20 years ago, Saw made an indelible impact on the horror genre. Not only did it usher in the so-called “torture porn” subgenre that would become synonymous with the aughts, but it also launched the career of filmmaker James Wan, who has firmly cemented his place among the masters of horror with follow-ups like The Conjuring and Insidious.
In the two decades since, the lucrative franchise has spawned nine sequels — 2005’s Saw II, 2006’s Saw III, 2007’s Saw IV, 2008’s Saw V, 2009’s Saw VI, 2010’s Saw: The Final Chapter, 2017’s Jigsaw, 2021’s Spiral: From the Book of Saw, and 2023’s Saw X — with a worldwide box office total of over $1 billion.
Despite being often maligned by detractors for its mindless sadism, fans are just as much invested in the series’ soap opera-esque melodrama as the innovative death traps. Formulaic though the general plots may be, the non-linear storyline is deceptively...
In the two decades since, the lucrative franchise has spawned nine sequels — 2005’s Saw II, 2006’s Saw III, 2007’s Saw IV, 2008’s Saw V, 2009’s Saw VI, 2010’s Saw: The Final Chapter, 2017’s Jigsaw, 2021’s Spiral: From the Book of Saw, and 2023’s Saw X — with a worldwide box office total of over $1 billion.
Despite being often maligned by detractors for its mindless sadism, fans are just as much invested in the series’ soap opera-esque melodrama as the innovative death traps. Formulaic though the general plots may be, the non-linear storyline is deceptively...
- 3/5/2024
- by Alex DiVincenzo
- bloody-disgusting.com
Saw is the series that just won’t stop. Not only did Saw X wind up making over $100 million worldwide, but it also earned the franchise’s best reviews since the original. Indeed, Tobin Bell received raves for his shockingly empathetic portrayal of Jigsaw, and in welcome news to fans of the franchise, Sax XI is already in production for a release this fall! But, how does the entire series rank? You can check out our Saw Movies Ranked list below – then let us know how you would rank the movies by leaving a comment!
Saw 3D (2010)
Envisioned as the “Final Chapter”, the seventh Saw movie was released in 3D so it could throw some of the biggest, most over-the-top traps of the franchise right in the viewer’s face. Saw 3D was directed by Saw VI’s Kevin Greutert, who was forced to replace Saw V director David Hackl...
Saw 3D (2010)
Envisioned as the “Final Chapter”, the seventh Saw movie was released in 3D so it could throw some of the biggest, most over-the-top traps of the franchise right in the viewer’s face. Saw 3D was directed by Saw VI’s Kevin Greutert, who was forced to replace Saw V director David Hackl...
- 1/30/2024
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
When Saw X was announced, there wasn’t much fanfare for the sequel/prequel. Sure, it was confirmed that for the first time, John Kramer (aka Jigsaw) would be the protagonist this time around; however, the brand isn’t the popular IP that it once was due to the lack of quality. Saw will always have a special place in the world of horror; when James Wan dropped the first film in 2004, it started a new subgenre as the classic film immediately took the mainstream by storm. Saw, Saw II and Saw III are widely regarded as the best entries of the...
- 1/29/2024
- by Jeffrey Bowie Jr.
- TVovermind.com
Saw has returned! Tobin Bell is back as the famed serial killer and Saw X explored events that took place before his infamous death in Saw III. The franchise burst onto the scene in 2004; Which means Saw has been in the mainstream for nearly 20 years. Admittedly, the series is overly convoluted, though that’s the charm of the ongoing saga. However, the bread and butter for Saw is their traps. This time, John uses his traps on a pair of con artists once he realizes that a risky and experimental medical procedure is a scam. Saw X has received...
- 1/29/2024
- by Jeffrey Bowie Jr.
- TVovermind.com
NYC Weekend Watch is our weekly round-up of repertory offerings.
Film at Lincoln Center
“Never Look Away: Serge Daney’s Radical 1970s” brings films by Kurosawa, Bresson, Tati, Godard and more.
IFC Center
As Francis Ford Coppola’s latest recut, One from the Heart: Reprise, continues, Bertrand Bonello’s masterpiece Coma gets a New York premiere; Ken Russell’s Whore, Saw III, and Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome also have late showings.
Roxy Cinema
A Ryan O’Neal retrospective brings The Driver on 35mm and Partners, while Cronenberg’s Crash shows on a print; City Dudes returns on Saturday and Sunday brings a puppet program and the Iranian feature Downpour plays on Sunday.
Film Forum
A 4K restoration of The Pianist begins a run while I Heard It Through the Grapevine and The Third Man continue; The Sunshine Boys plays on Sunday.
Museum of the Moving Image
A retrospective of snubbed performances brings films by Howard Hawks,...
Film at Lincoln Center
“Never Look Away: Serge Daney’s Radical 1970s” brings films by Kurosawa, Bresson, Tati, Godard and more.
IFC Center
As Francis Ford Coppola’s latest recut, One from the Heart: Reprise, continues, Bertrand Bonello’s masterpiece Coma gets a New York premiere; Ken Russell’s Whore, Saw III, and Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome also have late showings.
Roxy Cinema
A Ryan O’Neal retrospective brings The Driver on 35mm and Partners, while Cronenberg’s Crash shows on a print; City Dudes returns on Saturday and Sunday brings a puppet program and the Iranian feature Downpour plays on Sunday.
Film Forum
A 4K restoration of The Pianist begins a run while I Heard It Through the Grapevine and The Third Man continue; The Sunshine Boys plays on Sunday.
Museum of the Moving Image
A retrospective of snubbed performances brings films by Howard Hawks,...
- 1/26/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
What are the highest grossing horror movies of all time? More specifically, what are the highest grossing horror franchises of all time? On the list of the Top 20, only Five franchises in the history of the genre have crossed the $1 billion mark. Can you guess which ones?
Franchises including The Purge, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Final Destination, The Exorcist, Insidious and Halloween are some of the biggest of all time, but even they haven’t yet been able to crack that massive billion dollar milestone. Other franchises including Paranormal Activity and Scream come even closer, but haven’t yet crossed over into the billions.
The only horror franchises to hit $1 billion, you ask?
With 10 films under its belt – and an eleventh on the way soon – the Saw franchise officially shattered the $1 billion milestone with the release of Saw X last year. The return of Jigsaw and Amanda drove the...
Franchises including The Purge, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Final Destination, The Exorcist, Insidious and Halloween are some of the biggest of all time, but even they haven’t yet been able to crack that massive billion dollar milestone. Other franchises including Paranormal Activity and Scream come even closer, but haven’t yet crossed over into the billions.
The only horror franchises to hit $1 billion, you ask?
With 10 films under its belt – and an eleventh on the way soon – the Saw franchise officially shattered the $1 billion milestone with the release of Saw X last year. The return of Jigsaw and Amanda drove the...
- 1/19/2024
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
NYC Weekend Watch is our weekly round-up of repertory offerings.
IFC Center
Francis Ford Coppola’s latest recut, One from the Heart: Reprise, begins a run; Ken Russell’s Whore, Saw III, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Donnie Darko, and Spongebob Squarepants have late showings.
Roxy Cinema
A Ryan O’Neal retrospective brings Barry Lyndon and Tough Guys Don’t Dance on 35mm, while Peter Bogdanovich’s cut of Nickelodeon also screens.
Museum of Modern Art
One of the year’s great series, “To Save and Project,” continues.
Film Forum
I Heard It Through the Grapevine and Artie Shaw: Time Is All You Got begin runs, the former bringing with it a three-film program and I Am Not Your Negro; The Third Man continues a 75th-anniversary 35mm engagement; Sounder plays on Sunday.
