Are you ready for the next installment of the Saw franchise? Get ready for Saw X, where Jigsaw is back with new puzzles and torture traps to inflict on his victims. The Saw franchise has a history of escalating violence, devising clever torture traps more gruesome than the last, earning a top spot in the canon of torture movies.
Directed by horror legend James Wan, the original 2004 Saw introduced the world to the Reverse Bear Trap, a clamp welded inside the victim’s mouth, clamping her jaws shut. If she fails to retrieve the key to the device (hidden inside the stomach of her still-alive cellmate), the clamp is designed to spring open, splitting her jaws apart.
In the same movie, oncologist and adulterer Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) escapes from his shackles by sawing off his own foot in what’s arguably one of the most iconically gruesome scenes in the franchise. Saw X is set to be released on October 7, 2023, with Tobin Bell returning as John Kramer/Jigsaw and possibly a return to the more plausible, character-driven, grounded-but-clever storytelling that defined the first Saw movies. Read on for everything we know so far about the film.
When Is Saw X Coming Out?
Saw X is set to be released on September 29, 2023, as announced by Lionsgate. The movie was originally scheduled to hit theaters on October 27, 2023, but was moved up to avoid competition with other horror titles,
such as The Exorcist: Believer and Five Nights at Freddy’s. The new release date puts Saw X in direct competition with The Creator, a sci-fi epic by Gareth Edwards, and PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, an animated kids’ movie. Horror fans can mark their calendars for September 29, 2023, to catch the latest installment of the Saw franchise in theaters.
What Do We Know About the Saw X Plot?
Saw X is set between the events of the first and second Saw movies. John Kramer, played by Tobin Bell, is back in this installment of the Saw franchise. The official synopsis, released by Lionsgate in July 2023, reveals that the movie explores the untold chapter of Jigsaw’s most personal game.
In the movie, John travels to Mexico for a risky and experimental medical procedure in hopes of a miracle cure for his cancer.
However, he discovers that the entire operation is a scam to defraud the most vulnerable. Armed with a newfound purpose, John returns to his work as the infamous serial killer, turning the tables on the con artists in his signature visceral way through devious, deranged, and ingenious traps.
Saw X promises to be the most disturbing installment of the franchise yet, as it delves into the personal life and motivations of the infamous Jigsaw killer.
Who’s In the Cast of Saw X?
Saw X brings back Tobin Bell as John Kramer, also known as the Jigsaw Killer, who died in Saw III but appeared in subsequent films through flashbacks. The film explores a previously untold chapter in Jigsaw’s story, set between the events of Saw I and Saw II.
Shawnee Smith also returns as Amanda Young, Jigsaw’s former victim turned protégé. Amanda’s character arc takes her from drug addict to Jigsaw’s apprentice in Saw II, to a deranged torturer in Saw III who ultimately pays the price for violating Jigsaw’s rules.
Notably absent from the cast is Cary Elwes, who played Dr. Lawrence Gordon in the original Saw. However, the film features a mostly new cast, including Renata Vaca, Paulette Hernandez, Joshua Okamoto, Octavio Hinojosa, Synnøve Macody Lund, Steven Brand, and Michael Beach.
It remains to be seen what roles these new faces will play in the latest installment of the franchise, but fans can expect the same level of suspense and gore that has made the Saw series a horror classic.
