by David Hochman March 26, 2010 08:00 PM EST
Jack Bauer is going off the clock—at least for now.After the longest eight “days” in TV history, Kiefer Sutherland and his cohorts in counterterrorism on 24 are officially calling it quits, Sutherland tells TV Guide Magazine. The show’s last episode will air May 24 with the final tick of Day 8: “After years of lightning striking in all the right places, we thought it was time to go out with our heads high.”
What began as an audacious new TV concept—one super-intense day of espionage divided into 24 real-time episodes—became a pop culture landmark and the most important role of Sutherland’s career. No series better represented the post-9/11 united-we-stand mentality, and nobody was harder on Osama bin Laden wannabes than good ol’ JB (the government agent has logged 10 kills this season alone, according to the Web site jackbauertorturereport.com). “Jack Bauer became so much bigger than anything I ever envisioned,” Sutherland says. “At a certain point, he began showing me how to be a better man, a better person. This character became my life.”
Over eight sweaty seasons, Bauer survived it all: nuclear warheads, Chinese kidnappers, torture and a moody teenage daughter. But it was high production costs and a gradual slide in ratings that ultimately did him in. “The weight that created such a burden over the years for Jack became a burden of the writers, too,” says executive producer Howard Gordon. “I’m amazed we kept the story going as long as we did, but it was getting increasingly hard to do.”
Rumors of 24’s demise had been flying for years, but it wasn’t until last summer that Sutherland accepted the inevitable. Producers had wavered on whether to return this season, and Sutherland knew it would take a near-miracle to bring back the sort of heat that first fueled the franchise. “Obviously, times have changed,” he says. “We’re no longer in the kind of climate we were in when the show started.”
There was talk this month that NBC might pick up the show if Fox dropped it, but Sutherland insists “that was never a real possibility for me.” Instead, the actor confirms that he and Gordon are moving ahead on a 24 feature film. Long rumored by 24 fans, the two-hour movie could go into production as early as this summer, he says.
“The hour-by-hour, episode-by-episode dynamic that made for such a thrill ride on television tied us down creatively,” Sutherland explains. “In real time, our characters can’t move around. But in a two-hour representation of a 24-hour day, all of a sudden, Jack can get on a plane and fly from South America to Russia to England, and still have time to save the day in Washington.” Gordon, meanwhile, is developing a new series that sounds like 24 with an accent. The new show is based on an Israeli TV drama, has terror threats, rogue soldiers and Middle Eastern plots. “Like a lot of fans, I look forward to anything Howard writes,” Sutherland says.
For 24 fans, the big question now is: How will the series end? Season 8 finds Jack racing around New York City, trying to gain possession of nuclear rods (the final piece to a bomb) in the hands of terrorists. The remaining episodes, which Sutherland calls “among the strongest the show has ever done,” will follow Jack on his quest to avert disaster for New York City and the nation. In the midst of the escalating crisis, JB somehow finds time for romance with colleague Renee Walker (Annie Wersching). When tragedy strikes, Jack spends the rest of the season seeking vengeance. “The finale episode won’t be a cliff-hanger,” Sutherland promises. “We will know definitely where Jack stands and where he’s headed in his life. I don’t want to say too much other than it’s going to be very exciting.”
And a little sad, too. Gordon says he toyed with ideas for years about how to end 24, yet he never really counted on the emotional impact. “I woke up early to finish the final script,” he says. “It was two days late. I just couldn’t part with it. When I finally pressed send, it felt very strange. Every season, you know there’s another season coming, and another day for Jack. It moved me to think, ‘This really is it.’ ”
What began as an audacious new TV concept—one super-intense day of espionage divided into 24 real-time episodes—became a pop culture landmark and the most important role of Sutherland’s career. No series better represented the post-9/11 united-we-stand mentality, and nobody was harder on Osama bin Laden wannabes than good ol’ JB (the government agent has logged 10 kills this season alone, according to the Web site jackbauertorturereport.com). “Jack Bauer became so much bigger than anything I ever envisioned,” Sutherland says. “At a certain point, he began showing me how to be a better man, a better person. This character became my life.”
Over eight sweaty seasons, Bauer survived it all: nuclear warheads, Chinese kidnappers, torture and a moody teenage daughter. But it was high production costs and a gradual slide in ratings that ultimately did him in. “The weight that created such a burden over the years for Jack became a burden of the writers, too,” says executive producer Howard Gordon. “I’m amazed we kept the story going as long as we did, but it was getting increasingly hard to do.”
Rumors of 24’s demise had been flying for years, but it wasn’t until last summer that Sutherland accepted the inevitable. Producers had wavered on whether to return this season, and Sutherland knew it would take a near-miracle to bring back the sort of heat that first fueled the franchise. “Obviously, times have changed,” he says. “We’re no longer in the kind of climate we were in when the show started.”
There was talk this month that NBC might pick up the show if Fox dropped it, but Sutherland insists “that was never a real possibility for me.” Instead, the actor confirms that he and Gordon are moving ahead on a 24 feature film. Long rumored by 24 fans, the two-hour movie could go into production as early as this summer, he says.
“The hour-by-hour, episode-by-episode dynamic that made for such a thrill ride on television tied us down creatively,” Sutherland explains. “In real time, our characters can’t move around. But in a two-hour representation of a 24-hour day, all of a sudden, Jack can get on a plane and fly from South America to Russia to England, and still have time to save the day in Washington.” Gordon, meanwhile, is developing a new series that sounds like 24 with an accent. The new show is based on an Israeli TV drama, has terror threats, rogue soldiers and Middle Eastern plots. “Like a lot of fans, I look forward to anything Howard writes,” Sutherland says.
For 24 fans, the big question now is: How will the series end? Season 8 finds Jack racing around New York City, trying to gain possession of nuclear rods (the final piece to a bomb) in the hands of terrorists. The remaining episodes, which Sutherland calls “among the strongest the show has ever done,” will follow Jack on his quest to avert disaster for New York City and the nation. In the midst of the escalating crisis, JB somehow finds time for romance with colleague Renee Walker (Annie Wersching). When tragedy strikes, Jack spends the rest of the season seeking vengeance. “The finale episode won’t be a cliff-hanger,” Sutherland promises. “We will know definitely where Jack stands and where he’s headed in his life. I don’t want to say too much other than it’s going to be very exciting.”
And a little sad, too. Gordon says he toyed with ideas for years about how to end 24, yet he never really counted on the emotional impact. “I woke up early to finish the final script,” he says. “It was two days late. I just couldn’t part with it. When I finally pressed send, it felt very strange. Every season, you know there’s another season coming, and another day for Jack. It moved me to think, ‘This really is it.’ ”
Source: TVGuideMagazine
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