Anthology Film Archives
Films by Skip Norman play through the weekend; Eisenstein’s Old and New plays on Saturday.
IFC Center
Francis Ford Coppola’s latest recut, One from the Heart: Reprise, begins a run; Ken Russell’s Whore, Saw III, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Donnie Darko, and Spongebob Squarepants have late showings.
Roxy Cinema
A Ryan O’Neal retrospective brings Barry Lyndon and Tough Guys Don’t Dance on 35mm, while Peter Bogdanovich’s cut of Nickelodeon also screens.
Museum of Modern Art
One of the year’s great series, “To Save and Project,” continues.
Film Forum
I Heard It Through the Grapevine and Artie Shaw: Time Is All You Got begin runs, the former bringing with it a three-film program and I Am Not Your Negro; The Third Man continues a 75th-anniversary 35mm engagement; Sounder plays on Sunday.
Anthology Film Archives
Films by Skip Norman play through the weekend; Eisenstein’s Old and New plays on Saturday.
- 1/18/2024
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
Are you ready to play another game? The "Saw" canon isn't exactly the easiest challenge for casual fans to make sense of -- Tobin Bell's John Kramer was infamously killed off way back in "Saw III," for instance, despite almost every movie since twisting itself into knots in order to include him in the action anyway -- but the series has gone on to become one of the longest-running (and most consistently-performing) horror franchises ever anyway. That streak was all but assured of continuing after the latest installment, "Saw X," earned the best reviews out of any of the movies and went on to slash its way to the top of the box office. America and, indeed, the entire world are demanding more Billy the Puppet and the maniacal Jigsaw games ... and Lionsgate has been listening.
The studio has officially announced that the franchise will return with "Saw XI" and,...
The studio has officially announced that the franchise will return with "Saw XI" and,...
- 12/12/2023
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
“The game continues.”
So reads a post to the official Lionsgate and Saw social media pages this afternoon. Along with it, the date 9.27.24 was posted which, one presumes, is the release date for the 11th film in Lionsgate’s durable franchise. That’s roughly the same window in which Saw X debuted this year.
The tenth installment of the franchise will chronologically take place between Saw I and Saw II. No official word on whether 81-year-old Tobin Bell will be back as the Jigsaw killer, though after 10 installments, it’s likely a safe bet.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Saw (@saw)
Saw X opened to $18 million domestically, which rebounded the franchise greatly. That was up +106% over Spiral‘s $8.75M.
The Saw X opening was just under that of the original movie back in 2004, which was $18.2M. Given the tenth installment’s $13M production cost, it was...
So reads a post to the official Lionsgate and Saw social media pages this afternoon. Along with it, the date 9.27.24 was posted which, one presumes, is the release date for the 11th film in Lionsgate’s durable franchise. That’s roughly the same window in which Saw X debuted this year.
The tenth installment of the franchise will chronologically take place between Saw I and Saw II. No official word on whether 81-year-old Tobin Bell will be back as the Jigsaw killer, though after 10 installments, it’s likely a safe bet.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Saw (@saw)
Saw X opened to $18 million domestically, which rebounded the franchise greatly. That was up +106% over Spiral‘s $8.75M.
The Saw X opening was just under that of the original movie back in 2004, which was $18.2M. Given the tenth installment’s $13M production cost, it was...
- 12/12/2023
- by Tom Tapp
- Deadline Film + TV
Santa Isn't Real: "After suffering a brutal attack on Christmas eve, a young woman, Nikki, struggles to convince her friends that the assailant was none other than Ol' Kris Kringle. When Santa returns to terrorize the group in their remote cabin the next Christmas, Nikki and her friends must overcome disbelief as they fight to stay alive."
Written and Directed by: Zac Locke (The Voyeurs, Black Christmas) Country of Origin: USA Language: English Genre: Horror Distributor: XYZ Films Run Time: 76 minutes Cast: Scarlett Sperduto, Dana Millican, Kaya Coleman
---
The Cello: "Like many musicians, accomplished Saudi cellist Nasser (Samer Ismail) has aspirations for greatness, though he feels like he’s held back by the old, dilapidated instrument he’s forced to play. When Nasser is offered the chance to take possession of a gorgeous red cello by a mysterious shop owner (Tobin Bell), he finds new inspiration both for his playing and for his composing.
Written and Directed by: Zac Locke (The Voyeurs, Black Christmas) Country of Origin: USA Language: English Genre: Horror Distributor: XYZ Films Run Time: 76 minutes Cast: Scarlett Sperduto, Dana Millican, Kaya Coleman
---
The Cello: "Like many musicians, accomplished Saudi cellist Nasser (Samer Ismail) has aspirations for greatness, though he feels like he’s held back by the old, dilapidated instrument he’s forced to play. When Nasser is offered the chance to take possession of a gorgeous red cello by a mysterious shop owner (Tobin Bell), he finds new inspiration both for his playing and for his composing.
- 12/4/2023
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
Two years have passed since we heard that filming had wrapped on The Cello (formerly known as simply Cello), the latest horror project from director Darren Lynn Bousman – whose credits include Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, and Spiral: From the Book of Saw. Now a trailer for The Cello has finally arrived online, along with the information that the movie is going to be receiving a theatrical release on December 8th! You can watch the trailer in the embed above.
Filmed in Saudi Arabia and the Czech Republic, The Cello is told through a mixture of English and Arabic. The screenplay was written by Turki Al Alshikh, the chairman of the General Authority for Entertainment in Saudi Arabia, and is based on his first novel, which was published in 2021. The story centers on accomplished Saudi cellist Nasser, who has aspirations for greatness, though he feels like he’s held back by the old,...
Filmed in Saudi Arabia and the Czech Republic, The Cello is told through a mixture of English and Arabic. The screenplay was written by Turki Al Alshikh, the chairman of the General Authority for Entertainment in Saudi Arabia, and is based on his first novel, which was published in 2021. The story centers on accomplished Saudi cellist Nasser, who has aspirations for greatness, though he feels like he’s held back by the old,...
- 11/21/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live: "AMC Networks announced tonight that The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, the highly anticipated next series in the Walking Dead Universe, will premiere Sunday, February 25, 2024 on AMC and AMC+. A new teaser for the series, which stars Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira as beloved Twd characters Rick Grimes and Michonne, was also released during tonight’s series finale of Fear the Walking Dead.
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead... And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they've ever known before? Are they enemies?...
The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead... And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they've ever known before? Are they enemies?...
- 11/21/2023
- by Jonathan James
- DailyDead
What began as a simple two-hander about strangers chained in a squalid bathroom, enduring the twisted games of a mysterious tormentor, has evolved into an intricate saga spanning nearly twenty years and ten gruesome films. With every new "Saw" movie, the traps become bigger and more brutal, the timelines increasingly jumbled, and the twists even more mind-boggling. Each "Saw" entry delves deeper into (and complicates) the maniacal Jigsaw philosophy that forces people to confront their sins and appreciate the life they've been given.
Often regarded as part of the controversial horror subgenre "torture porn" (even though we may need to retire that term forever), the "Saw" films feature graphic depictions of mutilation and extreme violence in elaborate devices that are not for the faint of heart. While it can be daunting to tackle such a visceral and temporally complex series, there is really only one solid path to follow when...
Often regarded as part of the controversial horror subgenre "torture porn" (even though we may need to retire that term forever), the "Saw" films feature graphic depictions of mutilation and extreme violence in elaborate devices that are not for the faint of heart. While it can be daunting to tackle such a visceral and temporally complex series, there is really only one solid path to follow when...
