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How to change this into reported speech?

He will have said, "John is so bad!"

Would it be:

  1. He will have said that John was so bad (Past tense), or

  2. He will have said that John is so bad (no change).

English--more exc than laws
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    Could please elaborate the context in which this doubt arises. What were the circumstances in which the sentence was uttered? Or or have you invented the sentence as a possible exception or borderline case?m – Tuffy Oct 06 '21 at 14:20
  • No context needed, everything is in the question to understand;) – English--more exc than laws Oct 07 '21 at 03:08
  • Have you looked for an example of a real context for this sport of 'plu-future perfect' to be needed? I think you will find that it is so unlikely that a situation for saying it could arise that there is no 'standard English' answer. So please suggest a context in which someone would actually need to say either 1 or 2, or preferably where anyone has actually used such a locution. – Tuffy Oct 07 '21 at 06:51
  • What is it with needing a context? Is it impossible for you to think a context in your head regarding a simple question like this? Just make anything up, no matter how rare it is irl. – English--more exc than laws Oct 07 '21 at 06:56

1 Answers1

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There are different possible timeframes involved, which need addressing separately.

(a) 'He' has already criticised John:

  • I know what must have happened when Charles went to see the boss. He will have said, "John is so bad!"

This allows both 'was' and 'is' in the reported versions. Obviously, context may disallow 'is' (if John has since died), though if the criticism was recent, 'is' is more likely.

(b) The criticism of John is expected:

  • By this time tomorrow, Charles will have seen the boss and stirred up a hornets' nest. He will have said, "John is so bad!"

Here, 'is' is the only reasonable choice to reflect the original.

Edwin Ashworth
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  • In your first example why would you say "He will have" when already Charles went to see the boss and said that "John is so bad." It would be "He would have". The context always will be in the future just like your 2nd example because of the introductory clause "He will have". My doubt was whether to use to use "was" because in the future he already will "have said" so you'd think to backshift the Present Tense inside the quotation marks. I'd say it could be either as there is no significant change in the meaning. – English--more exc than laws Oct 07 '21 at 03:07
  • What's your English background? "He will have ..." meaning "[This] is without doubt what he has done" is totally idiomatic in conversational British English (I've had almost 70 years of experience, and have 2 degrees from a well-known British university, but have lived in an industrial town otherwise). – Edwin Ashworth Oct 08 '21 at 17:06
  • wtf you're 70yrs old, dayyumm! Anywho, I'm not a native speaker, I know that people use "will" as "must" in some cases such as your first example, ig. But it has always felt wrong for me. – English--more exc than laws Oct 08 '21 at 17:55