Kiefer Sutherland Wants Jack Bauer to Return in a New 24 Series

We might not have seen the last of Jack Bauer as Kiefer Sutherland is keeping his fingers crossed for another 24 revival.

Fans of 24 hoping to see Jack Bauer again may have that wish fulfilled, as Kiefer Sutherland is right there with them. After debuting as the character in the original 24, Sutherland served behind the scenes as an executive producer for the revival series 24: Legacy. Corey Hawkins took over as the show’s new lead character, and despite Sutherland’s involvement, he did not reprise the role of Jack for the spinoff.

In a new video interview for GQ, Sutherland spoke about the potential future of 24. He admits that he misses his time as Jack Bauer and that he still feels that the character’s “story is unresolved,” suggesting that he’d be willing to return. As the actor explains:

“I miss it. It was an incredible experience. I have learned that you’re just better off not to be definitive about your answer of whether you will do something or not do something. I love playing that character. I do believe the story is unresolved. If something were to be written that made sense to me and that I thought was going to contribute to the franchise then I would be behind it, even if my participation in that were to be limited.”

Sutherland does stress that the writing still needs to be top-notch before he would sign on for a new 24. What he’s really hoping for is for original showrunner Howard Gordon to take on the potential revival, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Jack Bauer needs to be the main character as well. Sutherland has a pitch that would see a new cast setting out on a mission to find Jack.

“My involvement will always be predicated on what I perceive is the quality of the writing. If Howard Gordon is motivated to do it, we’ll see what happens. I think the only thing that would ever make sense, and I’ve told [Gordon] this, is that you launch the new cast because they’re trying to get [Jack] back from China or wherever the hell it is that I ended up.”

Related: Scott Eastwood and Other Children of Famous Actors Who Became Great Actors Themselves

Kiefer Sutherland Probably Isn’t Getting His Hopes Up Too High

There have been some false starts with 24 projects in the past, so Sutherland probably isn’t outright expecting the new 24 to happen. More than a decade ago, there were plans to develop a feature film tied to the series. For whatever reason, it never managed to get off the ground, and Sutherland later returned for the limited series spinoff 24: Live Another Day in 2014. This was followed by the short-lived spinoff 24: Legacy in 2017 with Corey Hawkins in the lead, but this was canceled by Fox later that year after one season.

Other potential spinoffs have been talked about. Back in 2019, Fox passed on a spinoff that would have been a “legal thriller” set in the 24 universe. There have also been reports of a planned prequel series following a younger Jack Bauer, but it was reported in 2020 that this project had also been scrapped.

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