Apple TV+ has temporarily postponed the premiere of its upcoming French thriller series 'The Hunt' following allegations of plagiarism from a 1973 novel. The series, created by Cédric Anger, was set to debut on December 3, 2025, but has been pulled amid an ongoing review. Production company Gaumont confirmed the delay in a statement emphasizing their serious approach to intellectual property matters.
Background on 'The Hunt'
'The Hunt' is a French thriller series created by Cédric Anger, starring Benoît Magimel, Mélanie Laurent, Damien Bonnard, Manuel Guillot, Cédric Appietto, Frédéric Maranber, Angelyna Danabe-Mignot, Paul Beaurepaire, Yann Goven, Sarah Pachoud, and Patrick De Vallette. The story follows a group of hunting buddies who are attacked by mysterious hunters in the woods and later feel stalked upon returning home to their families. Produced by Gaumont, the series was originally scheduled for a global premiere with two episodes on December 3, 2025, followed by weekly installments through a December 31 finale.
Plagiarism Allegations
The controversy erupted when French journalist Clément Garin, citing The Hollywood Reporter, accused the series of being an uncredited adaptation of 'Shoot,' a 1973 novel by Douglas Fairbairn. That novel was previously adapted into a 1976 film directed by Harvey Hart, featuring Cliff Robertson, Ernest Borgnine, and Henry Silva. Sources indicate that neither Apple TV+ nor Gaumont were aware of these potential similarities during development.
Apple TV+ removed all promotional materials for 'The Hunt' from its app and website as of November 20, 2025, with no explanation provided at the time. Gaumont issued a statement on November 26, 2025: "The broadcast of our series 'The Hunt' has been temporarily postponed. We are currently conducting a thorough review to address any questions related to our production. We take intellectual property matters very seriously."
Current Status
A future release date remains undetermined, and the postponement has been described as indefinite by some reports. This marks the second recent delay for Apple TV+ projects, following the earlier pause of 'The Savant' starring Jessica Chastain due to political climate concerns, though that situation is unrelated to the plagiarism issue here.