Jack Bauer

For the naval historian, see K. Jack Bauer.

Jack Bauer
24 character
Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer
Portrayed by	Kiefer Sutherland
Appearances	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Other Appearances	24: The Game 24: Redemption

Jack Bauer is the protagonist of the American television series 24, in which he has trained and worked in various capacities as a government agent, including U.S. Army Delta Force, Los Angeles Police Department, SWAT, CIA, and during the course of the show the Counter Terrorist Unit, CTU and the FBI (in the latest season 7). Within the 24 storyline, he is a key member of CTU and is often portrayed as the best agent CTU has. Bauer's job usually involves him helping prevent major terrorist attacks on the United States, saving both civilian lives and government administrations. On many occasions Jack does so at great personal expense, as those he thwarts subsequently target him and his loved ones. Bauer's frequent use of torture to gather information has been cited as an inspiration by CIA interrogators and has generated much controversy and discussion.

Actor Kiefer Sutherland portrays Jack Bauer in the television show and video game, and in 2006 signed on for at least three further seasons.

Concept and creation

24 co-creator Joel Surnow commented that they did not have any actors in mind for the part; "We didn't really know who it was. We were casting a lot of people and then we heard Kiefer Sutherland's name and thought, that's Jack Bauer." In 2000, Sutherland was contacted by his friend, director Stephen Hopkins, who was working on the pilot for the experimental real-time TV show and offered him the lead. Initially Sutherland had reservations about playing Bauer, stating, "I thought, 'This is really clever and different, so there's no way they're going to pick it up. But I could use the money, and no one will ever see it'."

Sutherland must produce around 18 hours of film each season, "which is like making 12 movies, so there are going to be mistakes along the way, but I am incredibly surprised by how many things work well as a result of working at that pace."

Sutherland signed a contract to play the role of Bauer for three more seasons for $40 million. Sutherland is also an executive producer of 24.

Characterization

Jack Bauer was born in Santa Monica, California, on February 18, 1966, to Phillip Bauer, who placed his livelihood in his company, BXJ Technologies. The name of Jack's mother is unknown. Jack had one brother, Graem Bauer. Philip originally planned to give the company to Jack, but as Jack said in Day 6, "I just had to go my own way." Later on after leaving the U.S. Army, he married Teri Bauer, and later on had a child, named Kim Bauer.

Jack has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Master of Science degree in Criminology and Law from the University of California, Berkeley. He entered the U.S. Army and eventually joined the elite Delta Force; among the decorations accumulated during his service are the Silver Star, the Purple Heart, and the Legion of Merit. He left the Army with the rank of Captain, according to his service record. Following his career in the Army, Jack worked for both the Los Angeles Police Department's Special Weapons and Tactics unit and for the Central Intelligence Agency as a case officer in the clandestine service. He was recruited into the Counter-Terrorism Unit (CTU) by Christopher Henderson.

He has demonstrated a high proficiency with firearms (typically the SIG P229 or USP Compact), explosives, electronic devices, resistance to torture (after being kidnapped by Chinese agents, and tortured for almost two years, it is revealed he hasn't spoken a single word for the whole time), and the ability to speak and understand Spanish and Russian. He is also shown to be capable of flying planes (Season 2) and helicopters (Season 3 & 5).

Jack's final dialogue with Renee Walker in Season 7 offers insight into his personality:

I see fifteen people held hostage on a bus, and everything else goes out the window. I will do whatever it takes to save them, and I mean whatever it takes. ... [L]aws were written by much smarter men than me. And in the end, these laws have to be more important than the 15 people on the bus. I know that's right. In my mind, I know that's right. I just don't think my heart could ever have lived with it.

Whether intentional or not, the name of "Jack Bauer" and the series make specific reference to Euchre, a card game played with 24 cards from the deck. This might suggest influence from Sutherland himself, who is from Canada where the card game is popular.

Appearances

As the protagonist and central figure of 24, Jack Bauer is the only character to have appeared in all episodes of the series, with Secret Service agent Aaron Pierce, the only other character to have appeared in every season.

