LOST

“Pilot”

Written by

J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof

Directed by

J.J. Abrams
 LOST

“Pilot”

ACT ONE

OVER BLACKNESS, MUSIC. OMINOUS AND FOREBODING. THEN, OUT OF

THE DARKNESS, A SINGLE WORD. FLOATING IN SPACE, OUT OF FOCUS,
TOWARD CAMERA. AS IT APPROACHES IT COMES INTO FOCUS, BUT IT'S
SHARP ONLY FOR A BRIEF MOMENT:

LOST

AS IT NEARS US IT AGAIN LOSES FOCUS – AND AS WE MOVE THROUGH

THE “O” OUR MUSIC CRESENDOS, THEN STOPS ABRUPTLY AS WE CUT
TO:

A MAN'S EYE

EXTREME CLOSEUP. Open wide. The man's skin wet, speckled

with soil and flecks of blood. His breathing CLOSELY MIKED –-
erratic. This man's in shock. The SOUNDS of INSECTS and
ANIMALS other-worldly. A blink.

Then, the REVERSE ANGLE: staring up hundreds of BAMBOO

STALKS. Sunlight almost impenetrable through the dense
forest.

SLIGHTLLY WIDER on the Man's face as he stares upward,

disoriented, stunned. 40-years-old. Fit. In normal
circumstances, on glance would make you feel confident in
him. Trusting. But here, now, he's the one in trauma.

His name is JACK.

Then, a RUSTLING SOUND – something COMING – it gets LOUDER

and Jack suddenly SNAPS his head to the side to see something
appear through the thick bamboo foliage --

A WHITE LABRADOR.

Collar. Tags. It stops abruptly, twenty feet away from Jack,

looking at him. And for the first time, we PULL BACK TO A
WIDE SHOT of the intense, alien-looking BAMBOO FOREST.

The dog just stares at Jack, who we now see wears a BUSINESS
SUIT and lies on his back, caught in broken bamboo stalks.
And Jack stares back.
It's an odd tableau – man and dog look at each other, both
entirely out of place...

Finally the Lab turns and huffs back into the jungle,
disapearing in the claustrophobic bamboo – and Jack would
call out “Wait” if he could even think that clearly and he
turns to sit up and it's a PAINFUL MOVE – he manages to
extricate himself from the plants – and while still on his
knees, he opens up his suit jack to check out the source of
his pain. Something on his left side – but we're so TIGHT on
his face that whateven he sees, we don't. Yet.

His reaction to his wound is more dissappointed than

terrified. He manages to get to his feet, feeling something
in his jacket pocket. He reaches in... and pulls out a
MINIATURE BOTTLE OF VODKA.

And he HOLD ON his face as he looks at it... considering...

his heart beginning to POUND, his fear growing, as does a
SOUND – a FRIGHTENING, ODD SOUND – something REVVING in the
distance – SOMETHING LOUD – and the horror of what he
suddenly understands far outweighs any physical pain. He
moves off --

EXT. BAMBOO FOREST – DAY

Jack moves as fast as he can through the THICK BAMBOO – and

as he goes there's something that almost bekons to him – he
hurries through the thick growth, his determined eyes focused
on the thing he approaches – and as he gets closer to it, we
finally see it:

A WHITE TENNIS SHOE

Laces untied, caught mid-fall in a bamboo tree, hanging by a

branch, twelve feet above ground. He stops for a moment,
looks at it. Again: THE LOUD REVVING – but it's CLOSER NOW –
and suddenly the most important thing in the world is that he
get there and fast – so he's moving now, even faster than
before – through a straight-away miracle path, he's near
SPRINTING now – BREATHING QUICKLY, ERRATICALLY as he makes
his way --

EXT. BRUSH – DAY

-- and now he's running from bamboo into JUNGLE BRUSH – thick
still, but there's some more sunlight and he's almost there
and finally he bursts out of the brush onto --

EXT. BEACH – DAY

-- and Jack runs up, finally stopping dead in an EXTREME

CLOSEUP.
He's baathed in SUNLIGHT now – squinting at what he sees –
and we're just on his eyes. HOLD ON HIM, in shock, until he
moves forward – and IN THE SAME SHOT, we PAN AS HE MOVES –
180 DEGREES UNTIL WE'RE BHIND HIM, LOOKING OUT ON SOMETHING
ABSOLUTELY HORRIFIC. Only twenty yeards away...

