Jessica Chastain says she and Apple are ‘not aligned’ on decision to halt The Savant

4 hours ago 2

Andrew Webster

is an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.

Just a day after Apple announced that it was pausing the premiere of The Savant, its upcoming show about domestic extremism, star Jessica Chastain says that she disagrees with the decision.

In a lengthy statement on Instagram, Chastain said that while the team at Apple TV Plus are “incredible collaborators… we’re not aligned on the decision to pause the release of The Savant.” Here’s the bulk of her statement:

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.

In the show Chastain plays an investigator who “infiltrates online hate groups in an effort to stop domestic extremists before they act.”

The Savant was originally planned to start streaming on September 26th, and it’s not clear at the moment when it’ll end up airing. In a previous statement about the pause, Apple said that “We appreciate your understanding and look forward to releasing the series at a future date.” Chastain, meanwhile, said today that “I remain hopeful the show will reach audiences soon.”

0 Comments

Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.

Read Entire Article