- 11/19/2023
- by Caroline Madden
- Slash Film
Saw has returned! Tobin Bell is back as the famed serial killer and Saw X will explore events that took place before his infamous death in Saw III. The franchise burst onto the scene in 2004; Which means Saw has been in the mainstream for nearly 20 years. Admittedly, the series is overly convoluted, though that’s the charm of the ongoing franchise. However, the bread and butter for Saw is their traps and twists. You can’t have a Saw film without a huge twist. There’s certainly no shortage of them in the past nine films. This list will narrow down...
- 11/16/2023
- by Jeffrey Bowie Jr.
- TVovermind.com
No good villain is ever truly gone, especially in horror movies. This September saw the return of Tobin Bell as John Kramer, a.k.a. “Jigsaw,” the trap-making serial killer of the Saw movies, with the release of Saw X. This is despite the fact that Kramer has been dead since the end of Saw III, which came out back in 2006. But a little thing like death never stopped the Saw franchise. Instead of literally bringing Kramer back from the dead, the subsequent sequels continued Bell’s participation with devices like flashbacks. Hell, even Saw IV played a trick on audiences by staging a lot of its action at the same time as Saw III.
One of those post-Kramer sequels celebrates its 15th anniversary this year: Saw V, which featured Costas Mandylor as Detective Mark Hoffman, a murderous cop who became Jigsaw’s protégé and continued his campaign of bloodshed.
One of those post-Kramer sequels celebrates its 15th anniversary this year: Saw V, which featured Costas Mandylor as Detective Mark Hoffman, a murderous cop who became Jigsaw’s protégé and continued his campaign of bloodshed.
- 11/10/2023
- by Alan Dorich
- DailyDead
Nearly 20 years in, John Kramer continues to kill it at the box office. "Saw X," the latest installment in Lionsgate's long-running horror franchise, has officially crossed the $100 million mark globally thanks to Wednesday's grosses. Not that the movie wasn't already a hit before, but it now gets to count itself alongside seven other "Saw" movies that have grossed at least that much money worldwide, making such an impressive benchmark more of a rule than an exception.
"Saw X" curently sits at $52.7 million domestically and $47.9 million internationally for a grand total of $100.6 million worldwide to date, per Box Office Mojo. Director Kevin Greutert's film has already been available on VOD for some time, so the milestone was crossed somewhat quietly. But the fact that enough people continued to see the film throughout the Halloween season and beyond -- despite the fact they could have just as easily watched it...
"Saw X" curently sits at $52.7 million domestically and $47.9 million internationally for a grand total of $100.6 million worldwide to date, per Box Office Mojo. Director Kevin Greutert's film has already been available on VOD for some time, so the milestone was crossed somewhat quietly. But the fact that enough people continued to see the film throughout the Halloween season and beyond -- despite the fact they could have just as easily watched it...
- 11/10/2023
- by Ryan Scott
- Slash Film
Once upon a time, the Halloween box office belonged to Freddy Krueger. Now it belongs to Freddy Fazbear as Universal/Blumhouse’s “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is on pace to set a new studio record for Blumhouse with a $78 million opening.
If that figure holds, it will pass the previous Blumhouse record of $76.2 million set in 2018 by the revival of “Halloween.” Even if Saturday and Sunday numbers slip, it is set to more than double the record for the highest weekend total posted by a film on Halloween weekend, a record that previously belonged to “Saw III” with $33 million in 2006.
The adaptation of Scott Cawthon’s indie horror video game series also passed the record for the highest opening weekend set by a film released simultaneously on home platforms, topping the $49 million opening of fellow Blumhouse film “Halloween Kills” in 2021. Like that film, “Five Nights” was released day-and-date on Peacock,...
If that figure holds, it will pass the previous Blumhouse record of $76.2 million set in 2018 by the revival of “Halloween.” Even if Saturday and Sunday numbers slip, it is set to more than double the record for the highest weekend total posted by a film on Halloween weekend, a record that previously belonged to “Saw III” with $33 million in 2006.
The adaptation of Scott Cawthon’s indie horror video game series also passed the record for the highest opening weekend set by a film released simultaneously on home platforms, topping the $49 million opening of fellow Blumhouse film “Halloween Kills” in 2021. Like that film, “Five Nights” was released day-and-date on Peacock,...
- 10/28/2023
- by Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
The chronology of the "Saw" movies is massively complicated, and only the most dedicated researchers have dared to map out when certain events occur. Everything surrounds the vengeful trap-builder Jigsaw, aka John Kramer (Tobin Bell) a character who actually died at the end of Darren Lynn Bouseman's "Saw III," but who still appeared in several sequels thereafter. Baffling chronologies have been a feature of the "Saw" movies from the start, with James Wan's 2004 original told mostly in flashback. Indeed, one of those flashbacks also had a flashback in it.
As far as a casual observer might tell, the films take place in the following order: "Saw," then the new "Saw X," then "Saw II." "Saw III" and "Saw IV" take place over roughly the same period, with interacting timelines. The rest seem to take place more or less numerically, although each one features additional flashbacks and appearances from Bell.
As far as a casual observer might tell, the films take place in the following order: "Saw," then the new "Saw X," then "Saw II." "Saw III" and "Saw IV" take place over roughly the same period, with interacting timelines. The rest seem to take place more or less numerically, although each one features additional flashbacks and appearances from Bell.
- 10/28/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Do you want to play a game? Well, you don’t need to in order to watch all the Saw movies in order online. You might want to catch up on the story so far given that the tenth installment of the franchise, Saw X, just received an early digital release on Amazon Prime Video — and this one is said to be “Jigsaw’s most personal game”.
rent on Amazon Prime $19.99
Set between the events of Saw I and II, John Kramer (Tobin Bell) returns in Saw X, traveling to...
rent on Amazon Prime $19.99
Set between the events of Saw I and II, John Kramer (Tobin Bell) returns in Saw X, traveling to...
- 10/27/2023
- by Sage Anderson
- Rollingstone.com
"Saw III" raises the stakes from the previous two installments by focusing on John Kramer's deteriorating health. As his frontal lobe tumor worsens, John Kramer, aka Jigsaw, is left bedridden and weak, but he still has a few tricks up his sleeve. With the help of his beloved protege Amanda, he abducts Dr. Lynn Denlon.
Lynn must conduct a makeshift surgery to ease the pressure on his brain, and she wears a collar with five shotgun shells set to detonate if John's heart rate lowers or he dies. This intense operation, which involves removing a piece of his skull, is such a memorable part of "Saw III" — even more than the traps. It is fascinating to witness the medical marvel in such detailed close-ups.
"Saw III" stands out for its exceptional brutality compared to the first two "Saw" films. Not only does it ramp up the extremity of the violence and elaborate traps,...
Lynn must conduct a makeshift surgery to ease the pressure on his brain, and she wears a collar with five shotgun shells set to detonate if John's heart rate lowers or he dies. This intense operation, which involves removing a piece of his skull, is such a memorable part of "Saw III" — even more than the traps. It is fascinating to witness the medical marvel in such detailed close-ups.
"Saw III" stands out for its exceptional brutality compared to the first two "Saw" films. Not only does it ramp up the extremity of the violence and elaborate traps,...
- 10/25/2023
- by Caroline Madden
- Slash Film
No one knew how big this was going to be, or is going to be, but Universal/Blumhouse’s feature take on beloved horror video game, Five Nights at Freddy‘s is eyeing a $50 million-plus start and possibly even more. At that level, it would make it the second-best domestic box office opening of the fall behind Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour ($92.8M).
