This week, the Saw franchise continues by exploring a previously unrevealed story in Saw X, which takes place between the original film and Saw II. Tobin Bell is reprising his role as the original Jigsaw killer, John Kramer, as he takes his revenge on a band of medical con artists who tricked him into believing that they had saved his life with an experimental procedure.
Although Kramer died in Saw III, Bell has made appearances in every subsequent film except Spiral, in flashbacks that shed new light on his connections to his successors and their victims. While the midquel nature of Saw X once again allows Kramer to return to the forefront, any advancement of the franchise will need to move the narrative forward. The Saw producers recently told Fandom they can’t foresee leaving Bell out of future films, but with the actor now in his 80s — playing a character who canonically died when he was 52 — it feels like there may need to be some sort of dueling timeline scenario or such in the future, perhaps akin to 2017’s eighth entry, Jigsaw, but without any audience trickery at work.
Since we can safely rule out a John Kramer resurrection, it’s worth taking note of which characters have actually survived the previous Saw movies and could be used again in any present day scenarios. As the series progressed, and the body count grew — including losing several characters who made it through multiple installments before meeting their end — there were still a handful of victims (or “test subjects”) left alive, as well as a few killers who have adopted Jigsaw’s methods and his worldview as their own. If the inevitable sequels return to the present, even partially, some of these characters will likely make a comeback.
Dr. Lawrence Gordon
Previously seen in Saw, Saw 3D
Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) was one of Jigsaw’s first victims in Saw, and he was retroactively revealed to be one of John Kramer’s apprentices in Saw 3D, having embraced his captor’s beliefs and methods after what he experienced, as others did. It was Gordon and two unidentified accomplices who captured Jigsaw’s renegade follower, Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor), and left him for dead at the end of the seventh film. Since then, Gordon hasn’t been seen or mentioned. But as one of the few remaining characters with close ties with Kramer, not to mention a big connection back to the original movie, it seems likely that he will eventually turn up again, should Elwes be willing to reprise the role once more.
Alison Gordon & Diana Gordon
Previously seen in Saw
Gordon’s wife, Alison (Monica Potter), and their daughter, Diana (Makenzie Vega), were both kidnapped by another victim of Jigsaw, Zep Hindle (Michael Emerson), to force Gordon to play his part in Kramer’s initial game. Alison was able to free herself and her daughter, with the two surviving the events of Saw. Their fates were not addressed when Gordon returned in Saw 3D, but given his newfound appreciation of Kramer’s worldview, it’s doubtful that Alison stayed with him. After all, she was already planning to leave him.
Diana might be another story. It’s been nearly two decades since the events of Saw, which is enough time for her to potentially reconcile with her father. It’s not out of the question that he might pass on some of Jigsaw’s philosophy to her. It’s worth noting Vega has also continued to act as an adult, so a recast likely wouldn’t be necessary if the producers want to bring Diana back.
Daniel Matthews
Previously seen in Saw II
Because Detective Eric Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg) had falsified evidence against several people, Jigsaw and his accomplice, Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith) — herself one of those Eric had framed — targeted Eric’s son, Daniel Matthews (Erik Knudsen), for the game in Saw II. During that film, Amanda pretended to be one of the abductees, and Daniel was one of the few victims who showed compassion towards her.
Amanda had a nasty habit of leaving her victims dead. But she spared Daniel and left him alive at the end of the movie. There’s no evidence that Amanda or Jigsaw revisited Daniel’s life before his father met his end in Saw IV, but regardless,Daniel would have a lot to deal with after this ordeal. He may not even know how his father really died. And if Daniel ever takes it upon himself to learn what happened to his father it may lead him right back into Jigsaw’s orbit, whomever is now carrying on the mantle.
Corbett Denlon
Previously seen in Saw III, Saw V, Saw VI
Like several others on this list, Corbett Denlon (Niamh Wilson) was collateral damage from the games of Jigsaw and his apprentices. Corbett was a young girl when both of her parents, Dr. Lynn Denlon ( Bahar Soomekh) and Jeff Denlon (Angus Macfadyen), were put through their trial by fire. Corbett was also abducted and held captive pending the outcome of those games.
