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Apple TV+ pulls new political thriller The Savant three days before launch for undisclosed reasons
The Jessica Chastain thriller focuses on right-wing extremism and political violence; Apple TV+ says that the show has been indefinitely postponed "after careful consideration"
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Three days before the series was set to debut on the streaming platform, Apple TV+ has announced that it has placed The Savant, a new thriller starring Academy Award winner Jessica Chastain, on an indefinite hold, releasing a statement teasing a release at an undefined “future date.”
The eight-episode show, originally set to debut September 26, focused on Chastain’s character — nicknamed The Savant — who was a government official monitoring online hate groups in an effort to prevent terrorist attacks.
Apple TV+ did not give a reason why the show has been pulled so close to release. Instead, it offered the following statement to press: “After careful consideration, we have made the decision to postpone The Savant. We appreciate your understanding and look forward to releasing the series at a future date.”
The show, executive produced by Chastain and series creator Melissa James Gibson (The Americans, House of Cards), is based on a Cosmopolitan feature from 2019 titled ‘Is it possible to stop a mass shooting before it happens?’ by journalist Andrea Stanley; that feature specifically mentions that the anonymous subject’s attention “been pulled toward the alt-right, a younger, more misogynistic version of the white supremacist movement that’s converting a new generation on message boards and social media.”
Given the timing of the decision, the likelihood that Apple is being proactive in the fact of any potential backlash coming so soon after the murder of right-wing speaker Charlie Kirk seems likely, especially in the wake of ABC’s suspension (and subsequent reinstatement) of late night host Jimmy Kimmel after he made comments about Trump supporters “trying to score political points" in the aftermath of the shooting. Kimmel's comments prompted Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr to threaten some undefined form of censure against the network, saying, “we can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
For its part, Apple TV+ remains committed to The Savant despite the last-minute postponement. The show is still listed as part of its upcoming line-up, and the trailer for the show remains available online:
Keep your eyes on Popverse for more on this story as it develops.
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