What a year it has been for fans of groundbreaking television returning to their former glory. Seven years after it aired its final episode due to low ratings and forced cancellation, Arrested Development is returning with 15 new installments in under two weeks time. 24 bowed out after eight seasons on air, and rumors of a feature film had been swirling since it ended. Following Arrested‘s lead, the creative heads behind the suspenseful drama ultimately decided to opt out of a movie and instead bring the series back in episodic form. Are you getting this? 24 is coming back for more!
FOX is labeling the return of 24 as an “event series,” meaning it will come in a smaller, yet still impactful package. 24: Live Another Day will retain the 24 DNA by telling a season-long story that takes place over the course of one day in Jack Bauer’s life, however this time around the trek will be truncated into 12 episodes instead of the usual 24. FOX chairmen Kevin Reilly spilled the following: “It will go chronologically over the day, but it will skip hours. It will be dictated by the plot…The spine of the original 24 episodes was about 12 hours. Those were when the big events occurred, and then there were little events and connective tissue in between. So [we’re] taking the best 12 [of the 24].” He added, “A lot of who’s who in Hollywood wanted to participate in this,” so fans can expect some surprise special guests to pop up over the course of the season in addition to fan favorites (Chloe must return!). No plot details have surfaced yet, but the official PR states the new season will find Jack “several years following the events of the final season.”
Wondering why the movie never came to fruition? Reilly confessed that the producers realized that “24 compressed into two hours is not 24.” It’s that simple.
Will this limited event series mark the real end of 24? Reilly wouldn’t say, but he did acknowledge the series’ “franchise-ability;” he won’t promise a new season of 24 every year, but depending on how the upcoming 12 new episodes perform in the ratings he is leaving a door open for a potential sequel of sorts.
24: Live Another Day is slated to premiere May 2014 and serve as a summer series for FOX. It is a production of 20th Century Fox Television in association with Teakwood Lane Productions. Howard Gordon, Brian Grazer, and Kiefer Sutherland will executive produce, along with an additional team to be announced.