Jon Voight to play the villain on ‘24’

‘I am thrilled and excited,’ actor says about joining his ‘favorite’ show

Matt Sayles / AP	Jon Voight is set to face off against Kiefer Sutherland's Jack Bauer on the Fox show, "24," which returns in January 2009.

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updated 8:14 p.m. ET June 13, 2008

NEW YORK - Jon Voight has been cast as the villain on the upcoming season of the Fox drama “24.”

The seventh season kicks off in January, though Voight will make his first appearance during a two-hour “prequel” episode to air in November, Chris Alexander, a spokesman for the show, said Friday.

The 69-year-old actor’s character will resurface in the second half of the regular season, Alexander said.

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“I am thrilled and excited about being invited to be part of my favorite show ‘24,”’ Voight said in a statement Friday. “I’m hoping to bring my very best to it.”

The actor’s previous TV experience includes the classic Western “Gunsmoke,” in which he appeared in several episodes during the 1960s.

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Voight, also known as the father of Angelina Jolie, won an Academy Award for best actor for the 1978 film “Coming Home,” and has been nominated three other times for “Midnight Cowboy,” “Runaway Train” and “Ali.”