24
Spoilers

If Tony Almeida can return, anything is possible...

A Fox press release has confirmed that Gregory Itzin will be reprising the role of villainous President Charles Logan on season eight of 24.

Late in the season, current commander-in-chief Alison Taylor (Cherry Jones) will reluctantly enlist her disgraced predecessor to help with a growing diplomatic crisis.

Logan played a major role in a terrorist scheme during season five of the drama. He was last seen getting stabbed by his mentally unstable ex-wife, Martha, on season six.

24 exec producer Howard Gordon told Entertainment Weekly the opportunity to watch Jones and Itzin go head-to-head “was simply too compelling to pass up.”

As for Tony, he's safely in custody, following the events of last year. At least we assume that's the case - but we'll be tuned in to the 24 season premiere on January 17 just to be sure. (And because Jack Bauer is our hero.)

There's good news and there's bad news for Cherry Jones fans:

The actress will return to 24 next season, but her screen time will be reduced.

Through 11 episodes of filming so far, producer David Fury said the character hasn't been featured very prominently.

"We haven't used her enough," Fury said. "These stories take on a life of their own and can veer away from people we most want to see. She's vastly under-utilized."

As for her eighth season storyline, President Taylor may feel lonely in January: the first daughter won't return (she's presumably she's in jail) and neither will the first gentleman (presumably due to a divorce).

Meanwhile, Taylor is seeking a peace agreement with a Middle Eastern leader when 24 comes back on the air.

Jack Bauer is actually happy for a change, but that won't last long: circumstances bring him and Renee Walker back into touch with the president, as they all aim to stop an assasination attempt.

Look out, Jack Bauer. Fox has found a new nemesis for America's greatest hero.

Jürgen Prochnow has been cast as 24’s eighth season villain. The 68-year old Prochnow will portray Bazhaev, the head of an Eastern European organized crime syndicate.

“He’s essentially a Godfather,” said executive producer Howard Gordon, who added (jokingly?) that President Charles Logan might a return in the new season: “He’s out there somewhere.”

Prochnow had roles in Beverly Hills Cop II, Judge Dredd, Air Force One and The Da Vinci Code.

Last week, Bashar Rahal was also added to the season eight cast.

Bashar Rahal is the latest actor to join the revamped cast of 24.

Rahal will play a general from the Islamic Republic of Kamistan. He's involved in a conspiracy against Anil Kapoor's President Hassan.

Other shows Rahal has appeared on include My Name Is Earl, The Unit and Arrested Development.

Freddie Prince Jr., Katee Sackhoff and Jennifer Westfeldt will also play key roles on season eight of the series.

Will Jack Bauer ever find happiness?

While fans may have stopped debating that question years ago, considering the unlikelihood of a positive answer, star Kiefer Sutherland says the eighth season of 24 will focus on Jack's potential future.

"People would like to see him at least have the option to have a good life," Sutherland told E! News. "We stripped a lot of those components over the years, by virtue of killing everybody, that whether he wants to live or die seemed to become innocuous—like who cares, there's nothing really to live for. What we did for this season is to really try and create something that would make Jack want to live."

Such as a relationship with Renee Walker, who producer David Fury confirms will return to 24 next year as a damaged individual.

As for other possible returns, Fury said there's a possibility that Charles Logan (Gregory Itzin) and Mandy (Mia Kirshner) could appear on season eight. Viewers may even see Tony again.

"There may be an opportunity for Tony to be pivotal in the show," said Fury.

This just in: Jack Bauer is not dead.

After following a solid seventh season with a lame cliffhanger that involved the show's main character on the verge of death, as the result of a virus of which he helped stopped the spread, 24 will return in January with big news:

Jack is alive and well; very well, actually.

"He did make it through and you'll see a little bit later how," executive producer Howard Gordon said at Comic-Con last week.

As for how the eighth season will play out, let's ask the show's star:

"Season seven and eight, probably more than any other season that we've done before, are really connected together. The storylines from season seven really do play all the way through into season eight," said Kiefer Sutherland.

Other 24 spoilers and tidbits revealed at Comic-Con include:

What is the storyline? "The threat centers around a peace conference at the U.N. that is being headed by the President of the United States and the President of Iran. The rest of the day goes forward from that point," said Sutherland.

Where is Jack at? "[The season] starts with Jack in a place we haven't seen and that [he] is happy with his daughter and his granddaughter, and it's really an interesting place because when you see those scenes in the beginning you realize, gosh, we haven't seen this side of him for so long.

There's always this dread when you're watching it that this is not going to last and it makes those moments so much more poignant," said producer Manny Coto.

Continue Reading...

After six years in Los Angeles, 24 moved its storyline to D.C. last season.

Now, as Kiefer Sutherland and company shoot season eight of the show, CTU is headed to New York City. The actor raved about the new sets in a recent interview with TV Guide Magazine.

“The new U.N. is very cool,” Sutherland said. “I was quite awestruck when I saw the set for the first time. The designs are so tasteful and represent such a diverse political spectrum, literally matching samples of graffiti taken from the ruins of the Berlin Wall. A lot of thought went into it.”

The new season of 24, which premieres in January 2010, will feature a new, sleek base of operations for CTU.

This is where new agents Freddie Prinze Jr. and Katee Sackhoff will work out of.

We have great news for Jack Bauer - and terrible news for most 24 viewers.

Sources on set have confirmed to TV Guide that Elisha Cuthbert has filmed scenes for the first few hours of 24's upcoming eighth season.

Looks like her last-ditch effort to save her father from season seven's virus not only worked, it brought the pair closer again. We guess this is a good thing.

But if she gets attacked by another mountain lion next year, don't expect us to be rooting for Kim.

Of all the 24 season eight casting news, we're least excited about the return of Elisha Cuthbert.

Jennifer Westfeldt is coming to 24.

The actress - who has been dating Mad Men star Jon Hamm for years and enjoyed an extended guest-starring stint on Grey's Anatomy last season - recently spoke on her role on the eighth season of the Fox drama.

"I'm a journalist with some ties to the president of the Islamic Republic, who is played by Anil Kapoor, who was in Slumdog Millionaire," she said.

Will the character, Meredith Reed, stick around all season? Don't count on it: Westfeldt begins her role in an off-Broadway play this week.

Yesterday, it was announced that T.J. Ramini would also appear on season eight of 24.

Compared with the news that Katee Sackhoff is joining the cast of 24, the following tidbit isn't very exciting.

But it's still worth noting that T.J. Ramini will play a key role on season eight of the Fox hit. The actor is best known for having played Yaniv on Desperate Housewives, the Israeli boot camp instructor that got Gabby into shape this spring.

Ramini will play Tarin Karoush on 24, an associate of the Middle Eastern leader portrayed by new series regular Anil Kapoor.