Dan Bucatinsky reveals which 24: Legacy scene got cut from episode 4

Every week, actor Dan Bucatinsky, who plays CTU analyst Andy Shalowitz, a.k.a. the new Chloe O’Brian, will take EW readers behind the scenes of the action-packed 24: Legacy with his blog. Here, he takes us into episode 104, “3:00 PM – 4:00 PM.” Take it away, Dan!

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. (If you’re truly getting started this late – I’ll set you up but I highly recommend you catch up!) The show takes place over the course of ONE day. In REAL time! We meet Eric Carter (Corey Hawkins), an ex-Army ranger previously involved in a secret mission to take down a terrorist leader named Bin-Khalid. Today, he gets a call from fellow ranger Grimes, who says the other rangers have been killed by Bin-Khalid’s people. They’re after a flash drive containing a list of sleeper cells to trigger terrorist acts across the U.S. And Grimes has it!

WHAT YOU MISSED. (This past week on episode 104) After the exciting but ultimately failed attempt to secure the flash drive at the metro station which ended in gunfire — Carter and Grimes show up at CTU for debriefing and medical attention. They know the flash drive with sleeper cells is in the hands of the terrorists led by Bin-Khalid’s son, Jadalla.

Carter’s arrival on the main floor of CTU was a nice moment to shoot. It was the meeting of two of the big worlds of the show. It was an opportunity to learn some backstory between Andy and Carter – okay, sure, he merely remembers Andy getting food poisoning… but at least Andy made an impression. And I redeem myself, err, HE redeems himself by helping Rebecca get Carter out of that police station alive. (Oh! And what I neglected to mention last week – in episode 103’s recap – is that the female cop who Carter sees when he FIRST enters the police station was played by Corey Hawkins’ real-life mom. Boy, she was excited and proud to be part of her son’s show. And in a badass cop uniform no less!)

Okay, later in 104, Grimes convinces Carter who convinces Rebecca who convinces Andy (and believe me, when you work with an actress like Miranda Otto as Rebecca – you don’t need much convincing) to sneak highly classified weapon schematics (named “Onyx”) to use as ransom with this sketchy dude named Gabriel in exchange for the flash drive. Carter and Grimes escape CTU with the schematics — and a stolen vehicle — but not before throwing a smoke grenade into the server room, which triggers a temporary, emergency shut down of the entire CTU server. Pretty clever, that Eric Carter. Well. He had some help from Andy — so that makes things more interesting — and puts Andy’s job at risk. But hey — Mullins was gunning to get him fired anyway, right? And his bf Agent Locke has snuffed out their relationship. So Andy’s feeling a strange blend of hopeless, reckless and power-hungry!

Okay. Other crazy stuff happens in 104, too — like Nicole busting loose from Isaac’s drug-dealing crib, scrambling for two firearms and showing us (again) what she’s made of!

And if that weren’t enough: Amira manages to sneak into Drew’s hospital room and drive an air-filled syringe into his IV tube — killing him instantly. She’s a real problem-solver, that Amira… Only problem IS – she’s full-steam ahead with her plan to help her brother commit a terrorist act in just a matter of hours!

But the episode wasn’t without its own drama behind the scenes as well:

WHAT YOU COULDN’T POSSIBLY KNOW (unless I told you … which of course I’m going to…)

One thing that’s very common in the first season of any series are reshoots. They say film and television stories are put together THREE times: first on the page; then in the camera; and lastly in the editing room. So, sometimes scenes are cut and new scenes are written to shoot and help tether the original ones.

The scene where Nicole gets out of the police car and Isaac cuts a deal with the cops to set her free wasn’t in the original script. It wasn’t as clearly explained how Nicole would get out of that sticky situation. So they added the scene, which was shot a few weeks after finishing the episode. You probably didn’t notice, but Nicole (Anna Diop) had some adjustments to her hair in the newly shot scenes. Go watch it again and you’ll see!

The scene where Rebecca goes to Andy and asks if he can get the Onyx schematics to sneak to Eric wasn’t in the original script. It was added later to put Rebecca in the driver’s seat of this decision — and also to show the loyalty and bond between Rebecca and Andy. (“I hope you know I’d only do this for you.”) But Andy was already working on it! He’s always one step ahead and always on the same page with his old boss, Ingram. “I had a feeling this might end up in my lap,” he says in this new scene. We had new hair and makeup people by the time we did this reshoot, so look for some tiny differences in our looks as well!

But in order to make room for this new scene with Rebecca, a scene was cut. ORIGINALLY, Carter called Andy on his cellphone and asked him to meet in an interrogation room. When Andy arrived, he saw Carter had tied up a guard in order to gain access. Andy hyperventilates with anxiety – “What is it with you and Rebecca?” He wonders why everyone seems to be tazing people and tying them up today?! It was a comedic downbeat before Carter asked Andy for help securing the Onyx schematics.

I always enjoy playing the anxiety of Andy Shalowitz. (Somehow, I can access anxiety quite easily. Maybe the apple doesn’t fall far from the Shalowitz…) I also enjoy the idea of Andy colluding with Eric Carter. And there may be opportunities for them to work together later in the season. But I can’t confirm or deny that. You’ll have to wait and see.