ThenewSawmoviejust keeps getting weirder. It was announced in May that the horror franchisewas getting a spinoffbased on an original idea by none other thanChris Rock, who would co-star in and produce the film. Now today Lionsgate has announced thatSamuel L. Jacksonis joining the cast to play the father of Rock’s character.
Filming is currently underway on the still-untitledSawspinoff, and Rock is playing a police detective investigating a series of grizzly crimes. Also joining the cast isMax Minghella(The Social Network) as Rock’s partner William Schenk andMarisol Nichols(Riverdale) as Rock’s boss Capt. Angie Garza.
“We think Samuel L. Jackson and Chris Rock along with Max Minghella and Marisol Nichols make this film completely special in theSawcanon and we can’t wait to unleash this unexpected and sinister new story on fans of this franchise. This is next level ofSawon full tilt,” said Joe Drake, Chairman of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group.
Specific plot details are under wraps, as is how this ties into the mainstaySawfranchise, but the film sees longtimeSawproducersMark BurgandOren Koulesreturning to produce this “re-imagining,” whileDarren Lynn Bousman—who directedSaw II,Saw III, andSaw IV—returning to take the helm.JigsawwritersPete GoldfingerandJosh Stolbergwrote the screenplay. So all the behind-the-scenes players areSawregulars, working from a new idea by Chris Rock.
While theSawfranchise hasn’t been critically relevant for some time, 2017’sJigsawcrossed $100 million worldwide at the box office seven years after the most recentSawentry, 2010’sSaw 3D. There’s no way Lionsgate was gonna let a franchise like this sit dormant forever, and if ithadto come back, why not let someone like Chris Rock take a crack at it? At the very least it should be interesting, no?
The film currently does not have a release date, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it hit theaters either next October—which is the traditional release window forSawmovies—or if Lionsgate attempts to event-ize this new version, it could arrive with a splashy summer 2020 release date. We’ll surely find out.