24 Season 1

During season 1, Bauer's wife Teri and his daughter Kim are kidnapped by Victor Drazen, a man Bauer believes he killed in a covert mission called Operation Nightfall in Kosovo two years earlier. Jack must try to rescue them, while simultaneously preventing an assassination attempt on presidential-candidate Senator David Palmer. Erroneously believing that Kim is murdered by Drazen, Jack kills Drazen and his associates because he is so angry. As Bauer is returning to CTU, Nina Myers, whom he knows to be a traitor, kills Teri to facilitate her escape. Jack cries with Teri in his arms to end the first season.

24 Season 2

Eighteen months after the events of Day 1 and the loss of his wife Teri, Jack is asked to be brought back into action by George Mason (the head of CTU at the time) and CTU at the request of the NSA. Jack, who is still seemingly overwhelmed by his wife's death and the fact that his daughter Kim disowns him, refuses as he holds CTU responsible for what happened to Teri. However, at the request of now-President Palmer(Jack's close friend), he goes to CTU, where he learns that there are terrorists in Los Angeles who plan to detonate a nuclear bomb in the city sometime within the course of that day. Kim has troubles of her own.

24 Season 3

Three years later, Jack returns from an undercover sting operation of Ramon Salazar, a Mexican drug lord. While the operation is a success and results in the arrest of Salazar, it comes at a heavy price. Bauer ends up with a heroin addiction in order to maintain his cover with the Salazars, and attempts to fight it by going "cold turkey". Ramon's brother, Hector, insists that Bauer be kept alive to buy the Cordilla virus and resell them to underground organizations worldwide for a one billion dollar profit. Eventually Bauer wins the trust of Ramon Salazar but learns that another buyer is in play, headed by Nina Myers.Nina won the virus and Jack has to prove to her that he hates CTU. Nina even makes Jack kiss her. The sale of the virus goes bad, but Nina Myers is taken into custody and is eventually executed by Bauer after he deems her useless. Kim was about to shoot Nina when Jack shoots her instead. He then learns that the man behind the distribution of the virus and the attacks is Stephen Saunders, one of Jack's former team members presumed dead from Operation: Nightfall in Kosovo. Eventually Jack and Chase Edmunds(Chase Edmunds is one of the only people Jack gets along with since his wife's death) capture Saunders and retrieve the vials of virus. On their last retrieval, Jack is forced to make a decision to cut off the hand of Chase using an axe to gain the final virus device; Chase had fastened the device to his hand with a titanium clamp to prevent the escape of the suspect carrying it. After leaving the hospital following Chase's decision, Jack takes a moment in his parked SUV. For the last remaining minutes in the 24 hours since the day began, Jack sits alone in his car, crying.

24 Season 4

Eighteen months later, Jack is fired by Erin Driscoll due to his heroin addiction acquired prior to Season 3. He finds employment with the Department of Defense and becomes involved in a relationship with the daughter of the Secretary of Defense, Audrey Raines. Eighteen months after Day 3 Jack is called back in CTU to help them stop a terrorist mastermind named Habib Marwan, Audrey witnesses Jack interrogate her estranged husband Paul Raines, which makes her question whether or not she can be in a relationship with him. Later in the day, Jack is told by former President David Palmer, whom Charles Logan brought in as an advisor, to invade the Chinese consulate and extract a man named Lee Jong who has key information. However, the Chinese consul was accidentally killed by the Chinese guards shooting at Bauer. The Chinese soon learn that Jack was behind the attack, forcing Jack to fake his own death and go into hiding in order to avoid being taken into Chinese custody.

24 Season 5

After Michelle Dessler and David Palmer are killed, and Tony Almeida is presumed dead by assassins, Jack is forced out of hiding. He discovers that the assassin's plot was to frame him for the murders. Chloe O'Brian is saved by Jack as assassins attempt to kill her as well. Jack interrogates the assassin and retrieves information that they were setting him up. Terrorists take over an airport terminal, but CTU learns that the hostage situation was a decoy to obtain military-grade Sentox nerve gas. Jack follows a series of leads which takes him to Christopher Henderson, a man Jack used to work under at CTU. Jack goes undercover when the terrorists try to release a canister at the Sunrise Hills shopping mall, and he stops the attempt against the orders of the President. At the end of the season Jack is captured and imprisoned by the Chinese for his actions from Day 4. Despite being repeatedly tortured, Jack refuses to come forth with any information.

