24 (TV series)

24
24 title screen 24 title screen
Created by	Joel Surnow Robert Cochran
Starring	Kiefer Sutherland Mary Lynn Rajskub D.B. Woodside James Morrison Peter MacNicol Jayne Atkinson Carlo Rota Eric Balfour Marisol Nichols and Regina King
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	130
Production
Running time	42 minutes (without commercials)
Original release
Network	FOX
Release	November 6, 2001 – present

24 is an Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning American television series created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran, and produced by Imagine Television. It is broadcast in the USA by the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide. The show first aired on November 6, 2001, with an initial thirteen episodes. After leading actor Kiefer Sutherland won a Golden Globe for his role in the first 10 episodes, the ratings were boosted, which prompted FOX to order the second half of the series. Five seasons of 24 have been produced, and the sixth began airing on January 14, 2007. A motion picture based on the show is scheduled to be filmed in 2008 and will likely be released in 2009. Since Season 3, all the seasons have been premiered on Sky One, in the United Kingdom.

24 is presented in real-time with each season following a 24-hour period in the life of federal agent Jack Bauer (Sutherland) as he tries to prevent terrorist attacks. Based in Los Angeles, the show also follows the actions of others associated with the attacks, including the fictional Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) as well as the President and his many advisors.

Elements

Real time

File:24 split clock screenshot.jpg

An example of a 24 split-screen with the running clock

24 is a thriller that purports to be shown in "real-time", with each minute of airtime corresponding to a minute in the lives of the characters. This real-time nature is emphasized by an on-screen digital clock appearing from time to time—this corresponds roughly to the minute of the broadcast hour, factoring in commercials. The writers often take advantage of the real-time nature of the show by having the characters place time windows on certain events such as terrorist threats, thus strongly hinting that the attack/event will occur before the end of the episode.

The action switches between different locations as it cuts between the parallel adventures of different characters involved in the same overall plot. The result is long sections of unseen narrative for each character. A main character might only be seen for a quarter of an episode's overall running time. The notice preceding each episode announcing that "events occur in real time" was only included in the first three episodes of the first season, as well as the premieres of the second and third seasons.

Over the course of the hour, three minutes are added to the clock during commercial breaks to allow time for the opening "previously on 24" segments and the preview of the next episode over the closing credits.

Storytelling and visual style

24 employs fast-paced and complex plots. Major characters are killed frequently.

A recurring theme of 24 has characters faced with the decision of whether or not to let something tragic happen for the sake of a greater good. In Season 2, a member of the presidential staff has the chance to warn CTU of an imminent attack on their building, but believes that doing so would put the culprits on alert and thus cause a valuable trail to go cold. A similar situation occurs prior to an attack on a shopping mall in Season 5. In Season 3, the President and CTU agents must choose between the life of a high-ranking CTU official and the imminent threat of further attacks. Season 4 is notable for a scene in which two men—one of whom possesses crucial information—lie dying in an emergency room, creating the ethical dilemma of whom to save. In addition, the sitting President often has to deal with a similar quandary. In the first hour of Season 6, Jack Bauer is asked to sacrifice himself in exchange for the location of a known terrorist.

Early on, the series frequently used split-screen action to follow multiple plots, although in later seasons this was scaled back somewhat and confined mostly to phone conversations and shots leading into and out of commercial breaks.

Counter Terrorist Unit

File:CTU-Logo.png

Seal of the Counter Terrorist Unit

The Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) is a fictional United States counter-terrorist agency. CTU's primary mission is to disrupt and destroy foreign and domestic terror cells hostile to the United States, as well as protect the U.S. from terror attacks. With an office in nearly every major city of the U.S., CTU also has a role in creating security policy and fighting groups of organized crime that fund terrorism.

CTU offices are run by a Director, also called the Special Agent in Charge, to whom the Director of Field Operations and the Chief of Staff report. The CTU offices report to a District Office, overseen by the District Director. District offices cover a larger amount of territory in their jurisdiction. Finally, the District office and all other offices report to a Division Headquarters, overseen by a Regional Director. This title implies that each Division Headquarters has jurisdiction over an entire region of the United States. It is likely that the Division Headquarters, run first by Ryan Chappelle and then Bill Buchanan, were responsible for the Pacific Coast, with other Divisions taking responsibility for other parts of the country.

CTU Los Angeles

CTU LA maintains a team of forensics specialists and have agents performing undercover assignments. The CTU seems to have basic powers of arrest, but many of its operatives show more leeway in how they arrest and question their subjects than other law enforcement agencies, both in the real world and the world of the show. The liberties taken by CTU agents, particularly Jack Bauer, routinely violate established chains of command and would present incredible legal problems if attempted in the real world. CTU is described as working closely with the National Security Agency and the National Reconnaissance Office. Seasons 4 and 5 of 24 indicated that the Director of CTU reports first to the US Secretary of Defense and ultimately to the President of the United States. During extreme crises the President takes direct control, often with a specific CTU branch (the one handling the crisis), in order to personally monitor an operation's progress. The Director of the office managing the crisis is allowed to bypass the chain of command entirely and communicate directly with the President. CTU represent some combination of the powers vested in the FBI, CIA, NSA, and DHS.

