10 Actors Who HATED Making TV Shows
3. James Cromwell - 24
The great James Cromwell appeared in the sixth season of espionage series 24 as Phillip Bauer, the father of protagonist Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) who, in a shocking twist, turns out to be the season's overarching villain.
A few years after the season aired, Cromwell held nothing back in voicing his displeasure working on the show, criticising the producers for failing to give his character more nuanced development. He said:
"I had never seen the show before, and I took it because my agent said it was important to do, that it would be a good thing. They paid me a lot of money to do it. And then I’ve taken my son captive and I’m torturing him, then I was going to take my grandson captive and threaten him. So I went to the producers and I said, 'Look, are there any redeeming qualities to this character?' They looked at me as though I was nuts, I was asking something bizarre."
Considering that season six is by far 24's most polarising season and Cromwell wasn't given much more than a thin sketch of a character to work with, it's tough to argue with him here.
Tellingly, even Sutherland's own father Donald turned down the opportunity to play the part opposite his real-life son, deeming Phillip too evil for his tastes.