I wasn’t surprised when Saw IV raked in $32 million at the box office this opening weekend. It doesn’t matter what’s on the screen: Just slap on the franchise name, open sometime around Halloween and you’re sure to pocket $30 million in a matter of days. There’s hardly ever a “sure thing” in Hollywood, but the Saw brand has audiences addicted.

I’ll admit – I’m a fan of the original. Saw breathed life into a floundering horror genre: It was innovative, smart and just overall cool. Post-Saw, copycat films like Hostel and Turistas tried to capitalize on Saw’s success. And why not? Saw cost about $1 million to make and grossed $55 million during its run in theaters, not to mention massive DVD sales. The “torture porn” genre was born.

I was a bit skeptical, but Saw II was also well-done and had a great twist. But after that, the series went downhill. Saw III was convoluted, ridiculous and just stupid. But that’s how Hollywood works: You take a mediocre film and milk it for all it’s worth. Saw V and VI are already in the pipeline; Saw IV got the green light after the studios saw the returns from Saw II. Don’t have a story? Doesn’t matter. Can’t think of any interesting traps? Irrelevant. Said all you can say? Who cares? The studio could reveal that Jigsaw is actually an alien from the planet Xzatrok and still pull in $30 million. It certainly won’t dissuade them from making yet another sequel.

Saw IV wasn’t screened for critics. If you know you’ve got a stinker on your hands, why let people review it? With movies like the Saw series, fans are going to pay no matter what. Right now, Saw IV is getting abysmal reviews (17 percent on Rotten Tomatoes) — but reviews, schmeviews.

The new Saw films don’t require any talent to produce. I could direct them simply because I’ve watched the other ones. Throw in some traps, some pointless gore and then come up with the most ridiculous and implausible thing possible and call it a “head-spinning” twist. To say Hollywood is beating a dead horse is like saying the Patriots are having an above-average season.

Studio execs must be laughing all the way to the bank. They’ve found a way to get people to keep paying ten dollars to see the same stuff over and over again, a little bit worse each time. After Hostel 2, Turistas and Captivity all bombed, they must have gotten a little worried, but their fears were assuaged this weekend — the formula still works.

If you’re genuinely a fan of the series, by all means spend the money. But at some point you have to ask yourself: Exactly who is being tortured?