Season synopses

Season One

Main article: 24 (season 1)

Day 1 starts and ends at midnight, on the day of the California presidential primary. Bauer's wife and daughter are kidnapped by a terrorist group plotting to kill presidential candidate David Palmer. A mole inside L.A. Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU), Jamey Farrell, is exposed, but does not provide any information that could help the investigation. When it is revealed that the man behind his family's kidnapping is someone from his past, Jack eventually realizes everything that has happened has to do with both him and Senator David Palmer personally, while information is uncovered that there may be another mole inside CTU. Jack ultimately has to balance his professional agency role with his family life.

Season Two

Main article: 24 (season 2)

Day 2 starts and ends at 8:00 a.m. In Day 2, approximately 18 months after Season One, Jack is dealing with the death of his wife, Teri Bauer, and the estrangement of his daughter, Kim. Jack is no longer working for CTU, but is forced into action when the White House receives intelligence that a nuclear bomb will be detonated in Los Angeles over the course of the day. President David Palmer counts on Jack as the only man he can trust to find the terrorist cell in possession of the bomb and to stop its detonation. Featuring political and social turmoil, more lives will be at stake as another conspiracy arises regarding a taped conversation about an attack on America, which was uncovered after the bomb crisis.

Season Three

Main article: 24 (season 3)

Day 3 starts and ends at 1:00 p.m. In Day 3, three years after narrowly averting a war with three middle eastern countries, Jack returns from a one-year deep undercover operation consisting of infiltrating the Salazar drug family. At the same time, a van drops off a dead body infected with a bio-weapon at the National Health Services. CTU then receives a phone call threatening to release the virus if Ramon Salazar is not released from prison in 6 hours. Jack has a new partner, Chase Edmunds, who is also romantically involved with Kim, who has now become an employee at CTU. Jack is also fighting a heroin addiction he developed during his undercover assignment, which close family and friends are unaware of. Ultimately Jack discovers that the mastermind behind the virus is Stephen Saunders, who had worked with Jack years earlier on the Operation: Nightfall assignment. He now seeks retribution against the United States for being left behind and tortured for two years.

Season Four

Main article: 24 (season 4)

Day 4 starts and ends at 7:00 a.m. It has been 18 months since Jack Bauer averted yet another deadly crisis in Los Angeles. Subsequently, he was fired from CTU by the new director, Erin Driscoll. He now has a new lease on life as a senior advisor to Secretary of Defense James Heller. He has also found a new love in the form of his boss's daughter, Audrey Raines. But, an impending hostage crisis concerning his latest boss leaves Jack's new life in shambles. Jack finds he must go back to his old calling as a CTU agent in order to save the life he has made for himself. As the day unfolds several contingency plans are revealed, all devised by Turkish terrorist Habib Marwan. Each of Marwan's attacks proves even more devastating than its predecessor and CTU races to find him before he can unleash unprecedented terror upon America. To complicate matters, a secret Chinese Consulate mission goes wrong which sets up serious consequences for Jack in future seasons.

Season Five

Main article: 24 (season 5)

Day 5 starts and ends at 7:00 a.m. Eighteen months after Day 4, Jack is living under a new alias, as Frank Flynn. He is currently living with Diane and Derek Huxley, a family near the Mojave Desert, California. Meanwhile, an unknown figure orders the assassination of the only four people who know Jack is alive — Tony Almeida, Michelle Dessler, Chloe O'Brian and former President David Palmer — as an attempt to frame him. He returns to L.A. to clear his name, when a hostage situation erupts. It is soon realized that this was only a diversion by a collaboration of conspirators and Russian separatists to obtain 20 canisters of Sentox VX nerve gas. The gas was originally to be used to attack Moscow, but the separatists begin to release it in L.A. in retaliation after they discover a U.S. agent has infiltrated their organization. Jack attempts to search for the remaining canisters and expose treachery that goes deep within the White House.

Season Six

Main article: 24 (season 6)

Day 6 starts (and will end at) at 6:00 a.m. Taking place twenty months after the events of Day 5, Jack is released from Chinese custody to CTU agents in Los Angeles under a deal brokered by the new President Wayne Palmer. Jack is then sent to Abu Fayed to be sacrificed, in exchange for information regarding the whereabouts of Hamri Al-Assad, who is thought to have been causing a wave of suicide bombings across America over the last 11 weeks. However, Jack discovers that CTU has bargained with Fayed to hand over the wrong man, leaving the real terrorist (Fayed himself) free to continue his reign of terror upon various U.S. locations. Americans are in a state of panic because of all the attacks, and Jack, with the help of Bill Buchanan, Chloe O'Brian and others at CTU as well as Karen Hayes, Thomas Lennox and President Wayne Palmer in the White House, must stop these terrorists from detonating three Soviet-designed suitcase nuclear weapons as well as provide damage control for one that has already exploded in Valencia and another that almost went off somewhere in middle LA.