At the end of Saw VI, it was retroactively revealed that during Corbett’s captivity, Amanda had warned the girl not to trust the man who freed her, which turned out to be Hoffman. It’s long been assumed, though not confirmed on screen, that Corbett passed on this info to the police, which may have helped expose Hoffman. And since Corbett would be an adult now, we wouldn’t be surprised if she started looking for answers about what she went through and the demise of both of her parents. Maybe she and Diana Gordon could compare notes given their similar childhood trauma as Jigsaw kidnap victims?
Brit Stevenson
Previously seen in Saw V
Not all of the Jigsaw survivors are innocent victims. Saw V’s Brit Stevenson (Julie Benz) wanted some valuable property and paid someone to burn it to the ground without getting the people inside out. Eight people died, but Brit still accepted her ill-gotten gains. It was for that crime that Brit and several others had to undergo one of Jigsaw’s games. Brit also brought a ruthless streak to the game when she murdered her fellow captive, Luba Gibbs (Meagan Good). While it could be argued that Brit did that in defense of someone else, she didn’t hesitate to desecrate Luba’s corpse to escape from a death trap.
Notably, Brit and one other survivor, Mallick Scott (Greg Bryk) — the one who set the fire that Brit had ordered — made it out alive. Though they had to horrifically mangle their own arms and lose a lot of blood in the process, Brit and Mallick won their game, with both barely clinging to life. Brit has yet to be seen again but her determined nature make her just as likely to now be a devoted Jigsaw follower as someone determined to stop ever remnant of what John Kramer set in motion.
Mallick Scott
Previously seen in Saw V, Saw 3D
The reason that Mallick agreed to burn down the building was his own crippling addiction to drugs, not realizing that there were still people in the building. Like Brit, Mallick’s arm was horribly mutilated in the final trap, though it seems the limb was saved, as Mallick was glimpsed wearing a sling when he briefly reappeared in the Jigsaw survivor support group seen in Saw 3D.
It also appears that Mallick wasn’t prosecuted for burning down the apartment building. But since Mallick was in the support group with Gordon, it’s possible that he could potentially be recruited to be one of his followers and continue Jigsaw’s legacy. With Brit not present, there’s also the possibility these two have gone down very different paths, despite sharing a bloody bond together.
Simone
Previously seen in Saw VI, Saw 3D
During our introduction to Simone (Tanedra Howard) in Saw VI, we learn she and her partner, Eddie (Marty Moreau), used predatory lending to ruin the lives of others for their own financial gain. Hoffman set them up in a contest where only the one who sacrificed the most flesh would live and Simone won the game by chopping off her own arm. Later, in the hospital, Hoffman asked Simone if she had learned anything from the game, and she angrily rebuked him. Unlike trap survivors like Amanda or Gordon, Simone saw no redeeming value from the gruesome methods of Jigsaw or his apprentices.
Simone was part of the support group in Saw 3D, so she was in close proximity to Gordon, not realizing he was one of the last known followers of Kramer, but given her cynicism about Jigsaw’s “rehabilitation,” Simone doesn’t seem like a very likely recruit to the bloody cause. If she does return again, she is far more likely to act against the disciples of Jigsaw than to join them.
Brent Abbott & Tara Abbott
Previously seen in Saw VI (both), Saw 3D (Tara only)
Tara Abbott (Shauna MacDonald), and her son, Brent (Devon Bostick), were seemingly not guilty of anything before being thrust into a Jigsaw game in Saw VI. Instead, they were the victims of William Easton (Peter Outerbridge), a health insurance official who made the decision to deny care to Tara’s late husband, Harold Abbott (George Newbern).
Hoffman arranged things so that Tara and Brent would get to decide William’s fate if he lived through his trial. While Tara couldn’t bring herself to commit murder, Brent took it upon himself to pass judgment on William and he was directly responsible for his gruesome death via hydrofluoric acid. Tara returned in Saw 3D as part of the support group, but Brent was not a part of it. Given Brent’s decision, Gordon and his associates may consider him a potential recruit to continue Jigsaw’s work.
