Out with the old, in with the new. Many people were speculating that the Saw franchise would go head to head with the Paranormal Activity franchise every October, after they had a dueling horror theme this past Halloween. It looks like Activity may have won that battle, as there is already a plan for a third film to release next October, and Lionsgate has no plans on continuing the Saw franchise. From Variety.

Paramount has greenlit “Paranormal Activity 3” for production with plans to release the pic on Oct. 21.

Insiders said the pic’s original helmer, Oren Peli, and producer Jason Blum will have some part in the creative process but their roles are yet to be determined.

The first two “Paranormal Activity” pics revolved around a family haunted by an evil spirit, with both films lensed in the found footage style.The films have grossed a total of more than $300 million at the worldwide box office.

On Saturday morning, it looked like Megamind was going head to head with Due Date.  Both films made around $12M on Friday evening, but Megamind built on its momentum and added another $20 M to its total on Saturday, bringing its full weekend total to $47.7M.  This came from a mixture of 2D and 3D venues.

That is still a bit lower than Despicable Me ($56.4M)  made on its opening weekend, though. Incidentally, Paramount has had a number one movie three of the last  four weekends (Paranormal Activity 2, Jackass 3D and now Megamind.)

That is  not to say that Due Date didn’t have a great weekend.  It’s total of $33.5 M was good enough to break the November record for best opening for an R-rated comedy. The Robert Downey Jr./Zach Galifianakis comedy didn’t so fare so well when it came to critics, but audiences seemed to enjoy the movie.

Tyler Perry continues to be box office gold for Lionsgate.  His latest movie For Colored Girls was not widely screened for critics, but it managed an impressive $20.1 M anyway.  This is the first time Perry has released a R-rated film.  The weekend total is a bit lower than what his films typically earn, but it is a good, solid number.

Saw 3D won the  weekend box office, to no one’s surprise.  The perennial Halloween franchise made its 7th (and presumably final) bow at the box office with a healthy $22.5M.  It is reported that almost 90% of that total is from 3D screens. If you factor in Thursday midnight showings, the total is $24.2M.

Although the film did much better than its predecessor, Saw VI ($14.1M) it still was only the fifth best Saw debut.

Last week’s champ Paranormal Activity 2 tumbled about 59% from last week for $16.5.  That’s a pretty steep drop, but fairly typical for a horror movie. With a measly $3M budget, the film is hugely profitable, looking at almost $65M in its first two weeks. Guess we know what our next Halloween franchise will be.

Red continues to defy expectations, and only dropped 28% in its third week, for $10.8M.  The film has quietly made $58.9M over three weeks.  Take that, naysayers.

Jackass 3D crossed the $100M mark this weekend, despite dropping 61% from last weekend. Clint Eastwood’s Hereafter came in at the number five spot, but continues to struggle.  The film has made about $22M after three weeks, which is less than half of its budget.

Next week, Due Date, For Colored Girls, and Megamind vie for the top spot.

For close to a decade, new SAW movie trailers have been synonymous with fall.  A new movie has been unveiled every single October for six years now. True to form, Lionsgate has started hyping the newest trailer for SAW 3D (aka SAW VII 3D.)

This looks to be an attempt to re-invigorate the flailing franchise with a fresh twist on the series, and the use of 3D.  Lionsgate makes it very clear in the trailer that this movie was shot in 3D, obviously not wanting this film to be lumped in with some of the sub-par post production 3D conversions that have been released this year.

This film takes full advantage of 3D, with lots of objects flying through the air toward the audience.

Tobin Bell will be back as Jigsaw, and Cary Elwes will reprise his role as Dr. Lawrence Gordon.

As for the plot:
“As a deadly battle rages over Jigsaw’s brutal legacy, a group of Jigsaw survivors gathers to seek the support of self-help guru and fellow survivor Bobby Dagen, a man whose own dark secrets unleash a new wave of terror.”

Bobby Dagen will be played by Sean Patrick Flanery (The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.) Saw 3D is scheduled to hit theaters on October 29.  Catch the trailer after the jump.

It’s poster day here at the site and now we’ve got another for you. Previously, we brought you the first trailer for the latest, and presumably last, installment of the Saw franchise now known as Saw 3D. In that trailer we were treated to a lot of the same torture porn images, intricate traps and the rest of what you would expect from a Saw film.

The biggest difference with this latest one is that it brings back some of the cast of the other films including Carey Elwes, Betsy Russelly, Costas Mandylor and Jigsaw himself Tobin Bell. To demonstrate that, we’ve got a new poster for the movie (sent to us by Lionsgate and first debuted on MTV.com) featuring Bell in glorious 3D and complete with exploding head.

The movie tells the story of Jigsaw’s survivors who seek the support of self-help guru and fellow survivor Bobby Dagen (Sean Patrick Flanery). Unfortunately, Dagen is a man with his own secrets and dark past and as a battle for Jigsaw’s legacy ensues, a new wave of terror is unleashed.

Director Kevin Greutert returns for this movie as well as previous Saw franchise writers Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton, who wrote Saw IV, Saw V and Saw VI as well as the very good The Collector.

Check out the full poster in all its 3D glory after the jump. Saw 3D takes your lunch money and tortures you to death on October 29th.

With the news that we will be witnessing the culmination of the Saw franchise this October, one had to wonder if Saw 3D could really be a worthy cap to the series. From the looks of the new official trailer, Saw 3D will not disappoint.

For all you torture porn lovers out there, this film is shaping up to be the biggest and baddest of them all. The magnitude and complexity of the traps previewed in the trailer, as well as the addition of the 3D component, should bring a satisfying end to the world record setting franchise.

Those of you who have come to depend on the Saw films as their horror fix every Halloween will be disappointed by the trailer’s confirmation that this will in fact be the final film. In the film, Bobby Dagen (Sean Patrick Flannery) is a self help guru and Jigsaw survivor who is sought out by a group of Jigsaw survivors who are seeking his support to help overcome their trauma. Unfortunately, it’s Dagen’s demons that end up unleashing the new round of terror.

The film is set to star Tobin Bell (Saw), Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride), Costas Mandylor (Beowolf) , Betsy Russelly (Saw III) and Sean Patrick Flannery (Boondock Saints).

With Saw ending its reign as the top horror franchise, are there any upcoming or recent horror movies that you the Flickcast readers are hoping to see franchised?

Lionsgate’s Saw 3D is opening in theaters October 29. Check the trailer out after the jump and stay with us for more Saw 3D news as it develops.