me leaning toward the "different perspective" theory I have. Maybe it's Dr. Gordon's? Anyone remember the son from Saw II? Is there someone new to carry on the legacy? Again, I'm really interested in seeing what they can come up with, so I know I'll be checking it out.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Do they reboot the franchise?

This is something I thought about, when the rumors started a handful of years ago. Usually, I'm against reboots and remakes, but Saw is a different case. Some will say a new film after 2010 is too soon, but the story is a jumbled mess at this point, so a fresh start could help. The vast majority of major characters are dead, and yes Dr. Gordon is still alive, but I have a few doubts about building a story for a full length feature film around Dr. Gordon.

Do they re-tell the story from someone else's perspective?

It could work with the right character, something similar to the approach they used with Amanda, Hoffman, and others throughout the series. With that said, I hope they'll stay away from the "flashback, cut to current story, flashback, repeat" formula, because this overused routine killed the momentum for the current story in the Saw films.

Anyone remember the son from Saw II?

You're talking about Eric Matthews' son, Daniel, right? From what I remember, Jigsaw and Jill lost their baby after the miscarriage incident. If you're talking about Daniel, I could picture an angry and vindictive son storyline. A vengeful Daniel could work , but there's a chance they'll rely on one too many cliches.

Is there someone new to carry on the legacy?

If we're using Saw 3D/7 as a sign of things to come, it's Dr. Gordon. But if they're going with someone new, they need to pick the right apprentice, and with all the major deaths in the previous films, that's a tough task to accomplish, if hey plan on continuing the story. As this raging psychopath, I could buy into Amanda as the new Jigsaw, I could buy into Jill for obvious reasons, but for me, Hoffman was a boring and dull character, and ironically enough, the Saw series took a dive after the fifth film.

 

[Dagger Dias]

A new Saw film? Yep, I'll be there watching it when it gets released. I loved the Saw series. I'd even go as far as to say it's my favorite horror series ever. For more than half a decade I would go see the new one each October. The month simply wasn't complete to me without seeing the new Saw film. Each year I'd re-watch the prequels beforehand, to hype up the experience of seeing the new one. Then after 2010 we have not seen any new films. Paranormal Activity took the place of Saw for a couple of years as my big annual October film, but it just wasn't the same. I'm a big enough fan of Saw to go see a new one no matter what.... although even someone as big a fan of the series as I am can see why some might be skeptical of a new film. What direction could it even take? Either way, you can count on me watching it if they do release an 8th Saw.

 

[Dave]

Nope, no thanks.

Truth be told, I lost interest after the fourth one. Don't get me wrong, I have watched the rest of them but more out of habit than true excitement. If I am honest, I wouldn't have made any more than the first one. It was truly inventive and well played out - everyone was talking about it. But cinema is not a fickle business. If you get people talking about a movie, create a buzz and sell shit loads of tickets, then you are always going to keep going until the series has no legs left in it.

I am hoping that James Wan and Leigh Whannell just stay away from it. They don't need it.

I disagree with Mitch here, I liked The Conjuring and have heard decent things about Annabelle. Of course Insidious 2 was a pile of shit but I don't honestly believe that they ever intended that movie to go beyond the first one. But, like I said, cinema always demands more of a franchise when it would be better off being what it originally was. Still, both of them are doing fine without having to go back to Saw.

I really hope I don't see it happen. And if I do, I hope it is inventive as the first one.