Note the pre-Halloween weekend isn’t known as a robust time for launching films, with the frame’s biggest openings Puss in Boots with $34M back in 2011 and 2006’s Saw III with $33.6M.
Presales have grown to a crazy amount on this $20M production since we last reported (some saying well north of $11M), with some exhibitors projecting a tentpole-type opening of $85M. However, what should give one pause here is the whole theatrical day-and-date of it all on Peacock (note the movie is only available on a paid tier). Last year,...
Note the pre-Halloween weekend isn’t known as a robust time for launching films, with the frame’s biggest openings Puss in Boots with $34M back in 2011 and 2006’s Saw III with $33.6M.
Presales have grown to a crazy amount on this $20M production since we last reported (some saying well north of $11M), with some exhibitors projecting a tentpole-type opening of $85M. However, what should give one pause here is the whole theatrical day-and-date of it all on Peacock (note the movie is only available on a paid tier). Last year,...
- 10/24/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Saw X, the tenth entry in the Saw franchise, is currently in theatres (you can read our review Here) – and so far the movie has pulled in almost $60 million at the global box office, so we’re probably going to be seeing a Saw 11 sooner than later. In fact, the producers were already talking sequel before the movie was released. But during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, director Kevin Greutert, who previously directed Saw VI and Saw: The Final Chapter (and also edited the first five films, plus Jigsaw) said he intended for the movie to feel like the final send-off to the Jigsaw character.
When asked about what could be coming next for the franchise, Greutert said, “Well, we’ll just have to see what the future of Saw is. There are so many directions we could go, but for me, there’s no obvious one coming out of this film.
When asked about what could be coming next for the franchise, Greutert said, “Well, we’ll just have to see what the future of Saw is. There are so many directions we could go, but for me, there’s no obvious one coming out of this film.
- 10/12/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
[This story contains spoilers for Saw X.]
If anyone deserved to be at the helm of the Saw franchise’s first critically acclaimed film, it’s Saw X director Kevin Greutert. The editor-turned-director has been credited on every single Saw film, be it as an editor, director or executive producer, beginning with James Wan and Leigh Whannell’s original Saw (2004). Greutert chalks Saw X’s success up to an accessible plot and the calculated risk of asking the audience to empathize more than ever with the franchise’s signature antagonist, John “Jigsaw” Kramer (Tobin Bell).
“We took a risk by really fleshing out John Kramer’s character. It’s contrary to the Jaws and Alien wisdom that the less you see of your monster, the better. If this movie had a chance, it was going to be by going deep into John Kramer,” Greutert tells The Hollywood Reporter.
Besides a certified-fresh badge on Rotten Tomatoes,...
If anyone deserved to be at the helm of the Saw franchise’s first critically acclaimed film, it’s Saw X director Kevin Greutert. The editor-turned-director has been credited on every single Saw film, be it as an editor, director or executive producer, beginning with James Wan and Leigh Whannell’s original Saw (2004). Greutert chalks Saw X’s success up to an accessible plot and the calculated risk of asking the audience to empathize more than ever with the franchise’s signature antagonist, John “Jigsaw” Kramer (Tobin Bell).
“We took a risk by really fleshing out John Kramer’s character. It’s contrary to the Jaws and Alien wisdom that the less you see of your monster, the better. If this movie had a chance, it was going to be by going deep into John Kramer,” Greutert tells The Hollywood Reporter.
Besides a certified-fresh badge on Rotten Tomatoes,...
- 10/11/2023
- by Brian Davids
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A new chapter in the “Saw” franchise is here.
In preparation for the milestone tenth film, we have a rundown of where you can see the previous “Saw” just in time for “Saw X.”
It all started in 2004 as an idea conjured up by James Wan and Leigh Whannell, two bestie Australian filmmakers who were fresh out of film school and eager to make a name for themselves in Hollywood.
The first “Saw,” which Whannell wrote and Wan directed, premiered on Oct. 29, 2004. Whannell, who also starred as Adam in the first film, went on to direct the next two films. “Saw III” ended up becoming the highest-earning film from the franchise ($165 million globally), per The Numbers.
The inspiration behind the film was rooted in one of Whannell’s real-life experiences. During an interview with the Av Club, Whannell said that at the age of 24, he started to have severe migraines,...
In preparation for the milestone tenth film, we have a rundown of where you can see the previous “Saw” just in time for “Saw X.”
It all started in 2004 as an idea conjured up by James Wan and Leigh Whannell, two bestie Australian filmmakers who were fresh out of film school and eager to make a name for themselves in Hollywood.
The first “Saw,” which Whannell wrote and Wan directed, premiered on Oct. 29, 2004. Whannell, who also starred as Adam in the first film, went on to direct the next two films. “Saw III” ended up becoming the highest-earning film from the franchise ($165 million globally), per The Numbers.
The inspiration behind the film was rooted in one of Whannell’s real-life experiences. During an interview with the Av Club, Whannell said that at the age of 24, he started to have severe migraines,...
- 10/7/2023
- by Raquel 'Rocky' Harris
- The Wrap
Shawnee Smith as Amanda Young in Saw X. Photo Credit: Alexandro Bolaños Escamilla The last time Shawnee Smith shot a Saw film was when she made Saw VI back in 2009. Of course, after (spoiler alert!) her character, Amanda, was killed at the end of Saw III, Smith wasn’t expecting to be in any of the franchise’s movies as it went on. (The scenes she filmed for Saw VI were flashbacks.) One thing she definitely hadn’t counted on was the idea of adding an “in-between sequel,” like they have with Saw X. It takes place between Saw and Saw II, so Amanda is alive and well and once again in a starring role. This will come as good news for Amanda’s fans; Smith says she’s met many of those fans over the years, and she absolutely loves them. (Click on the media bar below to hear Shawnee Smith) https://www.
- 10/6/2023
- by Hollywood Outbreak
- HollywoodOutbreak.com
The episode of Wtf Happened to This Horror Movie? covering The Collector was Written by Ric Soloman, Narrated by Travis Hopson, and Edited by Ric Solomon, Produced by Andrew Hatfield and John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.
Back in the 2000s, one horror franchise would reign supreme over all others… Saw. From 2004 to 2010, seven films were released and each was more gruesome than the next. People usually break the franchise down into different groups as to which is their favorite. There’s the original trilogy, which most would say is where the best films stem from. It’s also where Leigh Whannell, James Wan and Darren Lynn Bousman had the most control over the franchise. There’s the middle trilogy, which most tend to hate and believe the series jumped the shark. Then there’s 7-9 where it consists of a 3D film, a film entitled Jigsaw and...
Back in the 2000s, one horror franchise would reign supreme over all others… Saw. From 2004 to 2010, seven films were released and each was more gruesome than the next. People usually break the franchise down into different groups as to which is their favorite. There’s the original trilogy, which most would say is where the best films stem from. It’s also where Leigh Whannell, James Wan and Darren Lynn Bousman had the most control over the franchise. There’s the middle trilogy, which most tend to hate and believe the series jumped the shark. Then there’s 7-9 where it consists of a 3D film, a film entitled Jigsaw and...
- 10/4/2023
- by Cody Hamman
- JoBlo.com
Historically, when it comes to spectacle, violence has been one of the major factors that has worked like a charm to attract audiences, as it is undeniably one of the integral parts of the struggle for existence itself. But without proper causality, nuance, and intertextuality, the display of wanton violence only serves as a cheap crowd-puller. That’s what James Wan and Leigh Whanell had always kept in mind while creating the iconic thriller/slasher movie “Saw” in 2004, which eventually spawned a franchise complete with its own mythology, characters, and legacy and grew large enough through the last couple of decades to become one of the top-grossing horror franchises to date. Although the later entries lost much of the subtlety and innovativeness of the original trilogy due to drastic narrative changes, the recently released “Saw X” has returned to its roots to reinvigorate the franchise once again.
