24

A closer look at the story

24 has a structure that brought something entirely new to television storytelling: each season tells the story of a single day, and every episode covers one hour of that day in real time. Every minute on screen matches a minute in the story. At the centre of this breathless clock is Jack Bauer, an agent of the Counter Terrorist Unit, CTU. Bauer fights the world's villains one day at a time: from assassination attempts on presidents to cyberattacks and the threat of nuclear blasts, he tries to stop staggering terrorist plots while also battling corruption in government and the corporate world. As the hours tick by, the tension mounts, and every decision can affect thousands of lives. Created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran and airing on FOX from 2001 for nine seasons and 204 episodes, this action series stars Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer.