When Lost premiered on network TV in 2004, it was a cultural reset for the medium. Having a lore-heavy sci-fi show on network TV wasn’t an easy feat. Without being a procedural, Lost managed to keep a captive audience through its relatable characters, by plunging them into an outlandish and unknown setting — all while unfolding its complex mythology.
But the efforts to get Lost off the ground were riddled with turbulence. A mix of tight scheduling, limited casting options (for a huge cast nonetheless), and budgetary constraints had the potential to ground Oceanic Flight 815 even before it took off from LAX. Had things gone differently, Lost’s pilot episode would’ve never seen the light of day, so it’s a true miracle that we were able to witness the beginning of this groundbreaking show that changed TV landscape forever.
The ‘Lost’ Pilot Was a Headache Long Before Production Started
Lost was envisioned by former ABC chairman Lloyd Braun as a mix of several survival genre films and TV shows, particularly Survivor, Gilligan’s Island, and Cast Away, with a dash of Lord of the Flies. Jeffrey Lieber developed a first approach to this idea, but an unhappy Braun decided to task J.J. Abrams — who was already working for ABC in Alias — to rewrite it. Abrams was already swamped as he was, so juggling two shows would be challenging. After requesting the addition of a second main writer, Damon Lindelof came on board.
While those pieces fell somewhat neatly into place, the main challenge now was to have a script ready. The order came late during pre-production for the 2004 season, so Abrams and Lindelof had to work fast. By January, they had an outline, in February, a first draft and by April, the finalized script. During those months, Abrams sold Braun the idea of the show leaning more into the supernatural and mystery side. Lost staples like the infamous hatch were mentioned since this stage of the process. All in all, Abrams and Lindelof crafted a pilot that was solid enough to engage the audience in this weird ride.
The Odds Were Against ‘Lost’ When Casting the Show’s Main Roles
Given the time constraints, at the same time that the pilot script was being finalized, casting — and even filming itself — were happening as well. In a 20/20 episode, casting director April Webster recalled having to work with an incomplete script, while scrambling to see which actors weren’t already snatched up for other pilots of the season. Getting the perfect cast was a mix of correctly placing mismatched auditions, overcoming difficulties, and rescuing actors from oblivion. For instance, Yunjin Kim auditioned for Kate, while Matthew Fox and Jorge Garcia auditioned for Sawyer. In Garcia’s case, given his previous work in Curb Your Enthusiasm, they wanted to have him in the show — thus creating Hurley for him and leading to him being the first actor to be cast.
Since Jack was supposed to die in the pilot, at one point Michael Keaton was offered to play him. After it was decided the character would survive, Keaton wouldn’t commit to a long-term portrayal, and decided not to participate. Fortunately, in Fox, the production quickly found the perfect Jack. A more challenging journey was faced in the quest for Kate. Around 75 women auditioned for the role and, when Webster and the producers found Evangeline Lilly, they knew she was Kate. But, being Canadian, she needed a work visa that wasn’t cleared until after 20 attempts. It got to the point where they were still holding auditions for the role in case Lilly didn’t make it on time. In the end, while she missed filming in Los Angeles, she was able to catch up with the cast and crew in Hawaii — albeit one day late.
Finally, Lost represented a chance of renewal for some actors. After The Lord of the Rings, Dominic Monaghan was typecast, being offered fantasy roles of elves and pixies. Wanting to push his boundaries, the role of Charlie arrived at the perfect time. Though he was originally conceived as an older has-been, the character’s story was adapted to fit Monaghan’s portrayal. In the case of Josh Holloway, he wasn’t getting any acting jobs anymore, and was two seconds away from becoming a forest ranger. His audition blew Abrams and Lindelof away, to the point where they changed Sawyer from a suit-and-tie city businessman to a Southern wild con man.
‘Lost’s Pilot Was One of the Most Expensive in TV History
At approximately $13 million, Lost was (and still is) one of the most expensive pilots in TV history. It makes sense, considering the entire plane wreckage had to be transported by ship to Oahu, along with flying the cast and crew all the way there. The costly decision to produce the pilot was basically a 50-50 bet that relied not only on the show being good, but also on the audience wanting to tune into watching it. It all circles back to Braun, who was responsible for greenlighting the pilot back in February 2004, when they only had the 22-page outline and no cast.
Weeks later, Braun’s decision to invest millions in the Lost pilot hung on an ever-changing script, a cast in the process of being hired, and the tightest of schedules. At some point before the show’s release, Braun’s decision cost him his position, and he was forced out of ABC because of it. But a grateful Abrams and Lindelof asked him to provide the extremely recognizable “previously, on Lost” voiceover. At first, he declined, but, after thinking about how important the show was to him, he decided to do it. A bittersweet feeling took over Braun after seeing how well-received the show was, but his voiceover cemented him as the essential part of Lost that he was, and still is.
All things considered, it’s a true modern miracle that the Lost pilot was made. Somehow, Abrams and Lindelof managed to kickstart a masterpiece in record time. Perhaps Lost wasn’t considered worthy of this investment at the moment by ABC. But, against all odds and defying expectations, it proved the network wrong and became a pop culture-defining moment. A moment that still, so many years later, fans can’t help but fly back to.
