Here’s everything you need to know about the world of television for Thursday, February 12th, 2026:
IN A BUDDING OLIGARCHY, EVEN THE HINT OF CONTROVERSY CAN BE BAD FOR BUSINESS
The Apple TV drama The Savant was originally scheduled to debut its first two episodes on September 26th, 2025, but just three days before the premiere, the streamer unexpectedly pulled the series. While there was no official explanation for the move at the time, PR people at Apple suggested to reporters on background that the decision was in response to the murder of conservative media figure Charlie Kirk, who had been killed two weeks previously.
On the face of it, the explanation seemed reasonable, if overly cautious. Especially given the lack of public information about the series. Based on the 2019 Cosmopolitan article "Is It Possible to Stop a Mass Shooting Before It Happens?," the show starred Jessica Chastain as a woman nicknamed "The Savant," who was extremely successful at infiltrating online hate groups in order to prevent large-scale public attacks.
Based on a real person, Chastain's character Jodi Goodwin earned her nickname "The Savant" thanks to her uncanny ability to sense when hate speech would morph into violent action. Goodwin worked secretly for a group based on the the division of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) that infiltrated online hate groups. The group would identify dangerous individuals, who would then be investigated and often charged with plans to commit shootings, bombings and other mass casualty events. As a producer on the show explained to me, when you see someone arrested just as they are set to follow through with violent threats, this group likely had something to do with it.
When The Savant was pulled by Apple TV, Chastain posted a long message on her Instagram account in which she explained she didn't agree with the decision:
“I want to say how much I value my partnership with Apple. They’ve been incredible collaborators and I deeply respect their team,” Chastain wrote. “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.”
While Apple TV semi-publicly blamed the show's delay on the raw emotions following Charlie Kirk's assassination, after speaking with people at Apple TV familiar with the decision-making as well as sources connected with the show, I have been told that Kirk's murder simply was a convenient excuse to remove a show Apple executives worried would prompt a wave of criticism from conservative media types, who would see the show's premise as an overt criticism of their political beliefs.
An FBI official who had worked with the ADL's extremism group for a number of years explained that one of the biggest challenges in their efforts was the insistence of many conservatives that any attempt to reign in potential right-wing violence was somehow an attack on anyone with conservative political beliefs. This person asked to remain unidentified because they still work in law enforcement:
"It was not uncommon for us to arrest someone who was planning a violent act and then hear from critics that they were targeted because of their beliefs. And while that's the case, it's not true in the way they mean it. These people weren't on our radar because they were conservative. They were under investigation because they were often talking about committing violence, about disrupting the public safety. The truth right now is that while people from any political persuasion are capable of committing a mass casualty event, the majority of them are right-wing zealots. In the 1960s, the reverse was true. We have to go where the potential crimes might be, not where someone has political beliefs we don't agree with."
While I don't agree with Apple's reasoning, worrying about social media blowback was not an unreasonable concern. In the weeks leading up to the show's premiere date, some conservatives were already posting massive screeds against the series, based on nothing more than a logline and a trailer:
"The Savant was going to be Apple TV's culture war series, the one that targeted the people they despised and blamed the world's problems on. Little did they know that reality was going to come knocking so hard and fast. With an ever growing amount of proof from just the last 2 weeks that the show was actively lying about who was the blame. Apple saw the backlash that other shows and brands were getting, and decided to postpone it. As it is currently indefinite we don't know whether it's cancelled or simply delayed, but as it would require enough time to go by without proving them wrong, it might take a while. The Savant would have been an incredible comedy, so utterly convinced in it's own morals while being so exactly opposite truth, an accidental parody was about to be unleashed."
And criticisms such as these had become increasingly concerning to Apple TV executives, who initially believed the show's connection to a real-life organization as well as the generalized nature of the politics of the bad guys portrayed in the series would not be seen as an attack by real life conservatives.
That began to change in the week's leading up to the show's premiere - even before the murder of Charlie Kirk. The release of the show's trailer sparked a growing criticism from some very online conservatives, who saw references to The Savant's efforts to stop a mass casualty event - "the kind you refer to as a month and a date" - as a not-so-veiled reference to the events of January 6th.