Cast

See also: List of characters in 24, Minor characters in 24, and Minor CTU agents in 24

The 24 cast has varied every season. The changes have ranged from small to almost the full cast. The only actors who appear in each of the six seasons are the main star, Kiefer Sutherland, and Glenn Morshower (Aaron Pierce, Special Agent with the United States Secret Service; a relatively minor character until Season Five).

The show has always had many guest stars not billed as main cast members, as well as Special Guest Stars from time to time. Special Guest Stars are usually former cast members making a return appearance, which can last from a single episode to almost an entire season, as do some guest stars. However, some special guest stars have been new characters usually played by well known film and television actors.

Current Regular Cast

Actor	Character	Main Cast Seasons	Recurring Cast Seasons
Kiefer Sutherland	Jack Bauer	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6	None
Mary Lynn Rajskub	Chloe O'Brian	5, 6	3, 4
DB Woodside	Wayne Palmer	6	3, 5
James Morrison	Bill Buchanan	5, 6	4
Peter MacNicol	Thomas Lennox	6	None
Jayne Atkinson	Karen Hayes	6	5
Carlo Rota	Morris O'Brian	6	5
Eric Balfour	Milo Pressman	6	1
Marisol Nichols	Nadia Yassir	6	None
Regina King	Sandra Palmer	6	None

Current Recurring Roles

Actor	Character	Seasons
Glenn Morshower	Aaron Pierce	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Adoni Maropis	Abu Fayed	6
Harry Lennix	Walid Al-Rezani	6
Alexander Siddig	Hamri Al-Assad	6
Rena Sofer	Marilyn Bauer	6
Evan Ellingson	Josh Bauer	6
Chad Lowe	Reed Pollock	6
Martin Papazian	Rick Burke	5, 6
Rade Sherbedgia	General Dmitri Gredenko	6
James C. Victor	Agent Hal Turner	6

Current Special Guest Stars

Actor	Character	Main Cast Seasons	Recurring Cast or Special Guest Star Seasons
Kim Raver	Audrey Raines	4, 5	6
William Devane	James Heller	4	5, 6
Gregory Itzin	Charles Logan	5	4, 6
James Cromwell	Phillip Bauer	None	6
Jean Smart	Martha Logan	5	6
Powers Boothe	Noah Daniels	None	6

Former Regular Cast

Actor	Character	Main Cast Seasons	Recurring Cast or Special Guest Star Seasons
Leslie Hope	Teri Bauer	1	None
Sarah Clarke	Nina Myers	1	2, 3
Elisha Cuthbert	Kim Bauer	1, 2, 3	5
Dennis Haysbert	President David Palmer	1, 2, 3	4, 5
Sarah Wynter	Kate Warner	2	3
Xander Berkeley	George Mason	2	1
Penny Johnson Jerald	Sherry Palmer	2	1, 3
Carlos Bernard	Tony Almeida	2, 3, 5	1, 4
Reiko Aylesworth	Michelle Dessler	3	2, 4, 5
James Badge Dale	Chase Edmunds	3	None
Alberta Watson	Erin Driscoll	4	None
Lana Parrilla	Sarah Gavin	4	4*
Roger Cross	Curtis Manning	4, 5	4*, 6
Louis Lombardi	Edgar Stiles	5	4

* - Was moved from guest star to main cast member midseason. Though never a regular cast member, Jude Ciccolella, who played Mike Novick, appeared in 58 episodes through seasons 1, 2, 4 and 5, the seventh most appearances of any character.

Cameo appearances

• Senator John McCain (R-AZ) makes a cameo appearance in the "1:00 PM - 2:00 PM" episode of Season 5. He has a non-speaking role as an unidentified bureaucrat who delivers a file folder to Audrey Raines (Kim Raver), and can be seen in the "split screen" for about six seconds beginning at 1:32:22.
• NASCAR driver Carl Edwards made a cameo appearance with a small speaking part in the "10:00 PM - 11:00 PM" episode of Season 5 which was broadcast on April 3, 2006.
• The Office co-writer and director Steve Merchant makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the first episode of the sixth season, which takes place between "06:00 AM - 07:00 AM" originally broadcast on January 14, 2007.

Acclaim and ratings

Critical acclaim

Kiefer Sutherland won a Golden Globe for his performance in the first season of 24; Surnow and Cochran, the creators of the show, won an Emmy Award. The show won the Golden Globe for Best Drama Series in 2004. 24 won Emmy Awards for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series, Outstanding Single-Camera Sound Mixing For A Series, Outstanding Casting For A Drama Series, and Outstanding Stunt Coordination. Kiefer Sutherland also picked up the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series in 2004 and 2006. Sean Callery won an Emmy in 2003 for his work on Episode 2.15 (Season 2, "10:00 PM - 11:00 PM") for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series.

