Looks like all those whispers circulating last year about the possibility of Lionsgate developing an eighth film (or a reboot) in their gruesome Saw franchise (despite the seventh being titled Saw: The Final Chapter) were just rumors, now that the series’ actor/writer/producer Leigh Whannell has revealed that he hasn’t been involved with any discussions over at the studio.
Speaking with Screen Rant to discuss his South by Southwest film The Mule, Whannell said the following when asked about additional Saw films:
“A lot of people have been tweeting me about that and to my knowledge, no … I haven’t heard anyone from Lionsgate tell me anything and I’m certainly not involved in anything, so I don’t think it is.”
Considering how instrumental Whannell was to the Saw franchise, it’s hard to imagine that Lionsgate would do any work – even brainstorming – on additional entries without consulting him. Whannell co-created the series with James Wan (who has also heard nothing about another Saw flick), penned the first three movies and served as a producer on all sequels.
Though his statement would suggest that Lionsgate has put the highly bankable Saw franchise in its rearview mirror, Whannell didn’t badmouth the possibility of seeing more Saw films at some point. When asked if returning to the series would be a good idea, he said:
“Maybe. If it was the same team and they were going in with the right attitude of really wanting to do something different and not just kind of milking the sequels. But I feel that I would almost be a detriment. I feel like I have contributed all I can to that character and I would almost want to see someone new come in because they would have a fresh set of eyes and probably new ideas whereas I kind of did my time on that, so I probably wouldn’t want to be involved. But I wouldn’t mind if they did. As long as they came to it with something crazy and new, you know?”
There you have it – even if Lionsgate does return to the Saw franchise in a few years, Whannell won’t be involved. Now the only question remaining is, would bringing a new team on board breathe new life into the series, or is there nowhere for Saw to go from here but down? Our very own Matt Donato is certainly hoping that this doesn’t spell a definitive end to the franchise, but what do you think? Let us know your thoughts below.
