Will this set back 24 yet again?

[Trazalca]

Thanks to Keifer pulling a Paris Hilton, he's due in court to face charges of a double DUI, which could lead to a year in jail. If so, this could, again place a setback to 24.

From IMDB.com-

Sutherland Charged With Two Counts of Drunk-Driving

Actor Kiefer Sutherland has been charged with two misdemeanor counts of driving under the influence after being arrested on Tuesday. The Emmy-winning 24 star also stands accused of violating the terms of his probation relating to a previous DUI conviction in December 2004. Sutherland faces up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted, and an additional six months jail time if found guilty of violating his probation. The 40-year-old was pulled over by police in the early hours of Tuesday morning after making an illegal u-turn. A breath test found him to have twice the legal limit of alcohol in his system, according to reports. Sutherland's arraignment hearing is set for October 16.

As out of the blue as this all appears to be, we cannot forget that many moons ago,
Keifer was one heck of a Hollywood badboy. During the late eighties, early nineties,
half his girlfriends would sport a tattoo he would sponsor. This included his relationship with runaway bride Julia Roberts.

As the 90's decade progressed, he faded from that lifestyle, and somehow, straightened up a bit to something more humble. Then 24 came along, and his
career path was set. Suddenly a role that nearly demanded accountability came
into his life, and he did his best to accomodate, but apparently not good enough.

For many that love the character of Jack Bauer, from his no-nonsense approach
to his patriotic fervor, the role has become iconic, but far from who Keifer really is.
Which is no surprise, since many actors who get identified with popular roles in
movies or TV have to live life like everyone else. But because the role of Jack Bauer
holds a kind of standard to it, you have to wonder if the mistakes Keifer makes in
real life will be looked down upon by fans. Most probably won't, but some will.

24 is due to air a scant 3 months from now. But if the consequences of his DUIs
jeopardizes the rest of the season, will it kill the show? Or delay it?
Preparations for this upcoming season have been really going through a lot lately.
This is just one more to add to the pile. And with TV execs having itchy trigger
fingers, ready to shoot down a show regardless of how young or old it is,
this could not happen at a worse time.

[colmatrix]

He's just doing research for next season...not heroin this time, but booze. Maybe?

[DarkJedi]

I thought about running with this story two weeks ago..

But I think we can all agree that Kiefer is no normal Hollywood idiot in the current times. He was at a Fox party and he made a bad judgement. I know he's on probation but he hasn't screwed up in some years now.

I know the judge will take that into account when deciding later this month. It's not like some other H-wood elite who screws up every few weeks with the law. I'm sure the prosecutors or the judge won't go after Kiefer like they do towards others who don't know how to say "NO!".

But I have to say before I end...

Good thoughts, Traz!

[sickness]

Hey, if Nicole Richie can serve 85 minutes for her second drunk driving conviction in less than five years (when California law demands at least 3 months, I believe), I'd be pretty pissed if Kiefer got the book thrown at him when it's apparent he's been on the straight-and-narrow for some time and has been trying to stay there. He's not a scofflaw like Paris, Nicole, Lindsay and Britney who go to rehab for the publicity.

On the other hand, I hope this teaches him that he truly has a problem even if it's relatively minor (since, you know, he's not jumping into other people's cars, taking their friends hostage and going on high speed chases to talk to <insert one of Kiefer's exes or someone who has worked for him> about their breakup or the person quitting/getting fired). He apparently can't handle his drinking properly. He needs to get support from AA (or another group as he sees fit) and keep his shit together. Whatever he's been doing ain't working.

As for whether this will delay 24... doubtful. Christian Slater got to finish filming Hard Rain, a weak movie when his career was on a downslide before a 30-day stay in the LA County Hilton. If they wouldn't force a movie to be delayed for 30 days, they ain't going to force a show to be delayed however long Kiefer might have to stay. If he's looking at a legit year and a half, though, this may very well end up the last season of 24.

[Penfold]

Personally, I'd be more worried about the writers' strike than this in terms of delaying 24.

[Trazalca]

UPDATE

From IMDB.com-

Sutherland Pleads No Contest to Drunk Driving

Actor Kiefer Sutherland has pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor counts of driving under the influence (DUI). The 24 star was charged after police witnessed him making an illegal U-turn in Los Angeles last month. A breath test allegedly found him to have twice the legal limit of alcohol in his system. Sutherland, whose attorney appeared in court on his behalf on Tuesday, also stands accused of violating the terms of his probation relating to a previous DUI conviction in December 2004. The 40-year-old faces up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted. According to website Tmz.com, he will serve a total of 48 days in custody - 18 days for the probation violation and 30 days for DUI. Sutherland will be sentenced on December 21.

Well, this at least should give him some breathing room, but not much.
How this will affect scheduling is anyone's guess. It's all up to the sentencing this
winter.

[sickness]

From what I've heard so far, it doesn't seem likely that a judge would circumvent a plea agreement and throw the book at him. Add into that the fact that 24 takes a couple months off from production starting some time in the second half of December and he's got more than enough time to put in his 48 days. Since sentencing isn't until the 21st of December, I figure he's going to wait until the 26th or 27th to go to jail leaving him about 3-5 days after his sentence until production begins anew.