UPDATE: Fox has announced that the show will still take place in one day, just skipping ahead hours to only focus on the more action oriented parts of the story. It will also debut next May and only for one season with a possibility of spin offs if it does well. I still stand by what I originally said — if the money and ratings are there, the series will most likely go on for a few years.
As reported on IGN and Deadline, the hit Fox show will be returning to tv for another season (or two, depending on ratings) after its star, Kiefer Sutherland, agreed to reprise his role as Jack Bauer. Fans of the series will remember that the hook was all of the events occurred in real time over a 24 hour period which ratcheted up the tension based on this time constraint. The new series, according to Fox president Kevin Reilly, will still be delivered in real time, but will take place over a period of a few weeks instead of just one day, skipping ahead hours or days at a time as the story sees fit. Whether or not this will have the same appeal as the original is hard to say, but considering how good show -unner Howard Gordon’s current series Homeland is, I’ll definitely be checking out the first few episodes to see where it goes. Fox will formally announce the revival later today and should include the release date as well.