John Barrowman was worried that fans might not like his character, Captain Jack Harkness, at the conclusion of the five-episode miniseries, "Children of Earth". In the show, which was the third season of Torchwood and aired on BBC America in the U.S. and Space in Canada last week, Harkness decides to sacrifice his own flesh and blood to save the world.

Barrowman wasn't sure the audience would forgive his character that act.

"He makes some tough decisions," said Barrowman of his character at a Comic-Con event, "but they are decisions to save humanity. . . . I had to do it. It was the right thing and Jack is a better human being as a result, I think."

So he asked the audience if they still liked Captain Jack. The audience responded with cheers and applause. Barrowman beamed.

He had good reason to be happy. Earlier in the day Davies confirmed that the BBC had renewed Torchwood for a fourth season. "We were astonished by the success of that last series," he said at the Comic-Con panel for Doctor Who.

Davies also explained that Barrowman was specifically targeted to play the role of Captain Jack Harkness.

The decision to make the character American came only after trying out a number of accents, including Scottish and English. Barrowman was born in Scotland but moved to the U.S. as a young boy. "To have a British show with an American lead is very rare," confessed Davies, "and John Barrowman proved them all wrong because that's how marvelous he is."

At the Torchwood panel, there was also discussion about the death of Ianto Jones, Torchwood team member and Captain Jack's lover.

There has been some suggestion in the media that fans are outraged about that plot point, by Davies said that only a very small percentage of people had taken things too far. A fan campaign to send packets of coffee to the BBC — Ianto was Torchwood's coffee maker — resulted in only nine packages of coffee being received, said Davies.

"I'm immensely sorry people are sad, but I'm not changing my mind."

"For me it was a no brainer that Ianto died," said exec producer Julie Gardner. "It was the right thing for the story because Captain Jack has to suffer." It was the cost, she added, of making the character a hero.

"It's what we said in the beginning," said Barrowman. "People die young in Torchwood because they make a lot of sacrifices. We're all sad but life has to go on."