File:24emmykiefercast2006.jpg

Kiefer Sutherland holding two of the show's Emmys on August 27, 2006, after the show with the 24 crew

24 received 12 Emmy nominations in 2006, including Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor (Kiefer Sutherland) and supporting nods to Jean Smart (Martha Logan) and Gregory Itzin (Charles Logan). Itzin said in an interview following the news, "So just to end up being one of five is obviously a big surprise and very gratifying. But in another way, I wasn't surprised because the show is so damn good, it should get recognized."

At the Primetime Emmys, 24 went on to win Outstanding Drama Series and Sutherland received his first Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series award and Director Jon Cassar an Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series. The show also won Best Dramatic Underscore Music Composition and Best Single Camera Editing.

The show has been nominated for 2 categories in the upcoming 2007 Golden Globe Awards, with the series nominated for the "Best Drama Series" and lead actor, Kiefer Sutherland nominated for the "Best Performance by an Actor in a Drama Series" catergory. On January 4, 2007, two Screen Actors Guild nominations were announced for 24: Kiefer Sutherland was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series, and the entire fifth season cast was nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.

U.S. television ratings

Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of 24 on FOX.

Note: Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps.

Season	Timeslot (EDT)	Season Premiere	Season Finale	TV Season	Rank	Viewers (in millions)
1	Tuesday 9:00 p.m.	November 6, 2001	May 21, 2002	2001-2002	#76	8.60
2	Tuesday 9:00 p.m.	October 29, 2002	May 20, 2003	2002-2003	#36	11.73
3	Tuesday 9:00 p.m.	October 28, 2003	May 25, 2004	2003-2004	#42	10.30
4^	Monday 9:00 p.m.	January 9, 2005	May 23, 2005	2004-2005	#29	11.90
5^	Monday 9:00 p.m.	January 15, 2006	May 22, 2006	2005-2006	#24(tied)	13.78
6^	Monday 9:00 p.m.	January 14, 2007	May 21, 2007	2006-2007	--	----

^ indicates a "non-stop" season.

Viewership increased midway through its second season when the mega-hit American Idol became the lead-in into 24 starting in February 2003. For its fourth season, FOX gave the show a vote of confidence by moving 24 out of the post-American Idol time slot (to make room for the eventual hit drama, House) and placed it on Monday nights at 9:00 p.m. Eastern (8:00 p.m. Central) while it aired the show in consecutive weeks, beginning in mid-January of 2005. The consecutive-week schedule was also implemented for 2006, beginning in mid-January 2006.

In comparison to its 2005 season, 24 in 2006 was up 16% in overall viewers and 14% in viewers of the advertiser-friendly 18-49 age demographic. Thus, the series has so far reached its ratings peak in 2006.

The sixth season's two-night, four-hour premiere gained its largest audience ever, scoring an average 15.7 million viewers. At one stage, ratings peaked at 16.3 million viewers. Although Fox states over 33 million people watched the premiere, this is the combined audience for both nights.

While viewership has increased for 24, its audience share (the number of 24 viewers relative to overall TV watching on that night) has fallen steadily since the beginning of the third season. This loss has been attributed to stiff competition from CBS and ABC. FOX was able to regain some audience share in 2005 and 2006 with non-stop seasons.

Criticism

During the fourth season of the show, 24 was criticized for its use of Muslims as the main terrorists/antagonists of the season. This was also due to the terrorists representing normal looking Muslim-American families. Criticism began early on in the season and, after a complaint from the Council on American-Islamic Relations, an episode of the season began with a public service announcement by Kiefer Sutherland. Another episode of this season also portrays two American-Islamic citizens aiding Jack Bauer with the intention of seeking retribution for the previous attacks by terrorists that day. Both brothers (and Bauer) survive a gunfight against American mercenaries.

In 2007, criticism was again raised by the American Islamic Community when the main terrorists were again of Muslim descent.[1] The producers (as of 28 January, 2007), have yet to air another public service announcement and continue to use Muslims as antagonists. It should be noted, however, that seasons 1, 2, 3, and 5 have featured terrorists of other ethnic origins. In season 1, the terrorists were Serbian; in season 2, there were Muslims and Americans. In season 3, the adversaries were Mexican drug dealers along with a former British intelligence agent, also involving former CTU agent Nina Myers who was from Germany. In season 4, the terrorists were Muslims, and in season 5 the terrorist plot involved Russians and American conspirators, including a corrupt President of the United States. It should also be noted that the attacks in Season 6 also involve a former Soviet General, a British businessman, and members of Jack Bauer's own family. It has now come to light that the Muslims in Season 6 are being used by Russian radicals to take the fall for their agenda.

