Kiefer Sutherland's surgery shuts down '24' production

 Kiefer Sutherland of '24'

Credit: FOX

While Jack Bauer can go 24 hours straight without pause, sometimes Kiefer Sutherland is only human.

Production on FOX's "24" has been shut down for Sutherland to undergo surgery on a ruptured cyst on his kidney.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the cyst ruptured early last week and production continued without Sutherland until Friday. However, Sutherland and 20th Century Fox TV have decided to take a one-week production break for the star and executive producer to undergo surgery.

Sutherland's rep tells the Times, "While Kiefer Sutherland is frustrated to miss even one day of work, he and Fox decided together that it would be best to complete this minor elective procedure now as a precaution as opposed to six weeks from now when production wraps. He looks forward to returning to work next week."

Due to the show's typically early production start, "24" is will along in shooting and the studio isn't expecting this delay to impact viewers.

The studio tells the paper, "We are temporarily suspending production of '24' while our friend and colleague Kiefer Sutherland undergoes a medical procedure. We hope to resume production shortly and do not anticipate any disruption in the broadcast of this season's episodes."