Hot on the heels of comic luminaries Danny McBride and David Gordon Green reigniting the Halloween franchise comes a Saw reboot from, of all people, Chris Rock. Deadline reports that Rock conjured up the story for the revival—which, we have to assume, will find yet another means of bringing Tobin Bell back from the dead—and will executive produce a script from Jigsaw writers Pete Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg. It’s currently slated for a release date of October 23, 2020.
Rock is apparently a big fan of the franchise, which saw its 2004 original spawn eight bone-snapping sequels—mostly bad, sure, but Saw VI owns—and a number of video game and comic book adaptations. Rock’s vision will be helmed by franchise veteran Darren Lynn Bousman, who helmed the second, third, and fourth installments, as well as longtime Saw producers Mark Burg and Oren Koules and creators James Wan and Leigh Whannel. The gang’s all here!
“Chris wants to put his own spin on the Saw franchise in the way Eddie Murphy put a completely fresh perspective on buddy-cop films with 48 Hours,” Burg and Koules said in a statement. “This new Saw is going to be an event film in the making for horror fans.”
“When Chris Rock came to us and described in chilling detail his fantastic vision that reimagines and spins-off the world of the notorious Jigsaw Killer, we were all-in,” said Lionsgate’s Joe Drake in a statement. “This upcoming film will still be as mind bending and intense as all the previous Saw films. Chris conceived this idea and it will be completely reverential to the legacy of the material while reinvigorating the brand with his wit, creative vision and passion for this classic horror franchise.”
Rock’s been spinning his long, varied career in some interesting new directions lately, with FX announcing that the comedian and actor would headline the next installment of its Fargo anthology series.