24 Day 8 to begin shooting in May

Without giving too much away to those lagging on their 24 viewing, Season 6 of the show had quite possibly one of the most intense kickoffs imaginable, including two truly shocking moments that happened so quickly, you knew from that point on, the creators and writers of this series weren't afraid of anything. But sadly, as the day wore on, the next 20 hours, while not necessarily horrible, had nothing on those first heart-pounding four, making us wonder if the show was running out of ideas. Then in 2008, that pesky writer's strike was happening, completely taking care of and postponing Season 7. Until this year.

Somehow, even after the bad press of the sixth season and the two-year gap in the run-up to this one, 24 has somehow prevailed, Day 7 for the most part keeping up with its solid viewership numbers from 2007. Apparently, it all worked out for the best, according to star and executive producer of the show Kiefer Sutherland.

At a Monsters vs. Aliens press conference, Sutherland spoke at length about the status of Day 8, at this point, his final season on contract. (Keeping fans on the edge of their seats in a real-life countdown, he's given no indication as to whether he'll stay with the show past next year.) The big news is that shooting for the new season begins pretty much as this season ends in May. Sutherland says the result of the writer's strike gave them 15 months to shoot as opposed to 10.

Says Sutherland, “(We) are starting in May this year instead of August so we will have finished, I think, 22 episodes by the time it goes to air again. So, at any given moment, if we need to stop and figure something out, we have afforded ourselves that time. I don't know why it took us seven years to figure that out and a writer's strike, but we have.” That's a huge difference from fly-by-the-seat-of-their-pants method they used to employ.

Also in May, impressively, the current season will be released on DVD in what must be one of the quickest turnarounds for a television show's transition to disc. The exact date is May 19, which must be the day after the final episodes. According to IMDb, the season ends May 25 with a week off April 27, but they wouldn't release the show before its finale. Either way, it'd probably be best to stay away from your computers for fear of early circulation of spoilers.

So, although the future of 24 hangs in the balance, things are looking pretty good as of right now, as Sutherland cites the better-than-expected audience numbers this year, and that a movie is almost guaranteed at the end of the series, whenever that may be. Just remember, it's not over until the clock strikes...well, exactly 24 hours, after the start of the last season.

Related links:
TV Detail: 24 Review: "10:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m." (Episode 7.15)
TV Detail: 24 Review: "9:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m." (Episode 7.14)
TV Detail: 24 Review: "8:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m." (Episode 7.13)

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