24 Season 6

Over the last 11 weeks, the United States has been a target of non-stop terrorist attacks and bombings, in public buildings and transportation. Jack is released from China 20 months after his capture at the end of Day 5. It is revealed that he is being released only to be handed over to Abu Fayed who begins to torture him. However, Jack manages to escape by biting out a man's jugular vein and tries to warn President Wayne Palmer of Hamri Al-Assad's innocence, a man whom Fayed convinced the US was behind the attacks. Jack saves Assad from an air strike, and the two are able to thwart a bombing attempt on a subway and rescue a civilian family held hostage. As the events unfold, painful memories of his murdered squadron leads Curtis Manning to attempt to kill Assad, leaving Jack no choice but to shoot Curtis in order to get more of the information they need from Assad, sending Jack into an emotional state of overwhelming grief. Jack attempts to quit from CTU, but a nuclear bomb explodes, destroying Valencia, California. He realizes he cannot stop what he's doing until he stops Fayed once and for all. New leads point to an involvement with a company run by his father Phillip Bauer and brother Graem. Jack interrogates Graem for information, but before he can get a lead Phillip Bauer sees his son as too much of a risk to reveal his involvement and kills Graem himself (under the impression Graem had a heart attack from the drugs). Jack discovers his father's involvement and trails him to a hotel, where he is holding his grandson Josh Bauer hostage. Phillip agrees to trade Josh's life for Jack's. As Phillip is about to execute his son, Jack makes a last sentiment, claiming that he became what he did for his own reasons, and not to spite his father. Phillip leaves before shooting Jack, who eventually manages to thwart Fayed's nuclear plans, killing him before any more bombs could detonate.

Jack is told that Audrey Raines died looking for him in China, but later discovers that she has actually been kidnapped by the Chinese. He completes an exchange with the Chinese and manages to save Audrey, as well as his nephew who gets mixed up in the events when Phillip Bauer returns. Audrey has lost her memory and does not remember Jack. Jack tearfully bids goodbye to Audrey after being told by her father, James Heller, that he cannot give her good enough care. The season ends with Jack staring out into the horizon, uncertain of his future.

24: Redemption

Looking for a place where he can 'be at peace', Jack finds himself traveling the world and eventually winds up in the fictional African nation of Sangala. Here, he stays with his old friend and former special forces colleague Carl Benton, who currently runs a school for rescued war orphans. During his stay in Sangala, Bauer is found and subsequently subpoenaed by a state department official to appear before a senate hearing to answer questions concerning his activities with CTU, for which he has been trying to avoid for more than a year.

When a sudden military coup takes place in the country, Jack is forced to help Benton bring the orphans to the U.S. embassy so that they can leave the country and escape rebels who plan to turn them into child soldiers. After Benton is killed, Jack turns himself in to a subpoena executed by US Marines and allows himself to be arrested at the embassy in order to let the children be removed from the war zone.

24 Season 7

At 8 AM, Jack begins his day at a Senate Subcommittee hearing; Senator Blaine Meyer is conducting an investigation into the actions of CTU, and it is clear that he intends to make an example of Jack. Bauer is rescued by FBI agent Renee Walker, who needs his assistance to prevent a developing terrorist threat: an extremist group is attempting to take over American infrastructure, including power, water and air traffic control. Jack is needed because Tony Almeida is assisting this group. Jack and Renee succeed in apprehending Tony, who reveals that he is helping Bill Buchanan and Chloe O'Brian to reveal a conspiracy embedded deep within the American government. This conspiracy is controlled by the dictator of Sangala, Gen. Benjamin Juma, who first sends a subordinate, Col. Ike Dubaku, to capture former Sangalan Prime Minister Ule Matobo, whom Juma deposed, and then stages an attack on the White House in the hopes of humiliating and eliminating President of the United States Allison Taylor. Jack, Tony, Bill and Renee, with support from Chloe and FBI agents Larry Moss and Janis Gold, are able to foil these efforts.