Pamela Jenkins
Previously seen in Saw V, Saw VI
William’s sister, Pamela Jenkins (Samantha Lemole), had her own separate connection to the Jigsaw murders even before her brother was targeted thanks to his own history with John Kramer. Pamela was a reporter who was tenacious about getting the full story on the Jigsaw deaths and prone to embellishment, which set her in Hoffman’s sights by Saw VI. And because Pamela was related to William, she was a great added motivation for her brother’s forced part in Jigsaw’s games.
Although William making it through his test meant that Pamela would live, she had to then watch helplessly as Brent went through with executing her brother during the Abbots’ test. It’s unknown if Pamela resumed her career in TV journalism after that, but she would certainly now be more anti-Jigsaw than ever. If Pamela revives her investigation – whether on the clock or not – we suspect that she would target anyone using his methods.
Addy, Shelby, & Emily
Previously seen in Saw VI (all three), Saw 3D (Addy and Emily only)
As part of William’s ordeal, Hoffman repeatedly forced him to decide which of his co-workers in the insurance office would survive. Only three did: Addy (Janelle Hutchison), Shelby (Karen Cliche), and Emily (Larissa Gomes). Of the three, Shelby seemed to have the least remorse for her actions in denying their clients proper care and coverage. She also seemed quick to convince William to let his other colleagues die if it meant her survival.
Given Shelby’s apparent lack of basic humanity, that may be why only Addy and Emily were a part of the Jigsaw support group in Saw 3D. But neither of them seem like strong candidates to be directly involved with Gordon’s followers.
Ryan & Brad
Previously seen in Saw 3D
Hoffman made sure he had an audience for the death trap that he put Brad (Sebastian Pigott) and Ryan (Jon Cor) in Saw 3D. To provide for his girlfriend, Dina (Anne Lee Greene), Brad became a thief, which didn’t stop Dina from cheating on him with Ryan. Hoffman’s trap unfolded in front of a crowd as he forced Brad and Ryan to choose between killing each other or else Dina would die.
The two men ultimately realized that Dina didn’t genuinely care for either of them, so they chose to spare each other and let her perish. Both Brad and Ryan returned as part of the support group later on in Saw 3D. And according to the commentary track for that film, it was originally intended for these two to be revealed as Gordon’s masked accomplices at the film’s conclusion. For now, this can’t be considered canon, but it would have made sense, because Gordon had access to recruit both men. If this thread is revisited in the future, we may learn whether Brad and Ryan — or at least one of them — really are now followers of Jigsaw.
Sidney
Previously seen in Saw 3D
Beyond Brad and Ryan, Sidney (Oluniké Adeliyi) also seems like a potential recruit from the support group. Hoffman learned that Sydney was in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend, Alex (Ishan Morris). So Hoffman placed them in a test in which only one of them could survive. It was at that moment that Sydney finally stood up to her abuser and emerged as a survivor.
During the support group, Sidney preached the gospel of Jigsaw and felt that her experience had helped her. That must have been music to Gordon’s ears, since he had felt the same way after his ordeal years earlier. (It’s worth noting that there were also at least three other unidentified Jigsaw survivors at that support group meeting, though we know nothing about them).
Bobby Dagen
Previously seen in Saw 3D
Bobby Dagen (Sean Patrick Flanery) really had no one else to blame for his fate in Saw 3D. He came up with the bright idea of pretending to be one of Jigsaw’s victims and using that experience as a springboard to fame and fortune. John Kramer was not amused by that, and neither was Gordon when Bobby visited the support group. But it was Hoffman who put Bobby through a genuine Jigsaw experience.
It turns out that Bobby was absolutely terrible at playing Jigsaw’s games, and he failed to save even one of his co-conspirators. The only innocent victim of Bobby’s deception was his wife, Joyce Dagen (Gina Holden), who really believed his stories. Joyce learned the truth shortly before her own death in the final trap. Bobby’s fate after that is unknown, but he appeared to be a broken man.