Other criticism of the show has come from a January 16, 2007 edition of Countdown with Keith Olbermann. In the episode, political commentator Keith Olbermann accused 24 of being propaganda used by the Fox Broadcasting Company, parent company News Corp. and, to a lesser extent, the George W. Bush administration for the purpose of keeping Americans scared about terrorism.

Torture

CTU is portrayed as employing several personnel exclusively to torture suspects potentially withholding vital information. Richards, Johnson and Burke are just three such employees and are only ever seen practicing physical torture. The methods vary from the one mentioned non-invasive method—SDT (sensory disorientation torture)—to the invasive use of chemicals to induce pain; the only chemical ever mentioned for this use was the imaginary hyoscine pentothal. Bauer is also able to torture suspects both physically and emotionally and is prepared to do both.

Physical torture is usually his primary choice, however should this yield no results, Bauer will move onto emotional, as demonstrated in Season 2 when he leads Ali to believe he has killed his eldest son. Curtis Manning has also demonstrated the possibility that he is trained in, or at least has some experience in, torture when he informs Richard Heller of the effects of an analgesic which he is about to inject him with. At an unknown stage in his career, Bauer also received training in withstanding torture, as demonstrated in Day 2, when he clinically dies rather than give up the required information. Also, in the Day 6 preview he is continually electrocuted, but still holds his tongue. His ability to withstand torture is also seen in the opening episode of Day 6 when the Chinese man holding him said that he had gone two years without saying a single word.

This has been the subject of some derision and criticism. Stephen King, an avowed fan of the series, wrote "There's also a queasily gleeful subtext to 24 that suggests, 'If things are this bad, why, I guess we can torture anybody we want! In fact, we have an obligation to torture in order to protect the country! Hooray!' Yet Jack Bauer's face — increasingly lined, increasingly haggard — suggests that extreme measures eventually catch up with the human soul."

The New Yorker magazine reported a meeting between U.S. military officials and the producers where 24 was criticized for negatively influencing soldiers and damaging the international image of the U.S. The New Yorker itself has also criticized 24 for its frequent depiction and apparent approval of the use of torture. In addition to such criticism, is the criticism that torture as portrayed in 24 is unrealistically effective at extracting useful information in a timely manner. In reality even with torture, interrogation is a protracted process and one in which the veracity of the intelligence produced cannot be trusted. As a rebuttal, people affiliated with the show, as well as many of its loyal fans, stress that 24 is a fictional television show, and therefore, such hypersensitive hand-wringing is all but discredited as a real world concern.

The Heritage Foundation event

On June 23, 2006, the US think tank The Heritage Foundation held an unusual panel event to discuss "24 and America's Image in Fighting Terrorism". The panel event, which was first conceived by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas's wife, Ginni, was moderated by conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh. In addition to 24 executive producers Robert Cochran, Joel Surnow, and Howard Gordon, and 24 cast members Gregory Itzin, Mary Lynn Rajskub, and Carlos Bernard, the panel included Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff, and leading Homeland Security experts James Jay Carafano and David Heyman.

During the event, Limbaugh, a fan of the show himself, commented that "Everybody I've met in the government that I tell I watch this show, they are huge fans." He specifically identified Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Republican political strategist Mary Matalin as enthusiastic fans.

The event audience also included Justice Thomas and his wife as well as conservative radio talk show host Laura Anne Ingraham.

Time magazine ran an article on January 14, 2007, analyzing the show after Time discovered that the conservative Heritage Foundation (also featured in the 4th season of 24) held a forum named "24 and America's Image in Fighting Terrorism: Fact, Fiction or Does It Matter?" Reportedly, many conservative pundits and leaders, including commentator Laura Ingraham along with actors and producers of the show attended the conference.

After much analysis, Time concluded that the show is ultimately neither too right- nor left-wing.

In other media

More recently, stories taking place within the universe of 24 have been told outside of the TV series, such as comics, novels, a video game, and a movie in 2007/2008.

Soundtracks

Main article: 24: The Soundtrack

Various soundtracks have been created for the show, and its properties. The most notable is 24: The Soundtrack which contains nineteen tracks of music composed exclusively for the first three seasons by 24's multi-emmy award winning composer Sean Callery, including the show's full theme song which, prior to the soundtrack's release, had never been aired. A second soundtrack is to be released 13 November In the UK and 14 November in the US with music from seasons 4 and 5.

Games

24: The Game

Main article: 24: The Game

24: The Game is a video game based on the TV series. The game is exclusive to Sony's PlayStation 2 console and was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment's Cambridge Studios, and was published by 2K Games. Taking place between seasons two and three, 24: The Game features most major actors from those two seasons. This first foray into console gaming also serves to bridge the large gap between the second and third seasons.

24: DVD Board Game

There is a tabletop board game published by Pressman Toys, released in August 2006, based on the TV series. Rather than playing characters from the TV series, each player takes on the role of a CTU agent and the accompaning DVD disc is used to initiate the plot with a terrorist act, then passes threads to the players regarding the full plans of the terrorists, some of which may be useful and others that simply lead nowhere. The winner is the first person to identify and stop a terrorist threat. The DVD also acts as a timer to simulate the "real time" flow of the game. Expansions to the game are forthcoming.