A PLANE CRASH ON THE BEACH

777 – PASSENGER AIRLINER – 250-Seater – the MIDDLE SECTION of

the fuselage PLOWED INTO THE SAND – one WING STICKING
STRAIGHT UP, TOWERING SEVEN STORIES INTO THE SKY, sporadic
SPARKS BURSTING FROM THE INVERTED ENGINE, showering down on
the absolute MAYHEM on the sand --

ANGLE

-- and it is like a fucking WARZONE: scattered FIRES and

wreckage – DOZENS OF PEOPLE RUNNING ABOUT, some injured,
others not – they're helping each other, SCREAMING – their
cries drowned out by the SOUND AND WIND caused by the
ENORMOUS JET ENGINE – no, not the one on the wing pointing
upward – the other one – the one on the INVERTED WING, now
cracked off its brackets and resting at SAND LEVEL. And the
ENGINE STILL REVS – SPASTICALLY, ERRATICALLY – SPEWING
COOLANT AND SPARKS and SUCKING IN SAND every time it
THROTTLES UP --

TIGHT ON JACK

as he takes this in, overwhelmed – knowing he's part of it –

his eyes WELL UP in fear – sorrow – confusion – and turns to
look for help --

ANGLE

-- but what he sees... is nothing. His look spans 360

degrees: there's only spectacular ocean, waves violently
CRASHING as far as a half mile from shore – a distant
coastline – then MOUNTAINS – jagged, 2000-foot high peeks – a
deep valley of JUNGLE – then his eyes are back on the horror
of the CRASH --

ANGLE

-- where DOZENS OF LIVES are in the balance – and all at once

he knows that some –- perhaps most –- will die if he doesn't
take action – and so he does

EXT. CRASH SITE – DAY

Chaos. Terror. Smoke, fumes, fire – people desperately trying

to help each other – running, screaming – everything
happening at once --

ANGLE

And amid the madness, the JET ENGINE MOMENTARILY REVS DOWN –
enough to HEAR A MAN'S SCREAM – Jack turns to the source: a
MAN is caught – STUCK UNDERNEATH two rows of airplane seats –
ten feet to the side of the malfunctionning engine --

Jack hurries across the insanity toward the man – flash-

passing pieces of conversation as he runs --

KOREAN MAN MAN #1

(searching for his wife) -- GET AWAY FROM THE GAS!!!
-- SUN!!! SUN!!! STAY OVER THERE!!!

WOMAN #2 MAN #2
-- SHE WAS RIGHT HERE! I NEED SOME HELP! PLEASE !!!
I DON'T KNOW!

ANGLE

-- Jack races past a pretty 20-year-old girl who we HOLD ON

for a moment – she just stands there SCREAMING LIKE A
MOTHERFUCKER. We'll meet her later.

ANGLE

Jack gets to the man stuck under the seats – he's too close
to the terrifying, LOUD ENGINE – which is still so hot that
HEAT RIPPLES can be seen behind Jack – who sweats now as he
tries to LIFT THE ROW OF SEATS off the man --

With the DEAFENING VOLUME of the jet drowning out any

dialogue, we see Jack YELLING for TWO MEN close by (one of
them is LOCKE, 58, someone elase we'll get to know in a bit)
– they run over and help – and the three STRAIN HARD as they
lif the chair sections off – Jack then moves to the man –
whose leg BLEEDS SEVERLY.

