There would be no '24' without Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland). But the show wouldn't be any good without its villains — from double agent Nina Myers to the terrorist Habib Marwan (played by South Africa's own Arnold Vosloo). The latest is Colonel Iké Dubaku, played by another local, Hakeem Kae-Kazeem.

The actor — who has recently appeared in 'Lost' and 'Wolverine' but is perhaps still best known in SA for his Fresca TV ads — chats to TVSA's Tashi Tagg from LA to spill the on-set scoop.

How did it happen that you came to play Colonel Dubaku?

When I came to America, just before I came, somebody showed me the show. I'd never seen '24' and somebody said: "Watch this show." I watched and got hooked, didn't move for a whole weekend, it was brilliant.

Then when I came to America, I'd done something in South Africa for a Canadian production company and the director and I kept in touch so when I said was going to the US he said: "Come and see me on the set of my new TV show," and I didn't know it was '24'.

I went on set, looked around, spent the day, he introduced me to the casting directors at the end — then I left. A couple of weeks later they called me in to audition and I didn’t get the part.

They called me in about three or four times after that and I didn't get anything and then they called me in and sort of offered me a role — with the proviso that they weren't sure of the script and that the character might have been cut.

A few weeks later they called and said: "Ah the character's been written out," and then two weeks after that they phoned and said "There's this character Colonel Dubaku," and offered him to me — so it was out of the blue, but not out of the blue.

What would you say your best moment was out of filming both the movie and the series?

There were two best moments: the first was my first day on set and what a show. Being on the set that first day was both fantastic and also very, very intimidating and scary.

Then, when we went to film 'Redemption' in South Africa, having just moved from there to come to LA — to return with a show like '24' — I couldn't have asked for anything better.

What was craziest?

I suppose one of the craziest moments for me was being in a stunt car with a stunt driver — the driver doing these crazy turns in the car and you're in the back feeling a bit nervous, knowing the guys know what they're doing and you're doing it all at top speed. If he misses a corner you're out — and he didn't.

What sort of preparation did you do for the role?

For me it's always a mental prep — knowing that he's African, knowing a bit about where the story was going. You don't know much but you know a bit and where the character's going — the normal sort of thing: research, knowing who you are as the character, his motivations. Being an African I knew where he was coming from.

You say you don't know what’s going to happen next — do you get your script episode by episode?

Yeah, more or less. They seem to write, at the max, two episodes in advance so you get it episode by episode. It's great because you have to know the roots of who you are as a character — your character can go off in any direction and you don’t know that until you get the next script.

It's a very interesting way of working — not having a complete story arc for him from A to B but you have a particular level of humanity in him so you can respond with whatever happens to him.

Yes, I always think about that with Nina in the first season when it turned out she was bad — that she herself didn't know that before. What's it like on the '24' set?

The guys have been working on the show for something like seven years so you're walking into a very well-oiled, and hugely successful machine.

Actors come and go and you've got the main crew, and the cameo and recurring roles. It's weird because in one sense you walk in and everybody knows where they should be and you're coming in not quite knowing where you should be and the speed with which everyone works. So it's quite intimidating initially but once you're into it you get used to it and it's a great bunch of people.

Did they pay you a fortune?

I wish they had, I wish had, but they didn't unfortunately. I'd just moved to LA and the way they pay in America is that the more credits you have the more you get paid so because I'd just moved here I got paid the least you can get paid for a character of this size on the show.

What's it like being an actor in LA? Do you ever have to wait tables?

Luckily for me, no, not yet anyway. Almost everybody you meet out here's an actor or presenter or producer. I've been lucky that I haven’t had to do that.

Do you spend your days going for auditions?

Yes, that's the main thing — you spend your day going for auditions. There's been all sorts of things: the writers strike and then a potential actors strike so it's been a slow time for the industry. The whole industry's changing and a lot of jobs were lost.

A lot of the movies weren't going ahead because they were worried actors would go on strike but I've been very lucky because I've worked. I've just done a bit in 'Wolverine', and also the film 'Darfur' — which I filmed in South Africa — which comes out next year.

What's been your biggest career break?

It's hard to say because each one is different but I'd say '24' — it's a huge show, it's international and so many people watch it. Even if they don't watch it on TV they watch it on DVD because they can't stand the frustration of watching week to week so it's big thing.

What impact did the Fresca ad have on your career?

It had a massive impact in South Africa — it really helped me get out there and become a face in South Africa.

Kiefer Sutherland, in and out of jail and most recently breaking a designer's nose: talk about that for a bit.

You know, I've only just heard the news so I have no idea about it but I must say on a one-to-one I really liked him. Watching him, he is the show — he obviously takes his responsibility very seriously. If the show doesn't work you've got 200 people's jobs you're responsible for.