by: Orrie Rindal

Everyone knows the Saw franchise as those movies where the little creepy man rides around on a bicycle and enjoys watching people die in terrifying and disturbing ways of his own creation. We’ve had ten of them by now, everybody keeps coming back for the body horror, gore, and pure shock the Saw franchise brings. But audiences must wonder— what goes on in the mind of Jigsaw aside from his perverted fascination with human suffering and pain? Director of Saw XI, P.J. Whiston has wondered the same thing, and in turn the franchise is going in a whole new direction.

“I’m always searching for deeper meaning and the intricacies of the human experience, especially in adulthood, through my films,” explains Whiston, “So when approaching Saw XI, I thought to myself ‘what haven’t we seen here?’ and bingo! That was it.” Whiston is now centering the film around the intimate life of Jigsaw as he begins rapidly going blind. “We’ve only ever thought about Saw one way before, meaning the saw traps used in the film. But what if we look at the other meaning of the word, the past tense of ‘see.’ Get it? It’s like up until this point he was able to see, but now he will forever only have been able to saw…” Whiston said with wavering amounts of confidence in his voice. 

For Jigsaw to lose his vision, his dedication to creating traps and watching people die must come to an end, which will change the whole premise of the films we love so deeply. Jigsaw will have to start focusing on himself and the other pleasures life can bring him aside from observing the brutal torment of innocent lives. He must find a new outlet for his pain, and to process his new emotions surrounding losing his vision, and audiences will have to find an outlet for their pain after watching Saw turn into an arthouse film about a mid-life crisis. Jigsaw will now do the bravest thing for a middle-aged white man can do: go to therapy for the first time, and wear extremely thick unflattering glasses. 

Whsiton explained his influences for Saw XI, “I’m thinking of it as a tribute to films that have inspired me such as Birdman, It’s a Wonderful Life, and The Princess Diaries. Much like how Mia Thermopolis had to leave her life behind in San Francisco and learn what it means to be the true princess of Genovia, Jigsaw will have to discover a new life aside from being a master serial killer. He may even find love in his newfound life as a recently blind man. When he can no longer see the world around him, he has to look inward. Find a Michael to his Mia.” Upon further questioning Whiston admits “I’ve never seen any of the Saw films, no.”The future of the Saw franchise is not looking hopeful. Whoever put Whiston on this project clearly needs to get a visit from Billy the Puppet and be put in a trap of their own. The Princess Diaries is an amazing film though, so at least the man has taste.