However, it becomes clear that Juma was not working alone: he had support from within America, in the form of a private military company called Starkwood. Juma and Starkwood CEO Jonas Hodges had collaborated to develop a bioweapon, a fast-acting strain of Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease, which Hodges attempts to use to force President Taylor to include him and Starkwood in the highest circles of American government. Fortunately, the bioagent is destroyed before deployment via Tony's efforts, with only one known victim: Jack himself, who was exposed to the prion while attempting to escape with it. FBI physicians predict death within two days; while an experimental treatment involving the stem cells of a family member does exist, it has a low probability of success. As Hodges is arrested, it becomes clear that he is but one link in a larger chain: the leaders of many American PMCs have been assisting his efforts, and had planned to use his bioweapon for similar purposes. Tony is revealed to be an agent of this inner circle when he escapes with the only remaining canister of bioweapon. Though his attempts to deploy it are foiled, he manages to escape custody when his allies capture Kim Bauer, who had flown to DC to watch the Senate hearings, and threaten her with death unless Jack breaks Tony out of jail. Tony thereafter reveals that his actions ever since resurrection have revolved around Alan Wilson, leader of the PMC conspirators and the man who ordered the assassinations (as seen in the opening moments of season 5) of David Palmer, Chloe, Tony himself, and his wife Michelle—and their unborn child. Tony and Wilson are both remanded to federal custody, while Jack makes peace with his impending death... unaware that Kim has volunteered to provide stem cells for the experimental treatment. (Bauer has been confirmed as the central character of season 8, suggesting that this treatment will be successful.)

Jack's emotional state is more central to the story than it has been in previous seasons. Though he and Senator Mayer begin the day with attitudes of mutual antagonism, Jack later visits him at his home for information on Starkwood (Mayer had been investigating Starkwood as well as CTU), and the two come to an understanding: both of them want to live in a world where the Jack's law-breaking law-enforcement style is unnecessary, even though they have somewhat different means of bringing that world to fruition. He wins the respect of a Muslim imam, Muhtadi Gohar, while attempting to apprehend a terror suspect (whom Tony had framed), and in fact turns to Gohar for spiritual guidance at the end of his life. He is able to make peace with Kim, despite the many years and pains between them. However, his most notable emotional relationship is with Renee Walker, who quickly establishes her willingness to abide by the law when she allows Jack to torture a suspect who may be protecting Almeida. Renee is possessed of the same hatred of injustice as Jack, but is more squeamish about the extreme methods he uses to right wrongs; the two characters personify the debate that has raged on the show (and about it) for many years: whether the ends justify the means. The final important revelation offered this season was that Jack seems to ideologically oppose torture, stating that he "know[s] that these laws have to be more important than the fifteen people on the bus." Yet, despite this, Bauer contends that he acts as he does because his "heart couldn't live with it," revealing an ironic dilemma.

24 Season 8

It was announced at the July 2009 San Diego Comic-Con that season 8 will take place in New York City. With CTU active again, Jack returns to continue the battle that was fought in season 7. Season 8 will take place eight months after season 7 (effectively making it real time).

Other appearances

As the principal character in 24, Jack plays a prominent role in the television series as well as the video game. Jack is the main protagonist of the 24 series and the books, and has appeared in every episode to date. Kiefer Sutherland has portrayed Jack Bauer in these episodes, including the prequels and the webisodes. Additionally, he voiced the same character in 24: The Game, 24: Day Zero and 24: DVD Board Game.

24 Prequels

Jack Bauer is also featured in all four prequels, that can be found on the 24 DVD releases and various websites. These prequels are designed to bridge the gap between seasons. They provide backstory into story arcs for upcoming seasons, namely insight into what Jack's actions have been leading up to the next season. Prequels have been made for Seasons 4, 5, 6, and 7.

24 Webisodes

24: Day 6 Debrief takes place 35 hours after the nuclear device exploded in Valencia, California. The series consists of 5 segments, no longer than three minutes in length each. Two agents, Agent Ramirez and Agent Moss, track Jack down to a hotel room and ask him to come to District for debriefing about the recovery of the tactical nukes. The Debrief consists of Agent Ramirez and other agents attempting to discover more about the supposed-death of an undercover agent, Marcus Holt, who disappeared shortly into Jack's imprisonment in China at the hands of Cheng Zhi. Since Holt was involved with the Chinese government, it is believed that Jack leaked information that led to his identity being discovered and execution. At the end of the series, the agents announce that they have no conclusive evidence about his involvement, but Ramirez promises to keep a close eye on him until he is certain. Jack tells Ramirez that if he ever sees him again, he better say "The Lord's Prayer", because it will mean he's come to kill him.