Comics

Three graphic novels have been released by IDW Publishing taking place at different time periods within the show. The first, 24: One Shot, attempted to emulate the real-time nature of the show. It was followed by 24 Stories and 24: Midnight Sun, which did not emulate the real-time nature of the show. All three now feature in one book released by Titan Books simply known as 24. A six-part mini-series titled 24: Nightfall will be released starting in November 2006

A fan comic strip was created on April 1, 2006 aptly named 24: The Comic Strip. Published weekly online, it serves a parody of the show using humor to bring to light the occasional plot hole or far-fetched event fans have taken to heart, if only to suspend disbelief. Although events are not in chronological order, other events are created showing life outside of CTU for the characters and introducing new ones not seen on the show that are affected by the actions of CTU. A non-profit endeavor, the creator (NeoSquirrel Productions) has received something of an unofficial blessing from the show's staff after having placed a call to the Fan Phone informing them of it, whereupon an unnamed staffer replied back via comment that they liked the comic and assured the creator that they "would not sue" the project after pleas from the creator on the initial call. A spoiler warning is included with each strip to help readers make an informed choice on whether or not to view that week's strip in case of plot points being revealed they may not have yet learned as the strip often follows the current season in progress.

Books

24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU written by Marc Cerasini, was a guide to the first season, as written by an in-universe journalist by the same name. The book contained Jack Bauer's grand jury testimony as well as character profiles and autopsy reports.

An unofficial guide to Season 2 of 24 was released in the UK in 2003, written by Mark Wright.

Four paperback novels have also been published by Harper Entertainment under the title 24: Declassified. They are:

• Operation Hell Gate, written by Marc Cerasini, released in the fall of 2005
• Veto Power, by John Whitman, released in the fall of 2005
• Trojan Horse, by Marc Cerasini, released February 2006
• Cat's Claw, by John Whitman, released December 2006
• Vanishing Point, by Marc Cerasini, planned for a March 2007 release (ISBN 0-06-084228-8)

Titan Books published 24: The Official Companion Seasons 1 & 2 in 2006 in the US and UK. The second volume, 24: The Official Companion Seasons 3 & 4, will be released in the UK in February 2007 in the US in May 2007.

"24": Behind the Scenes - a book featuring behind the scenes photographs and pictures.

24: The Movie

Main article: 24: The Movie

Kiefer Sutherland has confirmed that 24: The Movie is in the pipeline, and the show's creators have already started working on the script. It should be noted that the film would be a two-hour representation of a 24-hour day, not an actual 24-hour-long film as this would be financially straining on production and impossible to show in theaters. On 29 May 2006, on the Chris Moyles radio show on BBC Radio 1, Kiefer announced that the shooting of the film will begin on 30 May 2007 (between Seasons 6 and 7), and it is expected to be released between Seasons 7 and 8 in the summer of 2008. In an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, Kiefer confessed, "Anytime [the production team] got really close to having a great idea for having a film, we needed it for episode 18," meaning that formulating ideas for a film version of the show has been made difficult by the need to employ those ideas in the television show first. The movie became official on June 8.

Mobile

Main article: 24: Conspiracy

24: Conspiracy is a low budget, mobile-only spin-off of 24 set in Washington, D.C. It spans 24 one-minute episodes and takes place during Day 4, as indicated by a reference to the Heller kidnapping happening that day. It does not take place in real time. All of the episodes were released together as a special for the season 4 DVD boxset.

Action figures

Medicom, a Japanese toy manufacturer, has produced two twelve-inch action figures of Jack Bauer as he appears in Season 4, one with his shirt and vest for field missions and other with suit and tie, as he is on season premiere. Both versions come with cell phone and a hand gun. For 2007, is scheduled to launch another version, now as Jack Bauer appears in Season 5 with short hair, wearing his suburban shirt, jeans and coach. The new version comes with his hand gun, PDA, a recorder and a shoulder satchel.

Diamond Select Toys and Art Asylum have announced their own toys for release in 2007. They will launch two series of four sets of Minimates, featuring characters from Seasons 1 and 2, on October, and a 12" figure of Jack Bauer in three different forms, with each version sporting a different head sculpt and outfit. There is not currently any info on when this figure will be in stores.

In January 2007, McFarlane Toys announced plans for a line of 24 action figures. Two figures of Jack Bauer are currently in production. Both are packaged as boxed sets and re-create scenes taken directly from the series. The first figure is expected to hit store shelves in August 2007, with the second scheduled for holiday season 2007 release.

An action figure was actually intended for a much earlier release but was delayed as Kiefer Sutherland was given a figure for his approval, but he destroyed it during a night of partying, not realizing that it was a prototype.

