From Andrew Geller to Tonio Almeida, the Journey to ‘Tony’

In the high-stakes world of the TV series ’24’, the character Tony Almeida stands out as one of the most dynamic figures. Played by Carlos Bernard, Tony Almeida’s character has undergone significant transformations, from a good guy to a villain, and now something else entirely. However, the character’s intriguing journey is not limited to his on-screen persona. The story behind his name is equally fascinating.

The character was initially named Andrew Geller. However, just 15 minutes before the shooting started, Joel Surnow, the creator of ’24’, decided that the name didn’t fit the character. After brainstorming, the team came up with ‘Tony Almeida’, which Bernard liked. However, the name needed to be cleared, and the only approved name was ‘Tonio Almeida’. Bernard was not a fan of this name, comparing it to a porn name.

The name ‘Tony’ was finally approved thanks to the intervention of leading man Kiefer Sutherland. During the shooting of the first scene, Sutherland decided to call the character ‘Tony’ instead of ‘Tonio’, and the name stuck. Today, Tony Almeida is a beloved character in ’24’, and Bernard is grateful to Sutherland for ensuring he wasn’t known as ‘Tonio’ for the past decade and a half.