The Saw franchise has reached an awkward point now that Saw 11 has been seemingly canceled, and the reveal of some details about it only makes me more frustrated that it won’t happen as it was going to anymore. The Saw saga began in 2003 with the short film now known as Saw 0.5, which served as the basis for the first movie, released a year later. At the time of writing, the Saw franchise has a total of 10 movies, including the spinoff Spiral, with the latest one being the sequel and prequel Saw X.
Saw introduced the world to John Kramer (Tobin Bell), a man diagnosed with terminal cancer who grows tired of seeing others not valuing life. Kramer goes to extremes and kidnaps those he thinks are wasting their lives and hurting others and subjects them to his “games”, designed to torture and kill them. Kramer’s legacy was set to continue expanding with Saw 11, but it was reported in March 2025 that the movie had been silently canceled. Now, details about Saw 11 have been revealed, and I’m frustrated it won’t happen like that anymore.
Saw 11 Would Have Had Themes Similar To Saw VI
Saw 11’s General Idea Has Been Revealed
Saw X ended up becoming the highest-rated movie in the saga, re-sparking interest in it and in seeing more of those in-between-movies stories. The success of Saw X led to a sequel, simply referred to as Saw 11, being confirmed to be in development in 2023. Saw X‘s director, Kevin Greutert, was set to return to direct the sequel, and it was said to be a sequel to Saw X, thus also being a sequel and prequel. Despite Saw 11 having a September 2025 release date, production reportedly halted over a year ago.
The reason for Saw 11‘s cancelation is that producers disagreed on the direction the movie should take. Now, some details about what Saw 11 could have been like have been released, and I would have loved to see how that turned out. Speaking to THR, Saw 11 writers Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan reacted to the movie’s cancelation and shared that they had a “very timely story” for it, with themes like those in Saw VI.
Saw 11 does sound like it would have been a continuation of Saw X, as after the whole cancer treatment scam, there would surely have been a lot of revenge and unfinished business.
Melton added that, in that same line of Saw VI themes, Saw 11 would have dealt with the theme of being a citizen angry and frustrated with something and unable to do something about it, but that’s what Kramer is for, because he absolutely can and will do something about it. Just from this, Saw 11 does sound like it would have been a continuation of Saw X, as after the whole cancer treatment scam, there would surely have been a lot of revenge and unfinished business.
Saw VI was Kevin Greutert’s directorial debut.
Saw VI Isn’t The Best, But Its Themes Would Have Worked In Saw 11
Saw VI Has A 39% Critics Score On Rotten Tomatoes
The Saw franchise had a solid beginning with the 2004 movie, but the sequels couldn’t match its quality and success (until Saw X arrived, that is). Still, that never stopped the saga from continuing to expand, and in 2009, it released its sixth installment. Simply тιтled Saw VI, the movie continues the path of Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) as Kramer’s successor, as Kramer died in Saw III. Hoffman’s next victims, as established by Kramer before he died, are health insurance executive William Easton (Peter Outerbridge) and his ᴀssociates, as his company’s suspicious business policy turned down their clients’ coverage for medical treatment.
Of course, one of those affected by Easton’s practices was Kramer, so Hoffman performs Kramer’s revenge on them. Saw VI has the typical elements of every Saw movie, and though it wasn’t a big success, it was definitely an improvement after its predecessors didn’t perform well, though its chronology was pointed out as a flaw. Still, its themes of control, compᴀssion, karma, and more were a good continuation of Kramer’s legacy, so it makes sense to me that Saw 11 would have revisited them. Saw X saw Kramer supposedly undergoing life-saving surgery that turned out to be a big scam.
Just like William’s company, Cecilia Pederson took advantage of those in need and stole from them, only thinking about her own benefit. It would have made sense to have similar themes to Saw VI in Saw 11 as they feel like the next natural step after Kramer got his revenge against Cecilia and her people – however, Cecilia’s ending was left open, so she could be alive. Saw VI isn’t the strongest movie in the franchise, but I feel Saw 11 could have done justice to it by addressing the same themes in much better ways.
What’s Next For Saw 11 (Will It Happen)?
The Future Of Saw 11 Is Uncertain
Saw 11 might not be happening as it was going to, but it might still have a future. Bloody Disgusting reported that, if the franchise sells somewhere else, it will likely “start over.” Now, this could mean that Saw 11 could start from scratch, thus going through a full creative retooling, or that the saga could be rebooted. The latter option would properly end the current story of the franchise, but on the brighter side, it makes way for a new story and timeline. Unfortunately, Saw 11 as planned isn’t happening for now, but it’s to be seen what’s next for the franchise.
Sources: THR, Bloody Disgusting.
