Out of all the shows that have been affected by the writers strike, 24's post-strike fate has been the most uncertain.  Now that the strike is over, most series have a pretty good idea of what their future holds – not 24.  FOX has been clear and unflinching in their insistence that they will only air 24 as a full and uninterrupted season.  They will not air half a season here, half a season there.  This insistence is good for the integrity of the series, as almost any 24 fan would agree.  However, because of the strike, FOX's stubbornness has put the future of 24's seventh season in serious flux. 

This is all still speculative at this point but, realistically, FOX only has a few options when it comes to the production of season 7 of 24.  Before the strike hit, 24 was able to film eight episodes.  Presumably, with locations already scouted and much of the pre-production done, if FOX wished they could start filming more 24 by the end of this month.  That may be optimistic, given that scripts need to be written, but let's assume it's a possibility.  At that rate, filming sixteen more episodes would take until late June or early July.  I'm not sure exactly how long it takes to film one episode of 24, but it's probably between eight to ten days per episode.  Knowing that FOX will only air 24 when a full season is ready to air, season 7 wouldn't be able to premiere until this summer.  Which, the more that I think about it, may not be a terrible idea. 

If FOX decides not to air 24 this summer and waits until next Fall, it's unlikely that they'd be able to get season 8 ready for its usual January premiere.  24 has the longest production schedule of any network show – it takes about ten months per season.  What probably will happen is this: FOX will take their time and air season seven either this Fall or next Winter and season 8 won't hit the airwaves until September 2009 or January 2010.


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of FOX)