We have to go back: Lost premiered today, 20 years ago
On September 22, 2004, Oceanic Flight 815 crashed on a mysterious island that was home to a smoke monster, polar bears, hippie scientists and ancient Egyptians. At the time, it was the most expensive television pilot ever filmed. Over the course of six seasons, the show enthralled and frustrated viewers with its convoluted plot and labyrinthine lore.
Although we never got answers to all our questions, we sure had fun watching, discussing, theorizing, crying and yelling. The writers may have been making it up as they went along, but we were along for the ride until The End because we cared about the plane crash survivors and their friends and foes. So what have the actors been up to since they left the island?
Naveen Andrews (Sayid Jarrah)
He played main/regular roles on shows such as Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, Sense8, Instinct and The Cleaning Lady. He also starred in Hulu's limited series The Dropout with Amanda Seyfried.
Emilie de Ravin (Claire Littleton)
Her time on the island overlapped a bit with her stint on Once Upon a Time as Belle. She has three children with director Eric Bilitch. Her most recent TV project was Australian miniseries True Colours.
Matthew Fox (Jack Shepherd)
In 2011, he allegedly punched a party bus driver (the lawsuit was later withdrawn). In 2012, he was arrested for a DUI and Dominic Monaghan had this to say about him: "He beats women. Not isolated incidents. Often." (source) After a foray into movies (such as playing the villain in the 2012 Alex Cross movie) and acting hiatus, he returned to TV in 2022. He will appear in the upcoming Yellowstone spinoff, The Madison.
Jorge Garcia (Hugo “Hurley” Reyes)
He continued his "island trilogy" by starring on TV shows Alcatraz and Hawaii Five-0. He currently has a main role on a Max comedy called Bookies, and finds time to do fun stuff like competing on The Masked Singer and hosting a podcast about kaiju films.
Maggie Grace (Shannon Rutherford)
Getting killed off Lost may have been the "worst heartbreak" of her career ( source), but she's arguably more known for her role as Liam Neeson's daughter in the Taken movies. She's married to Brent Bushnell, CEO of entertainment company Two Bit Circus, and they have a son together. Her most recent TV show was Fear the Walking Dead, and this year she starred with Minka Kelly in a horror movie called Blackwater Lane.
Josh Holloway (James "Sawyer" Ford)
After Lost, he’s appeared on shows such as Intelligence, Colony and Yellowstone. He remains married to longtime partner Yessica Kumala and they have two children together.
Malcolm David Kelley (Walter Lloyd)
Now 32 years old (WAAAAAALT?!), he’s continued acting on shows such as Gigantic and Insecure as well as launching a music career. He and Tony Oller formed the pop/hip hop duo MKTO. The music video for debut single “Thank You” features a cameo from his TV dad, Harold Perrineau.
Daniel Dae Kim (Jin-Soo Kwon)
He starred on Hawaii Five-0 for seven seasons, but left the show after unsuccessfully seeking pay equality with the main white actors (source). He founded his own production company, 3AD, which produces The Good Doctor, and remains busy with TV, movie, stage and video game voice work. Most recently you may have seen him as Fire Lord Ozai in the live action Avatar: The Last Airbender (fun fact: he voiced General Fong in the original animated series and Hiroshi Sato in The Legend of Korra). If you're in New York, catch him in the play Yellow Face!
Yunjin Kim (Sun-Hwa Kwon)
She starred on ABC drama Mistresses before returning to Korean television, leading dramas such as Ms. Ma, Nemesis and Money Heist: Korea. She also recently appeared on XO, Kitty, a To All the Boys spinoff series, and guested on Station 19 before the show ended.
Evangeline Lilly (Kate Austen)
She appeared in The Hobbit and the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Hope van Dyne/Wasp, and wrote a children's book series called The Squickerwonkers. In 2022, she joined a protest against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and spoke in support of the so-called freedom convoy. Earlier this year, she shared that she is "stepping away" from acting.
Dominic Monaghan (Charlie Pace)
His eclectic work ranges from a nature documentary series to an Angry Birds show, an Eminem music video to a Star Wars movie, not to mention a podcast with Billy Boyd (and also reuniting with Boyd on stage in a production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead). He recently starred on AMC+ sci-fi drama Moonhaven.
Terry O'Quinn (John Locke)
He's appeared on a whole bunch of shows, including Hawaii Five-0, Falling Skies, 666 Park Avenue, Patriot, Castle Rock and FBI: Most Wanted. Recently he played recurring roles on Resident Alien and The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.
Harold Perrineau (Michael Dawson)
Aside from being an awesome dad, he's appeared on Constantine, The Rookie and Claws, for which he won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. He currently stars on MGM+ supernatural drama From. Season 3 premieres today!
Ian Somerhalder (Boone Carlyle)
He starred on The Vampire Diaries for eight seasons. After wife Nikki Reed rescued him from debt, they've now moved to a farm with their two children. (source)
Their characters appeared later in the series, not in the pilot, but I thought I would include these actors too!
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Eko)
His work in TV and film includes Suicide Squad, American Odyssey, The Fix and His Dark Materials. His directorial debut, Farming, a coming of age drama based on his childhood, was released in 2019.
Cynthia Watros (Libby)
She thrived on daytime television, starring on The Young and the Restless and General Hospital.
Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet Burke)
After Lost, she’s starred or recurred on a number of series including V, Revolution, The Expanse, FBI: International, Outer Banks and The Santa Clauses.
François Chau (Pierre Chang)
He’s been working steadily in TV and video games, popping up in tons of different places, namely The Expanse, The Tick and so much more.
Henry Ian Cusick (Desmond Hume)
He played recurring/main roles on Scandal, The 100, MacGyver, Big Sky and NCIS: Hawai'i.
Jeremy Davies (Daniel Faraday)
He guested on shows such as Hannibal, Justified, Sleepy Hollow, and the Arrowverse.
Jeff Fahey (Frank Lapidus)
His very long resume is very Western/action movie-heavy, so he looks to have carved out a niche in the grizzled sheriff role.
Ken Leung (Miles Straume)
Currently starring on Industry, he also appeared in the live action Avatar: The Last Airbender (so did his TV dad, François Chau).
L. Scott Caldwell (Rose Nadler)
She stays booked and busy, from Chilling Adventures of Sabrina to Insecure to the upcoming Anansi Boys.
Michael Emerson (Benjamin Linus)
He starred on Person of Interest for five seasons, and more recently on CBS/Paramount+ supernatural drama Evil. You might also have seen him on Arrow, The Name of the Rose and Fallout. He’s been married to actress Carrie Preston since 1998.
Michelle Rodriguez (Ana Lucia Cortez)
She’s continued to find success as an action heroine in the Fast & Furious franchise, as well as films such as Widows and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.
Néstor Carbonell (Richard Alpert)
He was a regular on Ringer, Bates Motel and The Morning Show. He won an Emmy this year for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Vasco Rodrigues in Shōgun.
Rebecca Mader (Charlotte Lewis)
Another Once Upon a Time alum, she played Zelena aka the Wicked Witch of the West.
Sam Anderson (Bernard Nadler)
Most recently, he appeared on Netflix’s Painkiller as Raymond Sackler. Look for him in the Matlock reboot.
Sonya Walger (Penelope Widmore)
Most recently, she appeared on the Apple TV+ show For All Mankind as Molly Cobb, a character based on astronaut Jerrie Cobb, the first woman on the moon. Her debut novel, a work of autobiographical fiction titled Lion, is scheduled to be published next year.
Like many fans, I was upset to learn about the racism and toxicity behind the scenes (see these posts) from Maureen Ryan's book Burn It Down. I can't deny that this show still means a lot to me: I treasure the memories of watching with my family, baking fish biscuits, writing academic papers about it, visiting filming locations in Hawaii. I haven't done a rewatch in a while, but Lost is definitely a Taweret-foot-shaped milestone in my personal fandom history.
Who's your fave character on Lost, ONTD? Did you watch when it aired (and suffer that wait between seasons 5 and 6 in real time), or did you binge the show after it was finished? Spoilers welcome in the comments.
