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"SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE" STAR ANIL KAPOOR JOINS SEASON EIGHT CAST OF "24"

Ticking toward the emotional conclusion of its critically acclaimed seventh season, 24 is preparing for a new day by casting Anil Kapoor ("Slumdog Millionaire") to star as a series regular during Season Eight. In his first American television role, Kapoor will play a Middle Eastern leader who comes to the U.S. on a peacemaking mission.

With more than 100 credits to his name, Kapoor is a Bollywood icon and one of India's most prominent actors. He has earned acclaim for his many award-winning performances over the last three decades, and recently appeared as game show host "Prem Kumar" in the Oscar-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire."

Kapoor joins a long list of award-winning and distinguished actors who have appeared in the Emmy Award-winning series starring Kiefer Sutherland, including Academy Award winner Jon Voight; Tony Award winner Cherry Jones; Emmy Award winners Peter MacNicol, Jean Smart, Chad Lowe and Powers Boothe; Golden Globe nominees Dennis Haysbert and William Devane; and Academy Award nominees Sean Astin, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Peter Weller, James Cromwell and Dennis Hopper.

The nonstop seventh season continues Monday, April 6 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) when the FBI braces for a standoff with Starkwood, a private military firm helmed by mastermind Jonas Hodges (guest star Jon Voight). After Jack's recent exposure to the lethal pathogen, emotions boil over as his health worsens. Meanwhile, conniving First Daughter Olivia Taylor (guest star Sprague Grayden) accepts the desperate measures necessary to prevent further panic within the administration. Season Seven's climactic finale will air as a special two-hour television event Monday, May 18 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

Created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran, 24 is a production of Real Time Productions and Imagine Television in association with 20th Century Fox Television. Howard Gordon, Evan Katz, Jon Cassar, Manny Coto, David Fury, Kiefer Sutherland and Brian Grazer serve as executive producers.