Initially revolving around the shenanigans of the eccentric,...
Initially revolving around the shenanigans of the eccentric,...
- 10/4/2023
- by Siddhartha Das
- Film Fugitives
John Kramer doesn’t like what he sees. After another disappointing doctor’s visit, the one-time villain of the Saw franchise, Jigsaw, pauses outside a patient’s room in order to have a drink of water. There he spies a custodian (Isan Beomhyun Lee) rifling through the belongings of that patient. The camera holds on Kramer’s eye staring at the custodian’s dirty deed before suddenly hard cutting to a shot of that same custodian, now in a trap. For this game, the custodian must turn a dial and break each of his “sticky” fingers, one by one, or have his eyeballs sucked out via an intensified version of the vacuum he uses.
As we soon learn, this first trap introduced in the weekend’s Saw X is actually a fake out; a figment of Kramer’s imagination as he thinks about the custodian’s actions. The scene ends...
As we soon learn, this first trap introduced in the weekend’s Saw X is actually a fake out; a figment of Kramer’s imagination as he thinks about the custodian’s actions. The scene ends...
- 10/3/2023
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
The tenth installment in Lionsgate’s long-running horror franchise, Saw X is playing in theaters nationwide, and Lionsgate is surely happy with the box office results over the weekend.
Saw X scared up a reported $18 million in its opening weekend here in the United States, with the new movie’s worldwide total sitting at $29,300,000 just days into its release.
That $18 million domestic number marks the franchise’s highest opening weekend since Saw 3D back in 2010, and it also matches the $18 million opening of the original Saw in 2004.
An $18 million opening weekend is a far cry from the franchise-high $33 million opening of Saw III, mind you, but it’s also the strongest the series has been in over 10 years. The decision to ditch the convoluted continuity of the later films in the franchise and instead bring back Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith with a simplified, back to basics approach was a smart one.
Saw X scared up a reported $18 million in its opening weekend here in the United States, with the new movie’s worldwide total sitting at $29,300,000 just days into its release.
That $18 million domestic number marks the franchise’s highest opening weekend since Saw 3D back in 2010, and it also matches the $18 million opening of the original Saw in 2004.
An $18 million opening weekend is a far cry from the franchise-high $33 million opening of Saw III, mind you, but it’s also the strongest the series has been in over 10 years. The decision to ditch the convoluted continuity of the later films in the franchise and instead bring back Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith with a simplified, back to basics approach was a smart one.
- 10/2/2023
- by John Squires
- bloody-disgusting.com
The first "Saw" movie famously launched the careers of modern horror maestros James Wan and Leigh Whannell, but they quickly moved on to different pastures. In their place, the larger "Saw" franchise -- the horror series that defined the aughts, dominated the Halloween box office for years, and inspired a bajillion pearl-clutching think pieces -- was shepherded forward by producers Oren Koules and Mark Burg, who have masterminded every single film in the series. If you want to tap into the "Saw" braintrust, to really understand how these movies are made and what drives them, these are the guys you speak with.
"Saw X," the tenth film in the series, is both a throwback and a departure. On one hand, it's a prequel, set between the first and second films, and an excuse to bring Tobin Bell's John Kramer back from the dead. But on the other, it's a slickly produced,...
"Saw X," the tenth film in the series, is both a throwback and a departure. On one hand, it's a prequel, set between the first and second films, and an excuse to bring Tobin Bell's John Kramer back from the dead. But on the other, it's a slickly produced,...
- 10/2/2023
- by Jacob Hall
- Slash Film
Two new releases and one wide expansion were no match for the animated puppies of Paw Patrol as their newest movie Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie easily snagged first place with $23 million. That number represents a nearly $10 million increase over the $13.1 million earned by 2021’s Paw Patrol: The Movie in its debut. It would seem this sequel has earned its mighty moniker.
The film has garnered some solid critical reviews with the consensus being that this movie is a great way to introduce younger audiences to the big screen experience while the parents of those younger audience members took to the internet to propel the film to a solid 94% audience score and a great A cinemascore. With no family films hitting screens until November 17 when Trolls Band Together opens, you can expect this one to have decent legs, although I don’t expect it to play as well as other...
The film has garnered some solid critical reviews with the consensus being that this movie is a great way to introduce younger audiences to the big screen experience while the parents of those younger audience members took to the internet to propel the film to a solid 94% audience score and a great A cinemascore. With no family films hitting screens until November 17 when Trolls Band Together opens, you can expect this one to have decent legs, although I don’t expect it to play as well as other...
- 10/1/2023
- by Brad Hamerly
- JoBlo.com
Paramount’s animated sequel “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie” topped the box office in its debut, earning a solid $23 million from 3,989 North American locations over the weekend.
Those ticket sales were more than enough to rule over the three other new nationwide releases, which could be categorized as the good (Lionsgate’s gruesome “Saw X”), the meh (Disney and New Regency’s sci-fi thriller “The Creator”) and the ugly (Sony’s Game Stop stock-inspired “Dumb Money”).
“Saw X” took second place with $18 million, an impressive start for the 10th entry in the long-running horror series. It’s not the biggest debut of the bunch, which still belongs to 2006’s “Saw III” ($33 million), but it improved upon the two prior installments, 2021’s spinoff “Spiral” ($8.7 million) and 2017’s “Jigsaw” ($16.6 million). It cost just $13 million, so it’ll be profitable for its backers by the end of its theatrical run.
“The Creator,” Gareth Edwards...
Those ticket sales were more than enough to rule over the three other new nationwide releases, which could be categorized as the good (Lionsgate’s gruesome “Saw X”), the meh (Disney and New Regency’s sci-fi thriller “The Creator”) and the ugly (Sony’s Game Stop stock-inspired “Dumb Money”).
“Saw X” took second place with $18 million, an impressive start for the 10th entry in the long-running horror series. It’s not the biggest debut of the bunch, which still belongs to 2006’s “Saw III” ($33 million), but it improved upon the two prior installments, 2021’s spinoff “Spiral” ($8.7 million) and 2017’s “Jigsaw” ($16.6 million). It cost just $13 million, so it’ll be profitable for its backers by the end of its theatrical run.
“The Creator,” Gareth Edwards...
- 10/1/2023
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
Happy pups prevailed at the domestic box office this weekend as Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie scared off Saw X and The Creator with $23 million from 3,989 theaters in a needed win for the family marketplace.
The news was just as good overseas, where the sequel flexed its muscle in opening to $23.1 million from 45 markets for a global bow of $46.1 million, a 70 percent uptick over the last pic. Parents and kids made up 90 percent of the audience in North America, where the sequel over-indexed in most regions save for the western part of the U.S.
Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie, which cost a lean $30 million to produce before marketing, follows the success of 2021’s Paw Patrol: The Movie that helped solidify Paramount chief Brian Robbins’ standing. That film opened to $13.1 million domestically before turning into a sleeper hit and grossing $140 million globally, a notable figure considering the pandemic and a day-and-date debut on Paramount+.
The news was just as good overseas, where the sequel flexed its muscle in opening to $23.1 million from 45 markets for a global bow of $46.1 million, a 70 percent uptick over the last pic. Parents and kids made up 90 percent of the audience in North America, where the sequel over-indexed in most regions save for the western part of the U.S.
Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie, which cost a lean $30 million to produce before marketing, follows the success of 2021’s Paw Patrol: The Movie that helped solidify Paramount chief Brian Robbins’ standing. That film opened to $13.1 million domestically before turning into a sleeper hit and grossing $140 million globally, a notable figure considering the pandemic and a day-and-date debut on Paramount+.
- 10/1/2023
- by Pamela McClintock
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sunday Am Final: Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie is lapping up $23M, a big win for Paramount and Spin Master, as the picture is part of a $14 billion global retail franchise which both companies get a nice cut from. And successful movies drive toy sales. It was part of Brian Robbins’ plan when he took over the top job at Paramount Pictures Studios to have family brands work at the box office, which also have a rainfall of cash in merchandise, particularly in an entertainment conglomerate that counts the powerful, and evergreen Nickelodeon brand. EntTelligence says Paw Patrol 2 drew 2.3M admissions, with close to half of the pic’s tickets being sold at child pricing.
Some of the stunts which Paramount did to bark up this latest sequel included getting the film in the Guiness Book of World Records with the most dogs in attendance at a movie screening,...
Some of the stunts which Paramount did to bark up this latest sequel included getting the film in the Guiness Book of World Records with the most dogs in attendance at a movie screening,...
- 10/1/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Featured Image : Twisted Pictures
The latest installment in the long-running horror franchise, Saw X, has slashed its way to the top of the box office charts, earning $8 million on its opening day in North America. This is the biggest opening day for the franchise since Saw III, which debuted with $14.3 million in 2006. Saw X also surpassed the expectations of analysts, who predicted a modest $5 million debut.
Saw X is the tenth film in the series that began with Saw in 2004, created by James Wan, the mastermind behind Aquaman and The Conjuring. The film follows a group of strangers who wake up in a deadly game of survival, orchestrated by a mysterious killer known as Jigsaw. The film stars Chris Rock, Samuel L. Jackson, Max Minghella, and Marisol Nichols.
Saw X Trailer
The film has received positive reviews from critics and audiences alike, who praised its inventive traps, clever twists,...
The latest installment in the long-running horror franchise, Saw X, has slashed its way to the top of the box office charts, earning $8 million on its opening day in North America. This is the biggest opening day for the franchise since Saw III, which debuted with $14.3 million in 2006. Saw X also surpassed the expectations of analysts, who predicted a modest $5 million debut.
Saw X is the tenth film in the series that began with Saw in 2004, created by James Wan, the mastermind behind Aquaman and The Conjuring. The film follows a group of strangers who wake up in a deadly game of survival, orchestrated by a mysterious killer known as Jigsaw. The film stars Chris Rock, Samuel L. Jackson, Max Minghella, and Marisol Nichols.
Saw X Trailer
The film has received positive reviews from critics and audiences alike, who praised its inventive traps, clever twists,...
- 9/30/2023
- by CineArticles Editorial Team
- https://thecinemanews.online/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/IMG_4649
‘Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie’ Barking Louder Than ‘Saw X’ and ‘The Creator’ For Easy Box Office Win
After the success of Barbenheimer, audiences will now reveal if they have an appetite for what’s being dubbed “Saw Patrol” this weekend as Paramount’s kid-friendly Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie goes up against Lionsgate’s horror feature Saw X.
Both movies did respectable business on Friday. Saw X won the day with an estimated $8 million — including $2 million in Thursday night grosses — although Paw Patrol will take the lead sometime on Saturday for a weekend opening in the $22.5 million range, ahead of 2021’s Paw Patrol: The Movie, which came out during the tough days of the pandemic and debuted to $13.1 million.
While the Internet bestowed Saw and Paw Patrol with the memable moniker Saw Patrol (describing the unlikely idea of doing a double feature), the weekend’s biggest swing is The Creator, the $80 million sci-fi feature from Rogue One director Gareth Edwards. The film brought in $5.6 million on Friday,...
Both movies did respectable business on Friday. Saw X won the day with an estimated $8 million — including $2 million in Thursday night grosses — although Paw Patrol will take the lead sometime on Saturday for a weekend opening in the $22.5 million range, ahead of 2021’s Paw Patrol: The Movie, which came out during the tough days of the pandemic and debuted to $13.1 million.
While the Internet bestowed Saw and Paw Patrol with the memable moniker Saw Patrol (describing the unlikely idea of doing a double feature), the weekend’s biggest swing is The Creator, the $80 million sci-fi feature from Rogue One director Gareth Edwards. The film brought in $5.6 million on Friday,...
- 9/30/2023
- by Aaron Couch and Pamela McClintock
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Horror movie villains can survive just about anything, with Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, and many more returning from the dead time and time again. However, when it comes to the Saw franchise, the dead stay dead, and that includes the man himself — Jigsaw (Tobin Bell).
Although Jigsaw is back in theaters with Saw X, the character actually died over fifteen years ago in Saw III, which franchise producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules now regret. In an interview with IndieWire, the pair said that Jigsaw’s death is the one creative choice they regret. “If I had to do it again, I might not have killed Tobin Bell in ‘Saw III,’” Burg said. “That might have been a mistake.” Thanks to flashbacks, Tobin Bell was able to reprise the role of Jigsaw in every subsequent Saw sequel, with the exception of Spiral, but it’s not hard to...
Although Jigsaw is back in theaters with Saw X, the character actually died over fifteen years ago in Saw III, which franchise producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules now regret. In an interview with IndieWire, the pair said that Jigsaw’s death is the one creative choice they regret. “If I had to do it again, I might not have killed Tobin Bell in ‘Saw III,’” Burg said. “That might have been a mistake.” Thanks to flashbacks, Tobin Bell was able to reprise the role of Jigsaw in every subsequent Saw sequel, with the exception of Spiral, but it’s not hard to...
- 9/29/2023
- by Kevin Fraser
- JoBlo.com
How grisly is “Saw X”? The 10th film in the horror franchise — in which people are trapped in elaborate torture traps that often require them to lose body parts to survive — was so disturbing to neighbors of film editor Steve Forn that they called police to report “someone being tortured to death,” director Kevin Greutert said.
As Greutert, who has directed three films in the series and edited seven, told NME, Forn was editing a scene involving a gruesome “eye vacuum trap,” in which a character will lose both eyes if they don’t win the game devised by the villain, Jigsaw.
A doorbell camera captured the police knocking on the door of Forn’s North Hollywood apartment to tell him, “The neighbors [have been] calling and saying someone’s being tortured to death in here,” the director related. “And [Forn] was like, ‘Actually, I’m just working on a movie… You can...
As Greutert, who has directed three films in the series and edited seven, told NME, Forn was editing a scene involving a gruesome “eye vacuum trap,” in which a character will lose both eyes if they don’t win the game devised by the villain, Jigsaw.
A doorbell camera captured the police knocking on the door of Forn’s North Hollywood apartment to tell him, “The neighbors [have been] calling and saying someone’s being tortured to death in here,” the director related. “And [Forn] was like, ‘Actually, I’m just working on a movie… You can...
- 9/29/2023
- by Sharon Knolle
- The Wrap
Hello, Den of Geek readers. We would like to play a little game.
When James Wan and Leigh Whannell unleashed the first Saw in 2004, you might’ve thought the franchise was all about grisly murders and psychological nonsense. But if you still hold true to that opinion, then you have not been paying attention to the backstory and police procedural that accompanied the carnage. With each entry, the Saw franchise embraced flashbacks, flash-forwards, and flash-sideways, becoming more convoluted than that other 2000s phenomenon, Lost.
