Designated Survivor is an American political thriller drama television series created by David Guggenheim. It aired for three seasons, beginning on ABC and then exclusively on Netflix for the third and final season. Kiefer Sutherland stars as Thomas Kirkman, an American academic named as the designated survivor for the State of the Union address, who suddenly ascends from the position of U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to President of the United States after an explosion kills everyone ahead of him in the presidential line of succession. Kirkman deals with his inexperience as head of state while looking to uncover the truth behind the attack.

Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland is a Canadian actor and musician. He is best known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox drama series 24, for which he won an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Satellite Awards.