There’s a New Saw Movie in the Works From Beware Boiúna’s Mike P. Nelson

There’s a new Saw movie in the works from Beware Boiúna’s Mike P. Nelson, and the story of how it got here is stranger than the traps it will likely contain.

Blumhouse has spent recent years trying to buy out the rights to the Saw franchise from Twisted Pictures, the company that has produced every installment since ponying up the cash for the first one in 2004. That push arrived alongside news that Blumhouse was teaming up with Atomic Monster, the production company founded by James Wan, the director who used Saw as his springboard into a career that has made him one of the most lucrative horror directors of all time.

The deal also allowed Lionsgate to continue profiting off the consistently cash-generating franchise, which has clocked more than a billion dollars at the box office over the last 22 years. Reports suggested it’ll give Wan and co-creator Leigh Whannell, a frequent Blumhouse collaborator, a little more say in what happens to the franchise going forward.

Nelson Takes the Assignment

Nelson is the man getting the assignment. He directed the Silent Night, Deadly Night remake and is currently attached to Boiúna, a “big-ass murderous snake” movie heading into theaters next month.

We don’t know what angle Nelson is taking with the film. The script in the video literally just calls itself “Untitled Saw.”

The Trap Design Checklist

Here’s how a Saw movie gets made, in rough order:

1. Come up with some genuinely good trap designs.
2. Make up some assholes to subject them to.
3. Give the thing the very lightest sheen of social consciousness.

That’s most of the way there.

The Creative Handoff

Wan’s involvement as an overseer is notable. He made the film that launched his career, and now he’s watching over the property that made him rich.

Whannell, the co-creator, is also involved through Blumhouse. His frequent collaborations with Blumhouse suggest the new Saw won’t drift too far from the series’ established tone.

Lionsgate’s Continued Stake

Lionsgate keeps its profits under the deal. The franchise has been cash-generating for more than two decades, and the acquisition gives Wan and Whannell a little more say in what happens to the franchise going forward.

The Director’s Track Record

Nelson’s Boiúna is currently headed into theaters next month. Whether that experience prepares him for a room full of puzzles and chains is unclear, but the overlap between a giant snake and a room full of traps is thinner than you might think.

A Franchise That Refuses to Die

The franchise has survived decades of creative turnover, studio changes, and endless sequels. The traps keep working.

The acquisition gives the franchise a clearer path forward. Lionsgate keeps its profits, Wan keeps his creative stake, and Nelson gets a shot at directing a property that has outlived several attempts to kill it.

Whether that translates into a good movie is another question. The formula hasn’t changed in two decades.

The new Saw is coming.

See the video the story is built around at The A.V. Club.

Blumhouse · horror · James Wan · Leigh Whannell · SAW