The biggest hit of Tom Hanks’ career could have been a season of ’24’
Jack Bauer and Tom Hanks have absolutely nothing in common, but the latter could have potentially missed out on a box office goldmine had the latter ended up being the protagonist of a storyline that was under consideration to serve as the backdrop for a season of 24.
Kiefer Sutherland won two Primetime Emmys and a Golden Globe for his iconic role as the no-nonsense federal agent. He was called into action no less than nine times across eight seasons and a miniseries to almost single-handedly save the United States—and, by extension, the world—from geopolitical disaster.
Bauer was a force of nature who regularly broke the rules in the name of serving his country, snapping necks and leaving a trail of bodies in his wake while puncturing the air with his signature cry of “dammit” while doing so. It’s not a character remotely close to Hanks’ genial persona, but there was a brief moment of cross-pollination between the two.
Suggesting a big screen crossover with Bruce Willis’ John McClane in the batshit-sounding movie Die Hard 24/7 makes a great deal more sense than seeing Sutherland galivant around Europe attempting to unravel a spiritual conspiracy that stretches back thousands of years, but Joel Surnow ended up as the common denominator between the two.
The 24 co-creator was one of many who devoured Dan Brown’s bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code following its initial publication in March 2003, and the gears began turning. According to Newsweek, the television veteran and producer thought it would make for an excellent storyline to power the third season of 24, in which Bauer eventually thwarted the release of a deadly virus in Los Angeles.
The two couldn’t be more different, but once The Da Vinci Code exploded in popularity to become a literary sensation, it became highly coveted by virtually all of Hollywood’s major studios. Ron Howard and producing partner Brian Grazer eventually swooped in and teamed with Sony to purchase the rights, robbing audiences of the bizarre notion of Bauer upending the very foundations of Christianity.
The biggest deviation 24 ever made from its tried-and-trusted template was shifting the action from America to London for Live Another Day, but even at that, it was American politicians who anchored the narrative. Having Bauer pull a conspiratorial thread that stretches all the way back to biblical times would have been one hell of a swing for the fences, as well as a shark-jumper waiting to happen.
In the end, Hanks headlined The Da Vinci Code and weathered the controversy to lead it to a mammoth $760 million in ticket sales, making it the highest-grossing live-action film he’s ever appeared in and the biggest hit of his career that isn’t part of the Toy Story franchise.
