Robert Littal is going to be crushed over this news. Variety is reporting that a pitch for another limited-series installment of the “24” franchise on Fox has a storyline that would revolve around supporting characters and not feature Sutherland’s intrepid covert op Jack Bauer.
The talk of more “24” came up Saturday during the exec Q&A session at Fox’s portion of the Television Critics Assn. press tour in Pasadena. The session marked the TCA debut for Gary Newman and Dana Walden, the longtime 20th Century Fox TV chiefs who took on oversight of Fox Broadcasting in July amid a shakeup at the network.
Newman and Walden cautioned that there is no deal and no plans are set in stone for more “24.” But a Bauer-free pitch for a new installment — following on the 12-episode limited series “24: Live Another Day” that aired on Fox this past summer — came recently from series stewards Howard Gordon, Evan Katz and Manny Coto. It’s tentatively targeted for 2016.
“We have great characters and that great creative team,” Walden said. She noted that it would be a one-time effort to experiment with highlighting supporting players, and she assured that the Jack Bauer character would remain the center of the show over the long haul. Sutherland is aware of the possibility and supportive, she added.
