There will be a tenth Saw film released in 2018, it was revealed earlier this year by Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures. Fans of the franchise have something to look forward to, despite the lack of clarity around the situation: Tobin Bell will be making a return. In the next film, he will once again play John Kramer, aka Jigsaw. Bell has now appeared in eight previous Saw films, with Spiral: From the Book of Saw being the only film in which he did not have a leading role. Since the series debut in the early 2000s, Bell has been a constant presence. He portrays the notorious Jigsaw, who is known for setting sophisticated, scary, and often lethal traps for his victims.
This means that he never, strictly speaking, gets blood on his hands (at least not literally). Although Kramer was killed off early in the series, Bell kept making appearances. Indeed, he had passed away for good to all intents and purposes. The films memorialised Kramer and his legacy by having his players (in flashbacks and voice recordings) keep playing his games. The first Saw came out in 2004, and it followed Dr Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) and Adam (Leigh Wannell), two random people who find themselves in a rundown toilet with no recollection of how they got there.
After a short while, they figure out that they’re in a room with a corpse and are all pawns in a sick game the Jigsaw Killer has devised. The film was met with a variety of critical reactions, but it was a commercial success and is now a mainstay in the horror genre. Eight more films, Saw II-VI, Saw: The Final Chapter (or Saw 3D), and Jigsaw, would be released in the years that followed. The year 2021 saw the release of Spiral, which followed a fresh trio on the search for a killer with Jigsaw-like tactics. Kevin Great, who edited the original five Saw films and Jigsaw, will helm the tenth instalment. He also oversaw the production of Saw VI and Saw 7: The Final Chapter.
The story’s specifics are still being kept under wraps until production begins. But Lionsgate and Twisted Pictures have made sure there will be “all-new twisted, cunning traps and a new mystery to uncover.” By bringing Bell on board, producers are hoping to give viewers what they like while also giving them something new to enjoy. There has been no announcement of any new cast members as of yet. Franchise creators Mark Burg and Oren Koules had this to say about Bell’s return: “It’s great to see Tobin again. His portrayal of John Kramer is a major factor in what has made the Seinfeld series so popular, and Kramer himself plays an integral role in this instalment.”
The scheduled release date for Saw 10 is October 27, 2023. Currently, Peacock offers streaming access to every Saw film save Spiral.