Sources: as linked + actors' respective IMDB profiles and social media
Although we never got answers to all our questions, we sure had fun watching, discussing, theorizing, crying and yelling. The writers may have been making it up as they went along, but we were along for the ride until The End because we cared about the plane crash survivors and their friends and foes. So what have the actors been up to since they left the island?
Naveen Andrews (Sayid Jarrah)
He played main/regular roles on shows such as Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, Sense8, Instinct and The Cleaning Lady. He also starred in Hulu's limited series The Dropout with Amanda Seyfried.
Emilie de Ravin (Claire Littleton)
Her time on the island overlapped a bit with her stint on Once Upon a Time as Belle. She has three children with director Eric Bilitch. Her most recent TV project was Australian miniseries True Colours.
Matthew Fox (Jack Shepherd)
In 2011, he allegedly punched a party bus driver (the lawsuit was later withdrawn). In 2012, he was arrested for a DUI and Dominic Monaghan had this to say about him: "He beats women. Not isolated incidents. Often." (source) After a foray into movies (such as playing the villain in the 2012 Alex Cross movie) and acting hiatus, he returned to TV in 2022. He will appear in the upcoming Yellowstone spinoff, The Madison.
Jorge Garcia (Hugo “Hurley” Reyes)
He continued his "island trilogy" by starring on TV shows Alcatraz and Hawaii Five-0. He currently has a main role on a Max comedy called Bookies, and finds time to do fun stuff like competing on The Masked Singer and hosting a podcast about kaiju films.
Maggie Grace (Shannon Rutherford)
Getting killed off Lost may have been the "worst heartbreak" of her career ( source), but she's arguably more known for her role as Liam Neeson's daughter in the Taken movies. She's married to Brent Bushnell, CEO of entertainment company Two Bit Circus, and they have a son together. Her most recent TV show was Fear the Walking Dead, and this year she starred with Minka Kelly in a horror movie called Blackwater Lane.
Josh Holloway (James "Sawyer" Ford)
After Lost, he’s appeared on shows such as Intelligence, Colony and Yellowstone. He remains married to longtime partner Yessica Kumala and they have two children together.
Malcolm David Kelley (Walter Lloyd)
Now 32 years old (WAAAAAALT?!), he’s continued acting on shows such as Gigantic and Insecure as well as launching a music career. He and Tony Oller formed the pop/hip hop duo MKTO. The music video for debut single “Thank You” features a cameo from his TV dad, Harold Perrineau.
Daniel Dae Kim (Jin-Soo Kwon)
He starred on Hawaii Five-0 for seven seasons, but left the show after unsuccessfully seeking pay equality with the main white actors (source). He founded his own production company, 3AD, which produces The Good Doctor, and remains busy with TV, movie, stage and video game voice work. Most recently you may have seen him as Fire Lord Ozai in the live action Avatar: The Last Airbender (fun fact: he voiced General Fong in the original animated series and Hiroshi Sato in The Legend of Korra). If you're in New York, catch him in the play Yellow Face!
Yunjin Kim (Sun-Hwa Kwon)
She starred on ABC drama Mistresses before returning to Korean television, leading dramas such as Ms. Ma, Nemesis and Money Heist: Korea. She also recently appeared on XO, Kitty, a To All the Boys spinoff series, and guested on Station 19 before the show ended.
Evangeline Lilly (Kate Austen)
She appeared in The Hobbit and the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Hope van Dyne/Wasp, and wrote a children's book series called The Squickerwonkers. In 2022, she joined a protest against COVID-19 vaccine mandates and spoke in support of the so-called freedom convoy. Earlier this year, she shared that she is "stepping away" from acting.
Dominic Monaghan (Charlie Pace)
His eclectic work ranges from a nature documentary series to an Angry Birds show, an Eminem music video to a Star Wars movie, not to mention a podcast with Billy Boyd (and also reuniting with Boyd on stage in a production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead). He recently starred on AMC+ sci-fi drama Moonhaven.