With that, Bauer is released from custody and the interrogation ends.

24: The Game

Bauer in 24: The Game which takes place six months after Day 2.

24: The Game takes place between Day 2 and 3. Jack begins waiting outside the ship where terrorists are going to release a Ricin Bomb in the water supply. A CTU Team triggers an alarm causing Jack and his team to storm the ship. Jack and his team finds the whole ship's crew dead in a cargo hold. He runs into an enemy from his past, known as Peter Madsen. It is unclear what the story is between them, but it is stated that he framed Jack's family for a vile crime, this is hinted with Jack saying to him: "Eight years ago, my family was not involved". Madsen also states that he no longer takes orders from Jack. Most likely it's hinted that Madsen was under Jack's command either in the army or in an SWAT team, and Madsen betrayed Jack. Madsen kidnaps Jack's daughter Kim, and later Kate Warner. Jack finally kills Madsen in the end when he tries to escape by shooting up his speedboat with a Zastava M80 assault rifle, causing it to explode. He also kills Max, who was holding Kate hostage, saving her life. However Max managed to shoot Jack once before dying, the second of two times he was shot in the final hour of the game, the first time being by Madson. As a result, Chase Edmunds takes Jack to the hospital via helicopter.

24 Toys

Diamond Select Toys released 1/6 scale figures based on Jack Bauer.
2008- Jack Bauer 8:00 AM
2009- Jack Bauer 3:00 PM Season 1
2009- Jack Bauer 9:00 PM Season 1

Diamond Select Toys released 1/24 scale Minimates based on 24.
2007- Season 1 Box Set (Jack Bauer, Nina Myers, David Palmer, Kim Bauer)
2007- End of Day 1 Two-Pack, PX Exclusive (Jack Bauer, Andre Drazen)
2007- Season 2 Box Set (Season 2 Jack Bauer, Tony Almeda, Michelle Dessler, George Mason)
2007- End of Day 2 Two-Pack, Suncoast/FYE Exclusive (Stretcher Jack Bauer, Prisoner Nina Myers)
CANCELED- Season 3 Box Set (Undercover Jack Bauer, Sherry Palmer, Chloe O'Brien, Chase Edmunds)
CANCELED- End of Day 3 Two-Pack (Jack Bauer, Stephen Saunders)

Enterbay released 1/6 scale figures based on 24.
2009- Jack Bauer
2009- President David Palmer

McFarlane Toys released 1/12 scale figures based on Jack Bauer.
2007- Jack Bauer Boxed Set 1
2007- Jack Bauer Boxed Set 2

Medicom Toy Japan released 1/6 scale figures based on Jack Bauer in their Real Action Heroes line.
2005- Jack Bauer (Suit) Season 4 7:00 am - 8:00 am
2005- Jack Bauer (Tac) Season 4 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
2007- Jack Bauer Season 5

24 Comic Books

IDW has released a series of Comic Books based on the adventures of Jack Bauer and other members of the 24 Cast. 24's Comic License is published by IDW Publishing

• 24: Nightfall — A tale shedding more light on the background and characters of Day 1, including Victor Drazen. Written by J. C. Vaughn and Mark L. Haynes
• 24: Cold Warriors — A original tale of intrigue featuring Jack Bauer and Chloe O'Brian, set in Alaska. Written by Beau Smith and Steve Bryant

Law and politics

American politicians and lawyers have taken to using Jack Bauer and his actions as a way of framing the debate on American interrogation techniques which have come under intense debate.

In the midst of this debate, at a legal conference in Ottawa, Canada, for example, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia took offense at a Canadian judge's remark that Canada did not consider what Jack Bauer would do when setting policy. Scalia shot back: "Jack Bauer saved Los Angeles.... He saved hundreds of thousands of lives... Are you going to convict Jack Bauer? Say that criminal law is against him? 'You have the right to a jury trial?' Is any jury going to convict Jack Bauer? I do not think so."

External links

• "Jack Bauer's Official Character Profile". Archived from the original on 2008-04-04.

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