10 Great Horror Movies That Fell Victim To Franchise Fatigue
5. Saw VI (2009)
By 2009, audiences had grown tired of Jigsaw and his torturous games. Saw V the previous year had been savaged by critics and left audiences feeling unsatisfied with its thin, and sometimes plodding, plot.
Following in its footsteps was going to be a daunting task, and Saw VI arrived on time just one year later. Unfortunately, audiences didn't, with the film becoming the first in the series to gross under $100 million at the box office as it stumbled to a somewhat scant $68 million haul. The general consensus being that the series had become stale and uninteresting, plans for seventh and eighth installments were quickly altered and Saw 3D: The Final Chapter was ushered out in response to the diminishing returns. But is Saw VI really all that stale and uninteresting a movie?
Health insurance salesman William Easton awakens to find himself in a maze of tunnels dotted with horrific traps. Caught in each trap is a friend or associate that Easton must battle to save before time runs out.
Sounds like pretty standard Saw movie fodder, right?
What sets Saw VI apart and makes it worth that second look are some particularly strong performances by the cast. Betsy Russell in particular shines as ice queen Jill Tuck, delivering quite possibly the best "game over" of the series in an ending that would've been a fine conclusion to the entire franchise. Russell gives her all here, and it is a crying shame that so few turned out to see it.