Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Saw X.We think it’s safe to say that we would all lose if figuring outthe twisty and turbulent timeline of theSawserieswas one of Jigsaw’s (Tobin Bell) torture games. This long-running and beloved horror franchise is notorious for its wacky, crazy, and convoluted timeline. The franchise is almost like a jigsaw puzzle in itself, with the seemingly connected events in each film taking place at widely different points in time. To put it into context just how crazy the timeline of theSawmovies is, this is a franchise where its main villain definitively dies of cancer inSaw III, yet there have been seven movies to come after it that still contain John Kramer as a central figure (with the only real exception beingSpiral).
The tenth installment,Saw X, has been praised by fans as one of thebest entries to come from the series in a long time, and we think a big part of it is how it steps away from the infamous time skips. Instead,Saw Xtells a much more self-contained story that largely stands entirely on its own, so much to the point where one could argue thatSaw Xcan be enjoyed without any prior knowledge of the prior films. This all works to the benefit of the film, as getting to see a more vulnerable and emotional side of John Kramer is a great change of pace for a franchise as long-running asSaw.
That said, some may still be wondering when exactlySaw Xtakes place in relation to the other nine films. As we mentioned earlier, John Kramer died inSaw III, so how does he return inSaw X? Not to mention, Kramer is not the only character from the franchise who returns inSaw Xeither. It seems that the simple answer would be to say thatSaw Xtakes place in between the events of certain films — but as fans of the franchise already know, it can be a bit more complicated than that.
‘Saw X’ Takes Place Before Most of the Events of ‘Saw’
In short, the answer to whenSaw Xtakes place in theSawfranchise is before the main plot of the original 2004 film — and by “main plot,” we mean the events where Adam (Leigh Whannell) and Lawrence (Cary Elwes) are trapped together inside one of Jigsaw’s games. All this happens while Jigsaw himself is lying on the floor and posing as a lifeless corpse.
However, not all the events of the originalSawtake place at that same time, with the key case beingAmanda’s (Shawnee Smith) survival of the reverse bear trap. Amanda is actually the first ever person to survive one of Jigsaw’s games and ultimately becomes his apprentice and accomplice in his various crimes. She likely assists her mentor in setting up future games in the franchise, including Adam and Lawrence’s test.
‘Saw X’ Isn’t Playing Any Games at the Global Box Office With Impressive Debut
The sequel delivered the franchise’s biggest domestic opening in over a decade.
What Happened in John Kramer’s Life Before ‘Saw X’?
Rather than go through Kramer’s life movie by movie, all of which insert new events from Kramer’s life into various points in time. we’re just going to give you a brief biography of Jigsaw’s life up until the events ofSaw X. We’ll also reference where these events appear in each movie, but don’t let all the different numbered entries confuse you too much.
The earliest part of John Kramer’s life that we’ve seen in the franchise thus far is during one of the many flashbacks inSaw III, where, like many villains before they broke bad, Kramer lived a normal and sometimes even noble life. He was a brilliant and experienced architect who was in a happy marriage with his wife, Jill Kramer (Betsy Russell). In a flashback in the subsequent film,Saw IV, Jill even starts a clinic for those suffering from drug addiction. In a case of cosmic coincidence, John Kramer’s future apprentice Amanda is a patient at that very clinic.
Saw IValso shows John Kramer’s altruism continuing when he becomes the owner of his own company, hoping to dedicate his life to creating housing for struggling individuals who can’t afford homes of their own. Even better, Jill is pregnant with her and John’s first child, sowing the seeds for a new and happy life for them both. That happiness is short-lived when tragedy strikes. Cecil (Billy Otis), a career criminal and patient at Jill’s clinic, decides to rob the place. When Cecil and Jill get into a physical altercation, this results in the miscarriage of John and Jill’s child.
The loss of his unborn child sends John spiraling into a deep depression that only gets worse with a devastating medical diagnosis. When he goes in to see Dr. Lawrence for some seemingly mild head pain, he is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Seeing no other way out, John attempts suicide but is revived. This experience gives John a new appreciation for life but also unlocks a dark and twisted part of his soul. He wishes to become a vigilante of severe justice against those who don’t appreciate the sanctity of life. His first subject of this new test? Cecil, who doesn’t survive. To mark the man who killed his child as one who failed his test, John carves a jigsaw piece out of his flesh. Thus, the Jigsaw killer is born.
Though Cecil is technically Jigsaw’s first official victim, we also see one of the killer’s first group tests duringJigsaw. All the participants die except for one, Logan Nelson (Matt Passmore), who is placed in the games after failing to catch John’s cancer earlier while working at the hospital. Kramer decides to spare Nelson and disqualify him from the games, thus making him his first of several apprentices.
Kramer gets his second apprentice inspiteful Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor), who has been copying Jigsaw’s tactics to punish criminals who escape the law. The only difference is that Hoffman doesn’t give his victims a fair chance at beating the tests, which is highly against Kramer’s vigilante code. Instead of making Hoffman just another test subject, Kramer decides to make Hoffman his second associate. Finally, Kramer gets his third apprentice through Amanda, the first person to officially survive his games.
That takes us to the events ofSaw X, where both Amanda and Hoffman assist Kramer in his latest game. This time, it’s very personal for Jigsaw, as his apprentices help him to track down the individuals behind the heartless act of scamming terminally ill cancer patients out of their hard-earned money. By the time Kramer is done with them, there will be more survivors and even more victims of the infamous and omnipresent Jigsaw killer.
