Why Jessica Chastain says she disagrees with Apple’s decision to postpone her domestic terrorism TV series ‘The Savant’

Jessica Chastain said Wednesday that she is “not aligned” with Apple’s decision to postpone her series The Savant. The series was intended to drop on Sept. 26, and no new release date has been set.

Apple announced it was pulling The Savant on Tuesday, telling Deadline only that the decision to postpone comes after “careful consideration.” The company said it “look[s] forward to releasing the series at a future date.”

Though Apple did not give a specific reason for delaying the release of The Savant, the move comes on the heels of the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk and intense scrutiny from both members of the government and Americans at large over how those in the media have responded to it. Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was pulled from affiliate stations and suspended by ABC following comments he made about the conservative response to Kirk’s death; the show has since been resumed by ABC.

Citing two people familiar with the discussions at Apple, the New York Times reported Wednesday that the streamer was reluctant to release the series after Kirk’s killing, in light of the current political climate.

The Savant stars Chastain as a woman who works to thwart acts of terrorism in the United States by infiltrating their online communities. In the trailer, which was released in August, Chastain’s character, Jodi, attempts to root out a group of extremists who are planning a massive attack — while also keeping her own family safe. “Snipers, bombing, ambushes … we’re on the verge of serious violence,” Jodi says in the trailer. Later on, Jodi warns another character of a person who is not just out to “plan violence” but to “make a statement” — the “kind that history refers to with a month and a date.”

The series, on which Chastain is an executive producer, is inspired by the 2019 Cosmopolitan article “Is It Possible to Stop a Mass Shooting Before It Happens?” which explores the career of an elite, anonymous investigator known only as “the Savant.” The Cosmo article conceals the identity of the Savant due to privacy concerns, but she is imagined in the TV series as a mother who lives in the suburbs.

In an Instagram story post on Wednesday, Chastain wrote that while she values her partnership with her “incredible collaborators” at Apple, she was not in alignment with the decision to postpone The Savant, noting how, in the past five years, the United States has seen “an unfortunate amount of violence.” She then listed out a number of attacks on political figures, including “the kidnapping attempt on Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer,” “the assassination attempts on President Trump,” the “political assassinations of Democratic representatives in Minnesota,” and, more recently, “the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk” and “the recent shooting at an ABC affiliate station in California.” She also noted the “300 school shootings across this country.”

In her Instagram post, Chastain wrote that these incidents “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,” she continued. “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.”

Chastain said that while she respects the decision to pause the release, “I remain hopeful the show will reach audiences soon.” Until then, she concluded, “I’m wishing safety and strength for everyone, and I’ll let you know if and when The Savant is released.”

The Oscar winner is not the only one pushing back on the choice to postpone The Savant. In a TV column for Variety, writer Aramide Tinubu called Apple’s decision a “huge mistake,” stating that the show is a “straightforward, noncontroversial character study — and a well-paced thriller — about one woman trying to stop domestic terrorism.”

“The Savant succeeds because it holds a mirror up to present-day American society, reflecting back to us who and where we are currently,” he wrote, stating that the medium of television has the ability to “reach people across all walks of life, and connect with varied perspectives, allowing us to continue hearing one another” even as it becomes difficult to find common ground.

“Snatching relevant TV shows off of networks and streamers out of fear and cowardice is the antithesis of what companies should be doing during this terrifying period,” he said, “when American life and even the Constitution are under attack.”