For nearly a decade and a half, the Fox series 24 — through its ups and downs, cancellation and triumphant (?) return — has been synonymous with one name: Jack Bauer. In 2001, the series brought renowned movie actor Kiefer Sutherland to the small screen for the first time and thusly reignited his career with the role.
Sutherland proceeded to reprise the character over and over for eight seasons and — most recently — the event-series 24: Live Another Day. If there’s anything the network has learned throughout this tumultuous time, it’s that the world wants Jack Bauer. No, it needs Jack Bauer.
So, unsurprisingly, a collective moment of jubilation was had earlier this summer when the announcement hit regarding a new 24 project being in the works. Then, the info surfaced that Jack Bauer would not be a part of this story and fits were had by all. At Fox’s TCA summer panel, network CEO Gary Newman presented a brief update on the absence of Sutherland in the new spinoff series:
“Obviously we would love to have Kiefer [Sutherland] and we went to him first,” said Newman. “It isn’t something he wants to do at this point, but he encouraged us to continue and look for a way to bring the show back.” The network has been weighing the possibility of a Kiefer-less 24 since January.
It’s not surprising that Sutherland wants to move on from the role, as it seems like something both mentally and physically exhausting to continually take on. The dude’s not a spring chicken anymore. But this move brings to mind the time the network tried to continue The X-Files without its main stars…and we all know how that panned out.
With Sutherland out of the picture, Newman touched on the possibility of other characters returning in the new spinoff series by saying, “Honestly I don’t know whether we’ll see any old characters or not. It would not surprise me if it’s a total reset in terms of the characters.”
Damn, and here I was hoping Tony Almeida would finally get the redemption he so desperately deserves.
(Via Entertainment Weekly)
