‘The Hunt’: IP Dispute Delays Gaumont’s Thriller Series For Apple TV

Details are emerging about Apple TV‘s decision last week to postpone the premiere of The Hunt just two weeks before the acquired series from French production company Gaumont was due to debut December 3. It came after questions were raised over the French-language thriller drama, titled Traqués in France, being presented as an original creation from creator, writer and director Cédric Anger in light of perceived plot similarities to Shoot, a 1973 novel by American author Douglas Fairbairn. According to sources, Shoot, which has had its own screen adaptation with a 1976 U. S./Canadian movie of the same name, had not been brought up as possible source material and was not on Gaumont or Apple TV’s radar until recently. The similarities were significant enough for Apple TV to halt release plans for The Hunt until the creative origins of the projects are sorted out, a process currently underway at Gaumont. “The broadcast of our series The Hunt has been temporarily postponed,” Gaumont said in a statement to Deadline. “We are currently conducting a thorough review to address any questions related to our production. We take intellectual property matters very seriously.” In light of the uncertainty over The Hunt‘s creation and thus its credits all information about the show, including the trailer, was removed from Apple’s site and the app last week. Fairbairn died in 1997, so any conversations over Shoot would involve his estate. Information about the issue started circulating this week after it was brought up by French journalist Clément Garin. In The Hunt, Franck (Benoît Magimel) and his longtime friends, who spend weekends hunting together, come across another group who begin targeting them for no apparent reason. Despite one of their group being shot, they strike back and manage to escape. However, as Franck goes back to his normal life with wife Krystel (Mélanie Laurent), he senses he is being watched or tracked by hunters now hell-bent on revenge. Damien Bonnard, Manuel Guillot, Cédric Appietto, Angelyna Danabe-Mignot, Paul Beaurepaire, Yann Goven, Sarah Pachoud and Patrick De Vallette also star.
https://deadline.com/2025/11/the-hunt-delay-apple-tv-ip-dispute-gaumont-french-series-1236628701/