Following the very successful event series24: Live Another Day, which resurrectedKiefer Sutherlandas Jack Bauer, Fox has decided to move forward with a24 Spin-Offthat follows a new lead character. In June, executive producer Howard Gordon expressed his hopes that Kiefer Sutherland would return asJack Bauer, if not for anything more than a cameo. Now, it sounds like that isn’t even happening. Apparently, as he’s often stated in the past, Kiefer Sutherland is 100% done with the terrorist thwarting hero. Speaking with theBBC, he had this to say about his return.
“24is definitely over now for me. It’s one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever been given as an actor, but it’s moving on without me. I want to do other things.”
While it seems like Kiefer Sutherland may stick to his word this time out, he said the exact same thing before embarking on24: Live Another Day. That statement came after 20th Century Fox unsuccessfully tried to launch24as a big screen franchise. Last we heard, amovie was still possible. But if that were to happen, it doesn’t sound like it would star Kiefer Sutherland. So what would be the point?
Thankfully for fans, while Kiefer Sutherland seems to be done with Bauer for the time being, he isn’t done with the small screen. TV seems to be his medium of choice as of late. And he tells theBBCthat he has plans to return to television soon. He explains.
I want to do more television. My experience of 24 was unbelievable, but the main benefit was that it was nice to do something that people actually watched, and that they enjoyed. There are some movies I’ve made people might have enjoyed, but there were nine of them watching."
Following24, Kiefer Sutherland headlined the sci-fi dramaTouchoneFox. Arriving in 2012, that series only lasted on season. He also appeared on the short lived web seriesThe Confession, which debuted in 2011. It isn’t known at this time what other series he may be pursuing.
The24 Spin-Offwill follow a new male lead antihero who works alongside a veteran female agent. This female agent will not beYvonne Strahovski’s Kate Morgan, but it’s possible that her character will come back in the currently-untitled spinoff series. Fox plans to launch the spinoff as a limited series, like they did with last year’s24: Live Another Day, but it’s possible that it could continue on as a regular series, if it performs well.Howard Gordonrevealed in an interview last month that the spinoff will keep the original show’s “real-time concept” and that the plot, “is in the tradition of24.”
Kiefer Sutherland hasn’t done too much since wrapping on24: Live Another Day. He did provide the voice of Venom Snake in the Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain video game, which was quite popular with fans. He’ll next be seen starring opposite his father, iconic actorDonald Sutherland, in the upcoming Western Forsaken, which has already wrapped. It is supposed to open in 2015, but does not yet have a release date. At this time, there are no other projects on the actor’s horizon. What do you think? Are you sad that the next iteration of24won’t include Kiefer Sutherland? Or does that make the spinoff better off in the long run?
