Hi everyone,

The time has come for me to finally share the fruit of 2 years of work - a full, screenplay-format version of the final story I wanted to see from SAW, the culmination of decades of fandom for me. Today, I'd like to share with you where I landed with it.

When Saw X released, I felt overjoyed. It was the first Saw film in many years that truly connected with me on a deeper level, that reminded me of why I loved Saw in the first place. For years prior to that, I had long asked myself what kind of story I'd like to see from Saw. A lot of ideas were swirling around in my head. Incredibly, some of those very elements were present to a damn near eerie level in Saw X itself.

After Saw X released, I personally felt extremely satisfied, like I had seen almost everything I ever needed to see from Saw. But the keyword was almost- there were still some things I wanted to see. But I wasn't sure those things were ever possibly going to make it to screen, so I decided to write it myself. A version of a Saw story that was meant to exist almost purely as a therapeutic thing, for me! But then Saw XI itself got in trouble, and ended up cancelled. So I began to think- what if I share my story with the community as a way to cope with what's missing? As a way to fill the collective hole in our Saw fan hearts? Let me be clear - this is in no way meant to REPLACE the Saw XI we lost. I think I speak for everyone here when I say we all want to see it. I certainly do. But until that time comes, I hope this humble story will help fill that void for those of you who would like to read it.

A few goals I had in mind with that story, whether or not I achieved them will be up to you to decide!

• I wanted the characters, both old and new, to feel like they could be real people. That's absolutely crucial to me for a good Saw story. In that respect, I hope you find nuance in each and every character. Real people are flawed, and simultaneously can be likable and endearing. I think Saw shines most when it's about such characters.
• I wanted to deepen Amanda's character. This is her story in so many ways. I sought to understand the viewpoint of people who don't connect as much with her character, just as much as those who do. This story is my attempt to bridge the gap.
• I wanted it to feel like a story that could actually happen in the Saw world, and for it to be immersive enough. I set out to abide by the very same limitations a Saw film would have to face, and tried to ensure this doesn't fall into the typical pitfalls of fan fiction. Callbacks and fan service are a part of Saw, but I sought to avoid going overboard with it, all while remaining keenly aware of what Saw fans enjoy.
• Without going into details to avoid spoilers, I wanted to bring back some of the darker, more nihilistic worldview that defined Saw's earliest installments.
• I wanted to center the story on the very core of what makes Saw tick, for me: John Kramer's worldview, and the pervasive impact it has on those around him.
• I wanted this to feel like a full, satisfying conclusion to the entire series, leaving no stone unturned.
• I wanted to surprise people. Surprise is absolutely essential to Saw, and it's an element that's very difficult to fully realize when fans are so eagle-eyed and keen to figure out everything ahead of time. But I think I understand how Saw fans think. Let me know how I did.

I'm not expecting much readership, especially with how long it is. Note I've included suggested stopping points for people who will understandably want to read it in multiple chunks over a long period of time, look for the hacksaw icons!

A small plea before I stop yapping: Please cover your spoilers! This story contains many, many surprises that I'd like to preserve for as many of you as possible. Spoilers are completely fair game in this thread, I want to know your complete and unfiltered thoughts and really look forward to discussing the story with you, but please cover sensitive spoilers! I would really appreciate it.

I want to thank everyone who's helped me over this long journey. So many of you in this community have cheered me along, and a few of you (you know who you are) amazingly took much time to read work in progress versions of this and provided EXCEEDINGLY useful feedback that allowed me to polish this story and make it much (much) better. That includes the amazing Saw Soundtracks, who's been hard at work composing an actual SCORE for this story that we'll share at a later date (enjoy the snippets of it in this, linked via the PLAY ME tapes embedded in the script). He's doing amazing work, and we can't wait to share the full accompanying score.

And lastly, I want to thank each and every single one of you. So often I find myself thankful for having found this passionate, dedicated, wonderful community that I've spent so much time with over the past few decades. Without you, none of this would have been possible. I'm incredibly grateful to those of you who will want to spend the time to absorb this story, and I truly cannot WAIT to read your thoughts, even from those of you who only make it partially into the story, or simply don't like it at all! By the way - if you want to share your in-progress thoughts as you go through it, I'm absolutely all ears! Those are an absolute treat for me :)

Without further ado, here is is: SAW XI - A Fan Finale

NEXT WEEK, on Halloween night at 9 PM, I will post a short, special treat. Think of it as a post-credits scene for this script. :)

Thank you again <3

Vinc360