Darren Lynn Bousman, the filmmaker best known for his work on the Saw franchise, has signed on to direct Serpentine, a new psychological crime thriller from Dream State Studios and its partner Brand in Entertainment. The film is set in a seemingly quiet New England town where organised crime, corrupt police officers, buried secrets and the fiercely competitive world of figure skating begin to collide.
At the centre of Serpentine is a woman who believes she has found a way out of a dangerous life, only to discover that escape comes with its own consequences. What begins as an attempt to disappear draws her into a complicated web of criminals, local power players and people determined to keep the past buried. The project combines crime, psychological tension and dark humour, offering Bousman an opportunity to explore a genre beyond the horror films for which he is best known.
Bousman has said that he has wanted to explore different creative territory outside horror for some time. Serpentine, he explained, gives him that opportunity without requiring him to abandon the elements he enjoys as a filmmaker. The film will retain a sense of dread, fear and intensity, but place those qualities within what he described as a strange, darkly comic, Fargo-esque world. The combination of crime, humour and psychological unease is a significant departure from his established horror work.
Valerie Palencar, president of Dream State Studios and the film’s writer, said Bousman immediately understood what made Serpentine unusual. She described the story as one driven by complex characters in a world where ambition and loyalty are constantly tested. Palencar also highlighted the director’s ability to create tension without losing sight of character, identifying that balance as an important quality for the project.
One of the more distinctive aspects of the announcement is the film’s financing structure. Dream State Studios is producing Serpentine, with Rolfe J. Auerbach, chief executive officer of Brand in Entertainment, serving as executive producer. The film will be funded partly through participating brands brought into the project by Brand in Entertainment, with their products integrated into the story from the earliest stages of development.
Auerbach has said that Serpentine was never intended to be a conventional independent film. The production is being developed as a commercially ambitious motion picture that combines an original story, an internationally recognised director and a financing model that brings consumer brands directly into the film’s world. He added that Bousman offers the combination of intensity, originality and commercial filmmaking experience the team was seeking.
The participating brands have not been identified, and further details about how their involvement will be reflected in the finished film remain undisclosed. The approach nevertheless places brand participation at the centre of the project’s financing strategy, rather than treating product integration solely as a promotional arrangement added after the creative work has begun.
Bousman has worked across both studio productions and independent filmmaking during his career. He made his feature directorial debut with Saw II in 2005 and went on to direct Saw III and Saw IV, becoming a prominent creative figure in the horror franchise. He later returned to the series with Spiral: From the Book of Saw, the spin-off starring Chris Rock. Bousman also co-wrote Saw II with Leigh Whannell.
His other credits include Repo! The Genetic Opera, The Devil’s Carnival, Abattoir and Death of Me. These projects demonstrate his experience across different forms of genre filmmaking, although Serpentine will place that experience within a crime story shaped by dark comedy and the competitive culture of figure skating.
The film’s setting offers a distinctive backdrop for its criminal and psychological elements. Figure skating is built around precision, discipline and competition, while the story introduces a town marked by corruption, concealed histories and conflicting loyalties. The contrast between the sport’s controlled public image and the dangerous world surrounding the central character provides the premise with room to explore ambition and personal survival.
However, the project remains in its early stages, and several important details have yet to be announced. No cast members have been named, and there is currently no confirmed production start date, theatrical release date or distributor. The consumer brands expected to participate in the financing have also not been disclosed.
Serpentine brings together a director associated with intense horror filmmaking, a crime narrative built around a woman attempting to escape her past, and a production model that incorporates brand financing and product integration from the outset. Bousman’s involvement signals a move into different creative territory while retaining the tension and unease that have characterised much of his previous work.
The next stage of development will clarify the film’s cast, production schedule and distribution plans. Until then, Serpentine stands out both for its unusual setting and for its attempt to combine an original genre story with an alternative approach to financing an independent production.