DVD and BD Releases

24's DVD releases had a significant impact in the television series' life. In an interview with IGN in 2002, Sutherland revealed, "Its success in England was phenomenal. It was the biggest show the BBC has ever had. It was the number one DVD there; knocked off Lord of the Rings, which is unheard of for a television show DVD to actually knock-out every feature DVD available. And that's because they showed it without commercials." The sales of the first season DVD had a growth on the show's viewers on the second season, up to 25%.

At CES 2007, Fox Home Entertainment announced that the complete first season of 24 would be released on the Blu-ray disc format in early 2007.

DVD Name	Release dates
	Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
The Complete 1st Season	September 17, 2002	October 14, 2002	December 2002
The Complete 2nd Season	September 9, 2003	August 11, 2003	September 2003
The Complete 3rd Season	December 7, 2004	August 9, 2004	September 2004
The Complete 4th Season	December 6, 2005	August 8, 2005	November 2005
The Complete 5th Season	December 5, 2006	November 6, 2006	December 6, 2006
The Complete 6th Season	TBA	TBA	TBA
24: Behind The Scenes - The Editing Process	TBA	December 4, 2006	TBA
24: Season 6 Premiere (first 4 episodes, plus the first 12 minutes of episode 5)	January 16, 2007	TBA	TBA

International broadcasters

Country	Alternate title/Translation	TV Network(s)	Series Premiere	Weekly Schedule
Argentina	24 Contagia (24 Infects) - (3rd Season) 24 Alerta(24 Alert) - (4th Season) 24 Inmortal (24 Inmortal) - (5th Season)	Canal Fox (English)(Cable subtitled	March 4 2002
Australia		Channel Seven and FOX8	Season 6 premiered January 30 2007	Wednesdays 10:30pm-11:30pm
Austria		ORF and ATV	September 2 2003
Asia		AXN
Belgium	24 (only for Kanaal 2) 24 Heures Chrono (only for RTL-TVi)	Kanaal 2 (Dutch) RTL-TVi (French)		Sunday 9:05pm (2 hour episodes) on Kanaal2
Brazil	24 Horas ("24 Hours")	Canal Fox Template:En icon (cable-subtitled) and Rede Globo Template:Pt icon	March 1 2002	Monday 9:00pm-10:00pm (previous episode), 10:00pm-11:00pm (new episode) on Fox
Bulgaria		BTV	January 10 2002
Canada		Global Television Network	November 6 2001	Monday 9:00 p.m.
	24 heures chrono ("24 hours stopwatch"/"24-hour countdown")	Télé-Québec (French version)		Tuesday 9:00 p.m. repeat Saturday 10:30 p.m.
Colombia		CityTV and Canal Fox
Chile	24	Megavisión Template:Es icon and Canal Fox Template:En icon (cable-subtitled)	December 26, 2006	Monday to Thursday at 11:00 p.m. on Mega
Croatia		HRT
Czech Republic	24 hodin ("24 Hours")	TV NOVA
Denmark	24 timer ("24 Hours")	TV2 and TV2 Zulu	February 3 2002
Faroes		SvF
Finland		MTV3, Subtv	October 13 2002
Estonia	24 tundi ("24 Hours")	TV3	2002
France	24 heures chrono ("24 hours stopwatch"/"24-hour countdown")	Canal+, TF1 and TF6	September 14 2002
Germany	24 - Twenty Four	RTL II	September 2 2003	Wednesdays 9:10pm (three episodes)
Greece		ANT1
Hong Kong	24 - Twenty Four	TVB Pearl
Hungary	24 - Huszonnégy	MTV (Hungarian television) and "Cool" channels	December 2 2002	Thursdays 10pm on "COOL" channel
Iceland		Stöð 2	January 17 2002
India		AXN
Ireland		RTÉ Two & Channel 6
Israel	שעות 24	Israel 10 (formerly Channel 10) and Xtra HOT	March 24 2003	Saturday at 22:10 p.m. to 23:50 PM
Italy		Rete 4 and FOX (pay TV)
Japan		Fuji TV and Fox Life Japan (List of 24 Japan voice actors)
Kenya		Kenya Television Network
South Korea		Korean subtitles: OCN, Super Action, AXN Korean dub: MBC (List of 24 Korea voice actors)
Malaysia		NTV7 (Season 4 onwards),8TV (Season 3 only),TV3 (Season 1 and 2 only)
Mexico	24 Contagia (24 Infects) - (3rd Season) 24 Alerta (24 Alert) - (4th Season) 24 Inmortal (24 Inmortal) - (5th Season)	Canal Fox	July 21 2005
Netherlands	24 - Twenty Four	RTL 5 (New episodes) and RTL 7 (Reruns)	September 3 2002	Not Aired Until Fall 2007
New Zealand		TV3 and Sky 1 (Reruns)
Norway		TV2	June 30 2002
Pakistan		Showtime Arabia's TV Land and TV Land +2 and on AXN (cable)
Panama		TVMax Template:Es icon and Canal Fox Template:En icon (cable-subtitled)
Peru		channel 2
Philippines		RPN-9, ABS-CBN, Studio 23 ,AXN (Cable) and Crime Suspense Premier on December 24.
Poland	Przez 24 godziny ("For 24 Hours")	Canal+ and Polsat	September 7 2003	Thursdays 9:30 p.m. (Canal+)
Portugal		RTP Madeira, 2: and FOX
Saudi Arabia and Arab World		Showtime Arabia, Tv Land, Tv Land +2 (Subtitled), MBC 4 and Alrai TV
Serbia		Pink
Singapore		MediaCorp TV Channel 5		Saturdays 5 pm
Slovakia	24	Slovak Television
South Africa		M-Net
Spain		FOX and Antena 3	March 24 2003
Sri Lanka		Channel One MTV
Sweden	24	TV4	September 22 2002
Switzerland		German speaking region: SF zwei and French speaking region: Télévision Suisse Romande	March 6 2003	SF zwei: Mondays 10:45pm (two episodes)
Taiwan	24反恐任務（） ("24 hours of an anti-terrorism mission")	Videoland MAX-TV
Thailand		AXN
Turkey		CNBC-e	September 15 2002
United Arab Emirates		TV Land, MBC 4	2002
United Kingdom		BBC Two (first run) and BBC Three (re-runs) (seasons 1-2) Sky One (first run) and Sky Three (repeats) (seasons 3-onwards)	March 3 2002	Sundays 9 pm
United States		Fox Broadcasting Company	November 6 2001	Monday 9:00/8:00 p.m. central
Venezuela		RCTV (Season 1) and Canal Fox

