20th Century Fox TV and Fox have decided to end the long-running hit after this season, the show's eighth.
Move is not a huge surprise -- but still reps the end of an era for Fox.
The cost of producing "24" has continued to increase, while ratings have dipped. Studio considered shopping "24" to other nets -- but given the thriller's age and price tag, it's believed that the interest from other outlets would have been limited.
What's more, Sutherland and the "24" team have been keen on turning the show into a movie franchise -- but such a move into the features world was considered impossible while production continued on the TV series. (Daily Variety, Feb. 8.)
Twentieth Century Fox's film side recently hired scribe Billy Ray ("State of Play," "Flightplan") to pen the script for the feature version.
Ray's pitch, which takes Jack Bauer to Europe, was a hit with Fox execs and producers of the high-concept television series.
Script is said to have come through "24" star Sutherland, who's also an exec producer on the series -- and is said to be eager to turn the long-running TV skein into a feature franchise.
Feature would be produced by the TV show's key exec producers, including Sutherland. Series was created by Robert Cochran and Joel Surnow, while exec producer Howard Gordon runs the show through his Real Time Prods. banner.
Brian Grazer's Imagine Entertainment, which produces the show along with 20th Century Fox TV, also would be involved.
This season's "24" takes place in New York. Howard Gordon, Evan Katz, David Fury, Manny Coto, Brannon Braga, Brad Turner, Alex Gansa, Kiefer Sutherland and Brian Grazer are executive producers.
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