Terry O'Quinn (John Locke)
He's appeared on a whole bunch of shows, including Hawaii Five-0, Falling Skies, 666 Park Avenue, Patriot, Castle Rock and FBI: Most Wanted. Recently he played recurring roles on Resident Alien and The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live.
Harold Perrineau (Michael Dawson)
Aside from being an awesome dad, he's appeared on Constantine, The Rookie and Claws, for which he won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. He currently stars on MGM+ supernatural drama From. Season 3 premieres today!
Ian Somerhalder (Boone Carlyle)
He starred on The Vampire Diaries for eight seasons. After wife Nikki Reed rescued him from debt, they've now moved to a farm with their two children. (source)
Their characters appeared later in the series, not in the pilot, but I thought I would include these actors too!
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Eko)
His work in TV and film includes Suicide Squad, American Odyssey, The Fix and His Dark Materials. His directorial debut, Farming, a coming of age drama based on his childhood, was released in 2019.
Cynthia Watros (Libby)
She thrived on daytime television, starring on The Young and the Restless and General Hospital.
Elizabeth Mitchell (Juliet Burke)
After Lost, she’s starred or recurred on a number of series including V, Revolution, The Expanse, FBI: International, Outer Banks and The Santa Clauses.
François Chau (Pierre Chang)
He’s been working steadily in TV and video games, popping up in tons of different places, namely The Expanse, The Tick and so much more.
Henry Ian Cusick (Desmond Hume)
He played recurring/main roles on Scandal, The 100, MacGyver, Big Sky and NCIS: Hawai'i.
Jeremy Davies (Daniel Faraday)
He guested on shows such as Hannibal, Justified, Sleepy Hollow, and the Arrowverse.
Jeff Fahey (Frank Lapidus)
His very long resume is very Western/action movie-heavy, so he looks to have carved out a niche in the grizzled sheriff role.
Ken Leung (Miles Straume)
Currently starring on Industry, he also appeared in the live action Avatar: The Last Airbender (so did his TV dad, François Chau).
L. Scott Caldwell (Rose Nadler)
She stays booked and busy, from Chilling Adventures of Sabrina to Insecure to the upcoming Anansi Boys.
Michael Emerson (Benjamin Linus)
He starred on Person of Interest for five seasons, and more recently on CBS/Paramount+ supernatural drama Evil. You might also have seen him on Arrow, The Name of the Rose and Fallout. He’s been married to actress Carrie Preston since 1998.
Michelle Rodriguez (Ana Lucia Cortez)
She’s continued to find success as an action heroine in the Fast & Furious franchise, as well as films such as Widows and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.
Néstor Carbonell (Richard Alpert)
He was a regular on Ringer, Bates Motel and The Morning Show. He won an Emmy this year for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Vasco Rodrigues in Shōgun.
Rebecca Mader (Charlotte Lewis)
Another Once Upon a Time alum, she played Zelena aka the Wicked Witch of the West.
Sam Anderson (Bernard Nadler)
Most recently, he appeared on Netflix’s Painkiller as Raymond Sackler. Look for him in the Matlock reboot.
Sonya Walger (Penelope Widmore)
Most recently, she appeared on the Apple TV+ show For All Mankind as Molly Cobb, a character based on astronaut Jerrie Cobb, the first woman on the moon. Her debut novel, a work of autobiographical fiction titled Lion, is scheduled to be published next year.
Like many fans, I was upset to learn about the racism and toxicity behind the scenes (see these posts) from Maureen Ryan's book Burn It Down. I can't deny that this show still means a lot to me: I treasure the memories of watching with my family, baking fish biscuits, writing academic papers about it, visiting filming locations in Hawaii. I haven't done a rewatch in a while, but Lost is definitely a Taweret-foot-shaped milestone in my personal fandom history.
Who's your fave character on Lost, ONTD? Did you watch when it aired (and suffer that wait between seasons 5 and 6 in real time), or did you binge the show after it was finished? Spoilers welcome in the comments.
Sources: as linked + actors' respective IMDB profiles and social media