Saw XI has reportedly been 'quietly canceled' and I'm not ready to call time on Jigsaw's twisted games

Billy the Puppet on his tricycle in Saw, illuminated by an artificial light

(Image credit: Lionsgate)

Bad news for horror fans, because reports suggest that the anticipated Saw XI has been canceled due to "internal disputes".

So I'm devastated that I'll have to remove it from my 6 biggest horror movies coming in 2025 that I can't wait to watch round up. Considering Saw X was a welcome return to form, I'm not the only fan disappointed by the recent news.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "zero progress" has been made on the new movie. “We haven’t heard anything since May,” Saw XI screenwriter Patrick Melton told the site. “It’s stalled at a managerial level. It has nothing to do with the creative or anything else. There’s higher-level things at play.”

Is Saw XI completely dead?

Tobin Bell as John "Jigsaw" Kramer in Saw II, wearing a red hooded oufit. — (Image credit: Lionsgate)

Right now, it's hard to say as reports suggest it has stalled and there's no signs of it picking up again any time soon.

But being a horror fan is often a frustrating experience, as studios have a habit of branding something "The Final Chapter" and then deciding to reboot it years later, so it's difficult to know if this really is game over for Jigsaw and his legacy.

Even the writing team is on the fence, telling The Hollywood Reporter: “Saw XI may or may not be made, but we have a very timely story in it, and I hope it gets made just because of that.

The publication added: "It taps into the same themes of Saw VI, where you’re a citizen, you feel angry and frustrated with something, you feel like you can’t do anything, and John Kramer’s going to do it. The reason it’s held up is just, there’s inter-squabbling between producers and Lionsgate. They just can’t quite get on the same page.”

Seeing they had plans to center it around Saw VI (aka one of the best in the franchise), I'm now disappointed I likely won't be seeing this story for a long time, if at all.

How do you feel about the Saw XI news? Let me know in the comments below.

Lucy is a long-time movie and television lover who is an approved critic on Rotten Tomatoes. She has written several reviews in her time, starting with a small self-ran blog called Lucy Goes to Hollywood before moving onto bigger websites such as What's on TV and What to Watch, with TechRadar being her most recent venture. Her interests primarily lie within horror and thriller, loving nothing more than a chilling story that keeps her thinking moments after the credits have rolled. Many of these creepy tales can be found on the streaming services she covers regularly.

When she’s not scaring herself half to death with the various shows and movies she watches, she likes to unwind by playing video games on Easy Mode and has no shame in admitting she’s terrible at them. She also quotes The Simpsons religiously and has a Blinky the Fish tattoo, solidifying her position as a complete nerd.