Jessica Chastain is ‘not aligned’ with Apple’s decision to postpone ‘The Savant’

This week, AppleTV+ announced that they were postponing the premiere of their new series The Savant. The eight-part limited series stars Jessica Chastain, and Chastain executive-produced it as well. It’s based on a true story of a female investigator who worked to track and at times infiltrate white nationalist hate groups and other domestic terrorist groups. In their postponement announcement, AppleTV+ cited the murder of Charlie Kirk, suggesting that the timing is too sensitive to watch a show about tracking groups and individuals who share the same kind of violently bigoted, racist, misogynistic, white-supremacist ideology as Charlie Kirk. Well, Jessica Chastain disagrees with AppleTV’s decision. She wrote this on her social media:

I want to say how much I value my partnership with Apple. They’ve been incredible collaborators and I deeply respect their team. That said, I wanted to reach out and let you know that we’re not aligned on the decision to pause the release of The Savant.

In the last five years since we’ve been making the show, we’ve seen an unfortunate amount of violence in the United States: the kidnapping attempt on Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer; the January 6th attack on the Capitol; the assassination attempts on President Trump; the political assassinations of Democratic representatives in Minnesota; the attack on Speaker Pelosi’s husband; the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk; the recent shooting at an ABC affiliate station in California; and over 300 school shootings across this country.

These incidents, though far from encompassing the full range of violence witnessed in the United States, illustrate a broader mindset that crosses the political spectrum and must be confronted.

I’ve never shied away from difficult subjects, and while I wish this show wasn’t so relevant, unfortunately it is. The Savant is about the heroes who work every day to stop violence before it happens, and honoring their courage feels more urgent than ever. While I respect Apple’s decision to pause the release for now, I remain hopeful the show will reach audiences soon. Until then, I’m wishing safety and strength for everyone, and I’ll let you know if and when The Savant is released.

[From Jessica Chastain’s social media]

The perpetrators of all of the crimes she listed were white men. The Savant apparently shows that vividly, the proliferation of radicalized white men who are planning mass shootings or violent attacks on public figures or politicians. If you ask me, what AppleTV+ is doing here deserves more attention and deserves more pushback from the public. While Apple isn’t saying that the show is being shelved forever, it also seems like they’re waiting to see how Apple subscribers respond to this decision.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, AppleTV+.