And now that Saw X is in theaters, you realize that you don’t understand the story at all. How can there be a 10th movie when John Kramer died in Saw III? Didn’t Jigsaw reboot the series in 2017? Did anyone actually see Spiral: From the Book of Saw?
Den of Geek readers, your attention to the bloody fun parts of Saw has left you unprepared.
When James Wan and Leigh Whannell unleashed the first Saw in 2004, you might’ve thought the franchise was all about grisly murders and psychological nonsense. But if you still hold true to that opinion, then you have not been paying attention to the backstory and police procedural that accompanied the carnage. With each entry, the Saw franchise embraced flashbacks, flash-forwards, and flash-sideways, becoming more convoluted than that other 2000s phenomenon, Lost.
And now that Saw X is in theaters, you realize that you don’t understand the story at all. How can there be a 10th movie when John Kramer died in Saw III? Didn’t Jigsaw reboot the series in 2017? Did anyone actually see Spiral: From the Book of Saw?
Den of Geek readers, your attention to the bloody fun parts of Saw has left you unprepared.
- 9/29/2023
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
When you think of Sundance movies, you usually think of quirky, optimistic or melodramatic coming-of-age stories. Films like “Manchester by the Sea,” “Coda” or “The Big Sick.” But the movie that spawned the most successful franchise from its Sundance debut is none of those things. In January 2004, Sundance audiences were knocked on their collective butts by “Saw,” an out-of-nowhere horror flick from two unknown Australian filmmakers.
Director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell’s “Saw” offered a deceptively simple premise of two desperate men chained together in an empty room with little idea of how they got there or how to get out.
Starring Cary Elwes and Danny Glover, Monica Potter and a pre-“Lost” Michael Emerson, “Saw” inspired a new wave of grindhouse horror, films that reveled in old-school gore and a certain Rube Goldberg mentality to the kills beyond just attractive teenagers being picked off one by one.
Director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell’s “Saw” offered a deceptively simple premise of two desperate men chained together in an empty room with little idea of how they got there or how to get out.
Starring Cary Elwes and Danny Glover, Monica Potter and a pre-“Lost” Michael Emerson, “Saw” inspired a new wave of grindhouse horror, films that reveled in old-school gore and a certain Rube Goldberg mentality to the kills beyond just attractive teenagers being picked off one by one.
- 9/29/2023
- by Scott Mendelson
- The Wrap
The end of September will feature a whopping four major wide releases. Sony is expanding “Dumb Money” after a few weeks of platforming. 20th Century Studios’ “The Creator” earned $1.6 million in previews while Lionsgate’s “Saw X” earned $2 million in Thursday previews.
That “Saw” figure is better — sans inflation — than the $1.6 million earned by “Jigsaw” in October of 2017 and the $1.7 million earned by “Saw 3-D” in October of 2010. “Spiral: From the Book of Saw” earned $750,000 in its previews amid a Covid-era May debut in 2021.
With shockingly good reviews and a strong reaction thus far by fans of the long-running grindhouse series, Lionsgate is hoping for an opening weekend at least on par with the $17 million Fri-Sun debut of “Jigsaw.”
Sure, the first four sequels opened with over/under $30 million. However, “Saw V” — the franchise’s last mega-opener — debuted 15 years ago, amusingly against the $42 million launch of “High School Musical: Senior Year.
That “Saw” figure is better — sans inflation — than the $1.6 million earned by “Jigsaw” in October of 2017 and the $1.7 million earned by “Saw 3-D” in October of 2010. “Spiral: From the Book of Saw” earned $750,000 in its previews amid a Covid-era May debut in 2021.
With shockingly good reviews and a strong reaction thus far by fans of the long-running grindhouse series, Lionsgate is hoping for an opening weekend at least on par with the $17 million Fri-Sun debut of “Jigsaw.”
Sure, the first four sequels opened with over/under $30 million. However, “Saw V” — the franchise’s last mega-opener — debuted 15 years ago, amusingly against the $42 million launch of “High School Musical: Senior Year.
- 9/29/2023
- by Scott Mendelson
- The Wrap
The past two weekends have been rough for theaters, as the riches of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” have worn off and overall grosses have fallen to levels not seen since mid-February. Fortunately, a trio of new genre films are here to bring some business back.
The threesome in question are Lionsgate’s “Saw X,” a back-to-basics approach to the gory horror franchise that defined the genre in the 2000s; Paramount’s preschooler family film “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie,” the latest offering from the Nick Jr. series that has become a merchandising titan; and Disney/20th Century’s “The Creator,” an original sci-fi film from “Rogue One” director Gareth Edwards.
Trackers don’t have a consensus on whether “Saw X” or “Paw Patrol 2” will be the No. 1 film. Distribution sources have told TheWrap that projections for “Saw X” have ranged as low as $15 million and as high as $25 million, while projections...
The threesome in question are Lionsgate’s “Saw X,” a back-to-basics approach to the gory horror franchise that defined the genre in the 2000s; Paramount’s preschooler family film “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie,” the latest offering from the Nick Jr. series that has become a merchandising titan; and Disney/20th Century’s “The Creator,” an original sci-fi film from “Rogue One” director Gareth Edwards.
Trackers don’t have a consensus on whether “Saw X” or “Paw Patrol 2” will be the No. 1 film. Distribution sources have told TheWrap that projections for “Saw X” have ranged as low as $15 million and as high as $25 million, while projections...
- 9/28/2023
- by Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
Stomachs will churn once again in an attempt to rewind the clock for the fatigued franchise but there’s ultimately little of worth here
It’s a strange existential feeling to be seated in front of a Saw film once again, a return not just to a franchise but an entire torture porn subgenre. As a screaming woman is forced to cut off her leg and suck out a litre of blood from her fresh wound in order to save her head from being sliced off by serrated wire, one might start wondering the hows and whys of what got us here.
While financial greed is the obvious studio motivator (cheaply made horror still the most reliably profitable genre in Hollywood), it’s curious to ponder why we might want to endure another two hours of stomach-churning gore especially when served on such a musty old platter. The decision to...
It’s a strange existential feeling to be seated in front of a Saw film once again, a return not just to a franchise but an entire torture porn subgenre. As a screaming woman is forced to cut off her leg and suck out a litre of blood from her fresh wound in order to save her head from being sliced off by serrated wire, one might start wondering the hows and whys of what got us here.
While financial greed is the obvious studio motivator (cheaply made horror still the most reliably profitable genre in Hollywood), it’s curious to ponder why we might want to endure another two hours of stomach-churning gore especially when served on such a musty old platter. The decision to...
- 9/28/2023
- by Benjamin Lee
- The Guardian - Film News
The gruesome “Saw” franchise has grossed more than $1 billion at the global box office — but the original 2004 horror film was destined to be a direct-to-video curio. That is, until a pair of rollicking test screenings saved it.
“The first one we did in Camarillo [Calif.] and it scored so well that Lionsgate was convinced that we padded the audience,” franchise producer Oren Koules remembers. “So they made us do it again in Vegas, but they didn’t tell us until 6 p.m. that night where the theater was.”
Almost 20 years and nine twisty chapters later, “Saw X” (heading to theaters on Sept. 29) is returning to its franchise roots.
“Lionsgate did a brand study of ‘Saw’ fans: How many did they watch? Why did they stop?” franchise producer Mark Burg says. “We decided to make ‘Saw X’ that way. We pivoted from shooting in Eastern Europe to Mexico City, because we found...
“The first one we did in Camarillo [Calif.] and it scored so well that Lionsgate was convinced that we padded the audience,” franchise producer Oren Koules remembers. “So they made us do it again in Vegas, but they didn’t tell us until 6 p.m. that night where the theater was.”
