24 season 9 is wrapping up on Monday and fans are wondering if “Live Another Day” will be renewed or canceled.
There’s no word from Fox as of yet but the viewing figures could make a case for both options.
24 basically never dropped below 10 million viewers per episode in its first seven seasons. The last three episodes of season 7 dipped just under 10 million, and a further slide happened during season 8. Many episodes got around 8.5 million viewers, still a strong figure but less than usual.
“Live Another Day” has dropped to new lows. It started out with 8 million viewers for the first two episodes, but then dipped to 6.5 million and bottomed out at 5.6 million.
The case for renewal is that the show has still been relatively strong for Fox even though it’s not close to its previous figures. In its 9 p.m. slot, the show has consistently beat or been close to shows on other stations, including American Ninja Warrior on NBC.
The case for cancellation is that the show has dropped too far, and if another season is made then the show would drop even further.
Executive producer Robert Cochran confirmed earlier this year that Jack Bauer would not die in “Live Another Day,” leaving the door open for Kiefer Sutherland to return.
Executive producer Manny Soto told fans on Reddit that there are no plans to continue 24 in 2015, but didn’t dismiss continuing in 2016. “As of now, there are no plans to continue the show next year but we remain open to the possibility. We had a great time doing it this year and would love to take another crack at it,” he said.
Evan Katz, another executive producer, told TVGuide that there is “no rush” to do another event series. “We are holding open the possibility that we do this again, but right now there’s no plans for a future event series. Whatever we do, we want to truly qualify as an event, which means not rushing back until we have another special circumstance to tell,” he said.
However, executive producer Howard Gordon told blog Assignment-X that if the ratings are good, another series should be on its way. “I think we have to see how this turns out. It was so important to all of us for so many years that as long as we’re excited to do it, and if this turns out to be a success and the audience embraces it, then there’s no reason not to, but we’re certainly not thinking about that,” he said. “It’s one day at a time.”
Cochran told TVLine recently that the show could continue without Bauer, a point that Gordon confirmed. “The format itself is very sturdy and with the right story it can be compelling. So if a [Jack-free] story presented itself to us, we would be open to it,” he said.
Tzi Ma (Cheng) pointed out to Digital Spy that 24 could become an ongoing show again, but noted that “the show’s very taxing for Kiefer. I mean, this guy’s in every scene and he takes a beating. It’s a punishing schedule for him, so I think it’s the logistics.”
Mary Lynn Rajskub (Chloe) has the most certainty about the prospect of another season, telling Sky recently that it’s not a matter of if, but when.
“That’s a question we all talked about on set and there is a lot of speculation. To me, it’s more a matter of when are they going to bring it back because it’s done well and people are excited about it,” she said.
“My hope would be that they do some more in a year so that enough time has passed. These 12 episodes have gone by really fast and fans are like, ‘we’re ready for more’! It comes down to the producers, writers, Kiefer and everybody getting together to agree on concepts. I don’t think the network would have a problem. Have you had a chance to talk to Kiefer?”
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