Jack rips off his tie, immediately goes to business the way
on a man with medical training could: he begins making a
TOURNIQUET, tying the injured man's leg off --

ANGLE

As he ties the leg, Jack looks up to see a whole mess of

simultaneous emergencies – including a 60-year-old WOMAN in a
PEACH BLOUSE, who les unconscious with a 30-year-old MAN
desperately trying to revive her --
WHIP PAN

across the beach of debris to a PREGNANT WOMAN, on her knees,

struggling to stand, but with no one to help --

ANGLE

Jack then yells to the two Men he's with to take the
Tourniquet Man to safety – and Jack RUNS – OVER THW WING,

BEHIND THE MONSTROUS REVVING ENGINE --

over to the Australian Pregnant Woman (CLAIRE) – he helps her

up – helps her walk – but stumbles again, strains:

CLAIRE
--I'm having contaractions --

Jack helps her lie down--

JACK
-- That's not ideal... how many months
pregnant are you -- ?

CLAIRE
(crying)
-- Almost eight months --

ANGLE

-- and he glances up, checking on the unconscious 60-year=old

Woman in the peach blouse, the 30-year-old Man still trying
to review her – though his eyes are there, he asks Claire:

ANGLE

JACK
-- How far apart are they --?

CLAIRE
-- I don't know, a few of'em just
happened --

AND WE CUT BACK

to the two Men, carrying Tourniquet Man away from --

THE LOUD ENGINE

-- and they're at a safe distance – that's when ANOTHER MAN

his back to us – someone we haven't seen – runs past us, just
in front of the massive engine – just as it REVS FULL BLAST –
AND THE MAN GETS SUCKED INTO THE ENGINE AND JUST AS HE HITS
THE BLADES WE CUT BACK TO:

JACK

With Claire as the engine EXPLODES in the distance behind

them – camera ROCKED, Claire SCREAMS, Jack COVERS Claire with
his body as debris falls – LITERING THE SITE WITH PIECES OF
FIERY DEBRIS

ANGLE

At least the HORRIBLE ENGINE NOISE IS GONE NOW – and with

Jack's horrified face close to Claire's he forces himself to
appear calm – to his focus on her:

JACK
-- listen to me-- listen to me, you're
gonna be okay – do you understand? But
you need to lie absolutely st--

CLAIRE
(suddenly, winces, scared)
-- There – God, that's a big one--

JACK
-- Okay --
(looks up, calls out:)
YOU!

The random person who turns is a MAN – a large guy, more or

less frozen in terror – this is HURLEY.

JACK (CONT'D)
COME HERE!

HURLEY
-- The – the plane crashed--

JACK
Yeah, I know – get over here!

And Hurley does – in this momenty he might just follow anyone

anywhere – Jack rips off his watch, gives it to him:

JACK (CONT'D) HURLEY

-- I need you to get this -- Okay --okay
woman away from these fumes!
Take her over there!
-- Then stay with her! Don't
let her move! If her contractions
occur closer than there minutes
apart call out for me! -- You gotta be kidding me
 JACK (CONT'D)
(with bedside manner, to
Claire)
I'll be back soon.

CLAIRE
-- Thank you --

Jack's already up – Hurley calling out:

HURLEY
-- Hey, what's your name?!

And here it is, the first time we've heard it:

JACK
Jack!

And Hurley turns back to Claire, who says, crying

CLAIRE
-- I'm sorry --

Hurley quickly begins helping Claire up – and though

terrified, he tries to comfort her --

HURLEY
-- Don't be sorry – this wasn't your
fault --

WITH JACK NOW

-- as he runs to the unconscious 60-year-old Peach Blouse

Woman (ROSE) – immediately taking over for the 30-year-old,
whose name is BOONE:

JACK BOONE
-- Stop – her head's not -- Are you sure? I'm a
tilted far back enough lifeguard! I'm licensed!
you're blowing air into her
stomach--
(as he does the work)
-- you seriously need to
think about giving back that
license --

And Jack's performing it now on Rose the way it should be –

breath, breath, pump, pump, pump --

BOONE
That's exactly