Lost’s alternate ending almost had a volcano erupting! Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse talk about the planned ending.
Having one of the most debated finales in the world of television Lost seriesalmost said goodbye to the screens with a very different ending. This cult series, directed by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, had to give up this planned alternative ending due to budget constraints.
Lost Series Alternative Finale Was Supposed to Be Chaos from a Volcano Eruption
Remember the season three episode, “The Man Behind the Curtain”? Probably not. But that episode included a scene where young Ben was briefed by the Dharma Initiative about the island’s volcano. LostAs the 20th anniversary of ‘s series approaches, this scene has come to the fore again with the series being added to Netflix. The creators of the series Damon Lindelof And Carlton Cuse explained the big volcano scene they planned for the series finale in an interview with EW.
Cuse said he developed the idea during a family trip to the Big Island of Hawaii. “We always wanted to cannibalize anything in Hawaii to help with the visual storytelling of the show,” he said. One of the show’s central themes, the island as a character, would be furthered by the volcano. The big showdown between the Smog Monster and Jack would culminate in the eruption of the dormant volcano. “The question was always, how do you fundamentally visualize and dramatize the idea that the island itself is the only thing separating the world from hellfire and damnation? And the volcano was the answer,” Lindelof explained.
Unfortunately, ABC didn’t approve the big final scene due to budgetary reasons, and the volcano finale was replaced with the island breaking apart and sliding into the sea. “ABC said, ‘We love you guys, and we’re letting you finish the series; we can’t let you bankrupt the network in the process,'” Lindelof explained.