Kirk's death heightened concerns internally at Apple TV, as did the results of a small focus group that was shown clips from the series. I have been told that while criticism of the footage wasn't universal among participants, the ones that hated the series REALLY hated it. An executive who saw the feedback said some members of the group saw the references in the show to anti-immigrant beliefs or misogynistic complaints as a vehicle for Hollywood to attack their political beliefs. "You know how some people complain that every time anyone on the Right is described as racist, that it an attack on them," said the source. "Those are the people who hated the show. And that level of negative feedback was going to cause public relations problems moving forward."
It didn't help matters that just days after Apple TV postponed the premiere of The Savant, FBI head Kash Patel cut the bureau's long-standing partnership with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), explaining in a post on X that "James Comey wrote 'love letters' to the ADL and embedded FBI agents with them - a group that ran disgraceful ops spying on Americans. That era is OVER. This FBI won't partner with political fronts masquerading as watchdogs."
That news was welcomed by conservative critics of the ADL, who had complained about its pages on the Christian Identity movement and Turning Point USA, the group founded by slain MAGA activist Charlie Kirk.
Given all of these perceived pressure political points, what are the chances Apple TV will ever release The Savant? A representative for Apple TV declined to provide an on-record response, as did several people associated with the show. A new date for the premiere of The Savant wasn't included in the recent Apple TV influencer/press day and Chastain has removed any mention of the show from her Instagram account.
Which is too bad. Both because it's not a good thing when television shows aren't released because they might be considered unpleasant by the political powers that be. But also because The Savant was a solidly compelling series that dealt with a subject that felt very relevant to what is going on in 2026.
ODDS AND SODS
* The Descendants/ZOMBIES Worlds Collide: Concert Special premieres Thursday, February 19th on Disney+. The concert event also includes special guest performances by Meg Donnelly, Milo Manheim, Liamani Segura and Rita Ora.
* A YouTube channel racked up more than 100,000 views posting pirated video of the podcast 3 & Out with John Middlekauff, one of several podcasts that moved its video rights to Netflix last month.
* Scarpetta premieres Wednesday, March 11th on Prime Video. Here is a first video look at the series. And here is the official logline: "With skilled hands and an unnerving eye, unrelenting medical examiner Kay Scarpetta is determined to serve as the voice of the victims, unmask a serial killer and prove that her career-making case from 28 years prior isn’t also her undoing.
Set against the backdrop of modern forensic investigation, the series delves beyond the crime scene to explore the psychological complexities of both perpetrators and investigators, creating a multi-layered thriller that examines the toll of pursuing justice at all costs. As Scarpetta pursues justice, she must navigate complicated relationships, including the fraught dynamic with her sister Dorothy Farinelli, confront long-held professional and personal grudges, and face secrets that threaten to unravel everything she’s built."
* Minnesota's indie news site Racket takes a look at the line of Flavortown convenience store foods from Guy Fieri. Given they describe one sandwich as looking like "Lord Voldemort's ass cheek," I think it's fair to say they aren't fans.
* Front Row Sports lists the large number of people associated with Formula One that are listed in the Epstein files.
* HGTV has cancelled the long-running series Rehab Addict, after unaired video was leaked to Radar which showed host Nicole Curtis using the "N-word" while struggling with hanging a window. The network has also pulled the series from HBO Max and Discovery+ and removed the show's page from the network web site.
WHAT'S COMING TODAY AND TOMORROW
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12TH:
* Agatha & The Truth Of Murder (Britbox)
* An Unstable Marriage (LMN)
* Can You Keep A Secret? Series Premiere (Paramount+)
* How To Get To Heaven From Belfast Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette (FX)
* Million-Follower Detective Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Soul Power: The Legend of the American Basketball Association (Prime Video)
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13TH:
* A Father's Miracle (Netflix)
* Belle Collective Season Premiere (OWN)
* Ben After Dark Season Two Premiere (Daily Wire+)
* Gold Rush Mine Rescue With Freddie & Juan Season Premiere (Discovery)
* Honey Bunch (Shudder)
* Jesy Nelson: Life After Little Mix Series Premiere (Prime Video)
* Joe's College Road Trip (Netflix)
* In The Mud (Netflix)
* Kissing Is The Easy Part (Tubi)
* Love Me Love Me (Prime Video)
* Neighbors Series Premiere (HBO)
* The Art Of Sarah (Netflix)
* The Museum Of Innocence (Netflix)
* The Singers (Netflix)
* The Wrong Baby Daddy (LMN)
SEE YOU FRIDAY!