As he makes his way back to the helm for the series, Saw X‘s Kevin Greutert has confusing thoughts on the horror franchise’s future. Greutert, who previously edited the first five Saw movies, 2017’s Jigsaw and directed the sixth and seventh installments, returns for the latest chapter in the James Wan and Leigh Whannell-created franchise and bringing veteran stars Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith with him. Saw X will be taking a step back in time as it’s set between the first two movies and sees John Kramer enacting a new game on a group of medical frauds who feigned curing his cancer.
During an interview with SFX Magazine (via GamesRadar+), Greutert was asked how the Saw franchise may continue after the upcoming Saw X. The director/editor had some conflicting thoughts on what could come next, feeling there’s no “obvious new direction” to take the horror movie series, though acknowledging another sequel is still likely. See what Greutert said below:
There’s no obvious new direction to go after this film. But I think there probably will be more Saw movies, particularly if this one is successful.
How The Saw Franchise Can Continue After X
Greutert’s belief that another Saw movie will be produced after the upcoming installment is an understandable one as the franchise has enjoyed a modest successful run at the box office since Jigsaw brought it back from what was initially The Final Chapter in 2010. The 2017 movie kept audiences guessing as to its exact placement in the overall franchise timeline before it was revealed to take place both before the original and after The Final Chapter. Its subsequent follow-up, the Chris Rock-led Spiral, took things a step further by being almost entirely detached from the previous movies, with a killer inspired by Jigsaw rather than having actual ties to Bell’s John Kramer.
Though the Saw X director may not have much faith into the franchise’s future, there are a number of paths that it can continue after the upcoming tenth movie. One of the first is that of The Final Chapter‘s cliffhanger ending, in which it was revealed Cary Elwes’ Dr. Lawrence Gordon had become an apprentice of Jigsaw after surviving the original movie, and seemingly forming a new group of killers. Given Jigsaw introduced a new apprentice in the form of Matt Passmore’s Logan, another sequel could very well reveal one of Gordon’s group members to be him, or that Gordon killed the original apprentice in the hopes of taking over.
The other major plotline left to explore after Saw X is Spiral‘s cliffhanger ending in which Max Minghella’s Schenk/Emmerson had built his own game to get revenge for the death of his father by corrupt police officers and successfully escaped. Considering his web of traps was a more personal one than the majority of Kramer’s, Minghella’s character could see his arc completed, though with Jigsaw’s various apprentices particular about how his methods are carried out, a sequel could see them hunting the character down, making for a very different movie that breaks from the franchise’s formula.
Key Release Date
Saw 10
Release Date:2023-09-29