Almost 20 years and nine twisty chapters later, “Saw X” (heading to theaters on Sept. 29) is returning to its franchise roots.
“Lionsgate did a brand study of ‘Saw’ fans: How many did they watch? Why did they stop?” franchise producer Mark Burg says. “We decided to make ‘Saw X’ that way. We pivoted from shooting in Eastern Europe to Mexico City, because we found...
- 9/28/2023
- by William Earl
- Variety Film + TV
The makers of the “Saw” movies probably thought they were clever when they killed the villain off back in “Saw III.” But over time it’s become clear that, although Jigsaw’s many apprentices worked hard to keep his legacy alive, John Kramer — the raspy-voiced horror icon played by Tobin Bell — was the beating heart of this series, and that heart stopped.
Jigsaw is back in “Saw X,” but he’s also still dead. The film is one long prequel, taking place at an indeterminate time before most of the previous installments. It’s a little confusing to see Kramer drawing up plans for deathtraps that, as we learn later in the movie, he has already invented and used, but it’s a lot less confusing than the timelines of the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh films, which employed a dizzying flashback/flashforward/flashsideways structure that perhaps rivaled only “Last Year at Marienbad...
Jigsaw is back in “Saw X,” but he’s also still dead. The film is one long prequel, taking place at an indeterminate time before most of the previous installments. It’s a little confusing to see Kramer drawing up plans for deathtraps that, as we learn later in the movie, he has already invented and used, but it’s a lot less confusing than the timelines of the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh films, which employed a dizzying flashback/flashforward/flashsideways structure that perhaps rivaled only “Last Year at Marienbad...
- 9/28/2023
- by William Bibbiani
- The Wrap
Center: Saw. Clockwise from top left: Saw 3D, Saw V, Saw V, Saw VI, Jigsaw, Saw VI (All images from YouTube)
Although the Saw film franchise has had a few big name stars attached to itself over the years, including Chris Rock, Cary Elwes, and franchise regular Tobin Bell—who...
Although the Saw film franchise has had a few big name stars attached to itself over the years, including Chris Rock, Cary Elwes, and franchise regular Tobin Bell—who...
- 9/28/2023
- by William Hughes
- avclub.com
As a self-professed Saw-head, I will admit that anytime we get a brand-new Saw movie, I’m happier than Billy riding his bicycle to greet a new victim. Good or bad, I find the films in this franchise to be endlessly entertaining (and rewatchable), with Saw II and Saw VI being amongst my favorites from the series. Well, now there’s a new contender for my favorite Saw movie because Saw X is that damn great. It’s hard to believe that a tenth film in a horror franchise could deliver the goods as well as it does (so to speak), as usually with different series, the longer they go on, the more diminishing the returns are.
But Saw X feels like an absolutely miraculous achievement and was a completely enthralling viewing experience. Directed by Kevin Greutert and co-written by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger, Saw X brings about...
But Saw X feels like an absolutely miraculous achievement and was a completely enthralling viewing experience. Directed by Kevin Greutert and co-written by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger, Saw X brings about...
- 9/28/2023
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
As John Kramer (Tobin Bell), a.k.a. Jigsaw, emcees another spectacle of savagery, he tells his victims, “This is not retribution. It’s a reawakening.” The statement would seem to suggest that Kevin Greutert’s Saw X is here to reinvent the long-running Saw franchise. If so, that would make it the third or so attempt at such a reengineering.
Darren Lynn Bousman’s Spiral, for one, was probably the closest we got to a quasi-prestige iteration of a Saw film, what with its bluntly ambivalent cop rhetoric and gliding SteadiCam shots. But, for the most part, that film was like any other Saw, even if its queasiness was less in its outright violence and more in the blithe way it used politically loaded imagery: pigs and their guts, literally and metaphorically, spilled all over the place.
Kramer was more of a ghost on the periphery of that film,...
Darren Lynn Bousman’s Spiral, for one, was probably the closest we got to a quasi-prestige iteration of a Saw film, what with its bluntly ambivalent cop rhetoric and gliding SteadiCam shots. But, for the most part, that film was like any other Saw, even if its queasiness was less in its outright violence and more in the blithe way it used politically loaded imagery: pigs and their guts, literally and metaphorically, spilled all over the place.
Kramer was more of a ghost on the periphery of that film,...
- 9/28/2023
- by Kyle Turner
- Slant Magazine
Admit it, you kinda missed Jigsaw.
Sure, Spiral, the most recent entry in the hugely successful Saw horror film franchise, had Chris Rock in the cast. But a copycat killer just doesn’t compare to the original, John Kramer, played so indelibly by Tobin Bell in every other film in the series. Fans of these twisted torture porn films (whose names should probably be registered with local authorities) will be happy to hear that Bell is back in the 10th and newest entry, imaginatively titled Saw X, and that he has more screen time than ever before. That’s what not being dead anymore will do for a character.
To explain for those unfamiliar with the franchise, Bell’s character John Kramer, who was nicknamed Jigsaw for grisly reasons which need not be explained here, died at the end of Saw 3. But that didn’t keep the films’ producers...
Sure, Spiral, the most recent entry in the hugely successful Saw horror film franchise, had Chris Rock in the cast. But a copycat killer just doesn’t compare to the original, John Kramer, played so indelibly by Tobin Bell in every other film in the series. Fans of these twisted torture porn films (whose names should probably be registered with local authorities) will be happy to hear that Bell is back in the 10th and newest entry, imaginatively titled Saw X, and that he has more screen time than ever before. That’s what not being dead anymore will do for a character.
To explain for those unfamiliar with the franchise, Bell’s character John Kramer, who was nicknamed Jigsaw for grisly reasons which need not be explained here, died at the end of Saw 3. But that didn’t keep the films’ producers...
- 9/28/2023
- by Frank Scheck
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Whether you’re a passionate John Kramer devotee or a haughty cinephile dismissing Jigsaw’s legacy as so-called “torture porn,” the “Saw” franchise absolutely got to you. Yes, you.
Back in theaters for the 2023 Halloween season, James Wan and Leigh Whannell’s indie shocker-turned-big budget ringer redefined splatter films for the post-9/11 masses and kicked off a resurgence that led to Eli Roth’s “Hostel,” Rob Zombie’s “The Devil’s Rejects,” Tom Six’s “The Human Centipede,” and more. Its notorious gore drew in the eyeballs of not just dedicated genre fans but also countless looky-loos too scared to go beyond the surprisingly dense “Saw” summaries on Wikipedia.
You can bet those same people will be back to devour every morsel of “Saw X,” director Kevin Gruetert’s third at-bat for the series (he also helmed “Saw VI” and “Saw 3D”), starring Og Jigsaw Tobin Bell and set between the...
Back in theaters for the 2023 Halloween season, James Wan and Leigh Whannell’s indie shocker-turned-big budget ringer redefined splatter films for the post-9/11 masses and kicked off a resurgence that led to Eli Roth’s “Hostel,” Rob Zombie’s “The Devil’s Rejects,” Tom Six’s “The Human Centipede,” and more. Its notorious gore drew in the eyeballs of not just dedicated genre fans but also countless looky-loos too scared to go beyond the surprisingly dense “Saw” summaries on Wikipedia.
You can bet those same people will be back to devour every morsel of “Saw X,” director Kevin Gruetert’s third at-bat for the series (he also helmed “Saw VI” and “Saw 3D”), starring Og Jigsaw Tobin Bell and set between the...
- 9/27/2023
- by Alison Foreman and Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.