Saw XI could be scrapped as writers admit project has 'stalled'

'Saw XI' has "stalled" with writers kept in the dark for almost a year.

Progress on the latest instalment in the long running horror franchise has "stalled" with no updates for screenwriting partners Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan since they presented a draft in spring 2024.

Melton - who has been involved in the film series since 2007 entry 'Saw IV' - told The Hollywood Reporter: "We haven’t heard anything since May.

“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.”

As confirmed by studio Lionsgate in December 2023, franchise mainstay Kevin Greutert - who helmed 'Saw X' that same year - joined as director with an aim of a September 2024 release.

This was pushed back by a year, but now the future of the next film is up in the air.

Melton added: "'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.

“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.”

He noted that producers and the studio simply aren't "on the same page".

He explained: "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.”

The last movie, 'Saw XX', saw Tobin Bell return as iconic killer Jigsaw, AKA John Kraymer, alongside Shawnee Smith reprising her role as his apprentice Amanda Young.

Back in November 2023, Greutert opened up on the possibility of a sequel and admitted there were already some ideas for a potential storyline.

He told 'The Director's Cut - A DGA Podcast': "There's a version that picks up immediately where this one leaves off, but it's way too early to tell."

However, he explained to The Hollywood Reporter the previous month: “We’ll just have to see what the future of 'Saw' is.

"There are so many directions we could go, but for me, there’s no obvious one coming out of this film.

"I really wanted it to feel like a kind of final send-off for the Jigsaw character, but never say never.”

In December that year, Lionsgate officially announced plans for the next film with a Saw-style backdrop and Roman numerals spelling out a September 27, 2024 release date.

The caption simply read: "The game continues."