Joan
Previously seen in Saw 3D
Very little is known about Joan (Joanna Douglas), the woman whose account of surviving Jigsaw’s test inspired Bobby to fake the experience in the first place. However, Joan was one of the Jigsaw victims who notably looked back at her experience as something positive in her life. However, she still hated Jigsaw himself, and it was never revealed why she was targeted her in the first place.
Logan Nelson
Previously seen in Jigsaw
As revealed in Jigsaw, Logan Nelson (Matt Passmore) is one of Jigsaw’s apprentices – in fact, he was seemingly his first ever recruit. Given Hoffman was left in a locked room to die (though we suppose that itself is a lingering question until we see a corpse) and Gordon’s physical limitations, Logan may even be the direct heir to Jigsaw’s legacy. He made his first appearance in the franchise’s eighth film, Jigsaw, where it was revealed that Kramer put him in one of his earlier traps but then ultimately spared Logan’s life, despite Logan mislabeling the lab test results that could have helped save John’s life.
Unfortunately, like Amanda before him, Logan may not be a suitable Jigsaw because he doesn’t subscribe to Kramer’s idea that those selected can redeem themselves through sacrifice. In other words, at least some of Logan’s games don’t give his test subject a real chance to survive, as Detective Brad Halloran (Callum Keith Rennie) learned the hard way. It’s also unknown if, by the time of the events of Jigsaw, Logan is working with Gordon or any other fellow Jigsaw disciple, or if he is operating on his own.
Eleanor Bonneville
Previously seen in Jigsaw
If there was ever an ideal recruit for Jigsaw’s followers, it’s Eleanor Bonneville (Hannah Emily Anderson). Eleanor’s appearance in Jigsaw established that she is obsessed with the work of John Kramer, to the point that she recreated replicas of many of his iconic traps, even some that weren’t publicly known. She also worked closely with Logan in the medical examiner’s office, not realizing she was just one degree away from John Kramer for quite awhile.
Logan appears to have used Eleanor to avert suspicion away from himself, and that’s one of the reasons why she lived through the film, as she helped provide him with an alibi. In fact, during their last on screen encounter, he accused her of being the new Jigsaw as cover for himself. It would be interesting to see if Eleanor is still obsessed with Jigsaw after her experiences in that film and just how Logan explained his survival to her (even as the person she suspected, Halloran, was killed) unless he simply vanished from her life.
Zeke Banks
Previously seen in Spiral
Few of the survivors of Jigsaw’s games or the machinations of his successors have suffered like Detective Ezekiel “Zeke” Banks (Chris Rock) in Spiral. Zeke managed to live through his ordeal physically intact, which was by design. The Jigsaw copycat here turned out to be Zeke’s partner, Will Emmerson (Max Minghella), who’d never met John Kramer but admired his methods. Will wanted to recruit Zeke to join his crusade against crooked cops and, as a final test, he gave Zeke a chance to save his corrupt father, Marcus Banks (Samuel L. Jackson), or let Will escape to kill another day.
Zeke tried to have it both ways by saving his father and attempting to catch Will. Unfortunately for Zeke, Will’s contingency plans made Marcus seem like a threat to the arriving police officers, who gunned him down in front of his son. If Zeke returns, he’s certainly going to be looking for some revenge of his own. Could this lead him to investigate those who actually knew John Kramer and who Will in turn might seek out?
William Emmerson
Previously seen in Spiral
When he was a child, Will witnessed police corruption firsthand when his father was killed by a corrupt cop. The intervention of Zeke — still a beat cop at the time — may have helped save Will’s life, but it did nothing to prevent him from becoming a killer. Will dropped his real last name and adopted Will Schenk as his alias before he joined the same police department that ultimately claimed his father’s life.
Will was greatly inspired by John Kramer’s life and actions, but felt that he didn’t go far enough. In Will’s mind, the only real change to the culture of corruption within the police was to actually murder the worst offenders and scare the rest into acting honestly and honorably. And while Will isn’t an official Jigsaw, he could be an ideal recruit if Gordon or his followers learn about him and what he’s accomplished.].
There are a lot of loose threads that could be potentially explored in Saw XI or beyond. But for now, we’ll revisit the past with Saw X when it hits theaters on Friday, September 29.