Trivia

Fan Phone

In the fifth episode of the fourth season, Debbie's cell phone rang with a valid California phone number on the caller ID. Many fans noticed this and called the number, Some callers heard a voice mail message telling them that they called the 24 prop phone and to leave a message. Others spoke with various people, including Production Designer Joseph Hodges and stars Kim Raver (Audrey Raines) and Carlos Bernard (Tony Almeida). Hodges later stated in an interview that director Jon Cassar came up with the idea for the "Fan Phone" because the two of them often got bored scouting new shooting locations and wanted a chance to interact with the audience. Hodges indicated they received around 80,000 calls on the line in the first week.

The Fan Phone number has been spotted elsewhere:

• Debbie's cell phone displays the number after she is killed in Day 4.
• Jack Bauer gives the number during the recovery of the Air Force One "Football" where he told his cell phone number to two civilian campers.
• In Day 5, it was shown in the 18th episode ("12:00 AM - 1:00 AM") as Martha Logan's cell phone number.
• Spotted on the back of a picture of Edgar and Chloe during the season finale of the Day 5.
• In Day 6, it was shown in the fourth episode ("9:00 AM - 10:00 AM") as a cell phone number on Assad's cell phone.
• In the sixth episode of Day 6, an FBI agent gives the number as Chloe's direct line at CTU.
• In Day 6, in episode 10 ("3:00 PM - 4:00 PM"), it is given as Charles Logan's cell phone number.

In Days 4,5, and 6, the Fan Phone number is 310-597-3781. The phone number to this day still works. Callers are directed to a Nextel voicemail box if no one answers. The voicemail states:

• Nextel operator: The mailbox belonging to
• Voice of unknown male: Nextel phone for 24
• Nextel operator: is full. It cannot accept any more messages. Please try again later. Goodbye.

In hour 6 of Day 6, an FBI agent gives Walid the phone number to Chloe's direct CTU line. The number is the same as the one previously said, but now gives the Nextel "voicemail full" dialogue in Spanish, though the "Nextel phone for 24" is still intact.

At other times during the series, most recently in hour 5 of the 6th season, fictional numbers within the 555 prefix have been given.

As of February 2007, the phone is still active and accepting messages, although the mailbox is often full and the operator prompt is in Spanish.

On-screen digital clock

The on-screen digital clock used by 24 gives the appearance of a 24 hour clock and employs the use of a 'leading zero'. However, the use of the leading zero is not in compliance with ISO8601 for the display of 24 hour clocks and is actually incorrect. For example, under ISO8601, 05:45 is equivalent to 5.45am. The on-screen digital clock used by 24 uses 05:45 to denote both 5.45am and 5.45 pm. The reason why the show does not use the 24 hour clock correctly remains unclear; however, it has been suggested that US viewers often have difficulty interpreting 24 hour clocks since they are insufficiently familiar with them.

References

• "Inside Move: Phone number has a familiar ring". Variety. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• "Mention of 24 movie in interview with Joel Surnow and Howard Gordon". The Rush Limbaugh Radio Show.

External links

• 24 at IMDb
• Fox 24 website, official message board and recaps
• TVWeek.com Producer Shop Talk With Exec Producer Howard Gordon

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