A new psychological drama called Saint X has been in the works at Hulu, but now production has reportedly shut down. The project was already filming in the Dominican Republic when a number of U.S. crew members walked off, resulting in employees being fired.
U.S. crew members including the key grip and employees working in the electric unit claim that they were not paid properly for overtime after working 12 hours of a day, Deadline reports, which prompted the walk-off. Some employees were fired after their walk-offs forced filming to stop, according to a Disney TV Studios spokesperson, although no exact number for those who walked off and those who were fired was revealed.
Production on Saint X shut down in the Dominican Republic on Friday, April 29 and has not resumed since, although it's worth noting that filming was never scheduled for Saturday or Sunday. Production is allegedly expected to restart at some point later this week after the news broke on Monday.
Although no official statements have been released at the time of writing, the walk-off and subsequent firings reportedly stem from crew members being paid 1.5 their rate between 12 and 14 hours of work, with some workers claiming a violation to their contracts and asking ABC Signature to make changes or they would walk off the set following their 12 hours.
Producers reportedly attempted to continue shooting Saint X after the crew technicians departed (and have since been fired), but were unable to do so without proper lighting. Deadline cites a source who claimed that members of the local camera team considered whether or not to leave in solidarity with the U.S. workers who have been fired, but an ABC Signature representative has stated that so far, no more crew members have walked off Saint X. Other U.S. union members will be brought in to replace those who were let go.
Although the show was far from being deep enough in production for any early footage to be released or a premiere date to be set for when it will join other Hulu shows on the streaming service, Saint X does boast a cast of streaming veterans. The cast includes Josh Bonzie of Netflix's The Politician and Paramount+'s The Good Fight, and Victoria Pedretti of Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor from horror master Mike Flanagan, as well as a very different character for You. The Hulu drama also features Jayden Elijah of School's Out Forever and West Duchovny of The Magicians and The X-Files, which of course starred her father.
The project is based on the 2020 novel of the same name, written by Alexis Schaitkin. All signs point toward a complex narrative as a psychological drama told through different perspectives and across different timelines, all centered on a young woman mysteriously dying during her vacation in the Caribbean. Her death drags her sister into a search for the truth.
There is no indication that the crew walk-offs and firings are expected to set back filming in any significant way, if the goal is to get back into filming before the end of the week. In the meantime, there are plenty of shows available with a Hulu subscription and on the way to the small screen with our 2022 TV premiere schedule.
