24 ran for nine seasons on Fox, with a TV movie sandwiched just about in the middle. The quality of the series definitely declined in those later seasons, while the spinoff series - 24: Legacy - was not well-received by fans. That's because Jack Bauer was M.I.A., and given how underwhelming a conclusion his story received, a return feels long overdue.
Now, Deadline is reporting that there's a chance it could happen, because Fox Entertainment President Michael Thorn has confirmed that the door is open to the show returning...in some form.
"There’s still a possibility, there’s still some discussions with the producers on a take that we have yet to hear," he noted. "There [are] some active creative discussions that are happening." This echoes recent comments from 24 executive producer Howard Gordon who said a new take on the show is "always percolating" but "not official, sort of, until I think all the pieces come together."
We can't imagine Kiefer Sutherland's Jack Bauer would be the lead of this new series (the previous iterations, including an origin story for the CTU agent, are no longer in the works). However, it would make sense for him to be a pivotal part of proceedings, even if it's just to wrap his story up in a way that satisfies longtime fans of the iconic series.
Things have changed a lot since 24 first launched, of course, and it's hard to imagine that it would so heavily feature torture and clichéd Middle Eastern stereotypes.
We'll keep you updated as we learn more!