20th Century Fox has opted not to go forward with a film based on the series “24” says the trades and Deadline.
Though not greenlit, the film had a script by Billy Ray and Mark Bomback that was reportedly the first in a possible trilogy.
The aim was to shoot when Kiefer Sutherland’s new series “Touch” goes on hiatus in April and a director was close to being selected when the decision was made this week to not go forward.
Fox reportedly wasn’t convinced that there was enough time to complete the film before Sutherland had to go back to work on “Touch”.
Similarly there were disputes over budget – Fox wanted to spend $ 30 million, producer Imagine Entertainment wanted $ 50-60 million.
It’s uncertain now if Fox will continue working on the film to have it ready in time for Sutherland’s next hiatus. Though both sides are open to compromise, Fox is likely to be concerned about too much time passing since the series ended – a reasonable fear considering the failure of 2008’s “The X-Files: I Want to Believe”.
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