'Lost' Cast Discusses Emmy Snub, Upcoming Season

KAHUKU, Hawaii – The hatch is history.

That was just one of the third-season secrets revealed by cast and crew of the TV drama "Lost," who gathered here Tuesday night to mark the release of the DVD set, "Lost — The Complete Second Season."

"The hatch has definitely had its moment," confirmed executive producer Bryan Burk, referring to the mysterious underground bunker that was the set for much of the series' second-season drama. "Lets just say it was one big explosion."

"Lost" cast members Evangeline Lilly, Jorge Garcia, Josh Holloway, Terry O'Quinn, Daniel Dae Kim and Yunjim Kim were among the attendees at the party at the Turtle Bay Resort, about a 20-minute drive from where much of "Lost" is filmed on the north shore of Oahu.

Before heading in to celebrate their second-season work, the cast was asked to address their show's surprising lack of presence among this year's Emmy nominees. Though it was last year's Emmy-winning drama, "Lost" was not among the current crop of nominated series, nor were any of its leading actors recognized.

"My first reaction to it was, `Good.' I don't want us to become that show that becomes so righteous, so above everything else, that we're untouchable," said Lilly, who will serve as a presenter at the Aug. 27 Emmy telecast.

"When we started, our big question was, `Will anybody even watch this show?' And then when people started watching, we were thrilled. And then when we got recognized critically, we were beside ourselves. So, when we didn't get nominated, all we had to do was remember where we came from."

Writer and executive producer Carlton Cuse told The AP he wasn't losing sleep about the Emmy snub, either.

"Were we disappointed that we didn't get a nomination for the show? Yes." he said. "But the show has been so blessed: the attention, the success. We're not going to focus too long on what we don't have."

"Lost" fans can expect some big changes when new episodes return to ABC Oct. 4.

There won't be any more frustrating repeats. "Now, when `Lost' is on, it's on," Cuse explained. "And when it's off, it's off. And when it's on, you know it's an original `Lost."'

The producers said six all-new "Lost" episodes will air in consecutive weeks this fall; the season's remaining 17 new episodes will be scheduled without interruption from midwinter to late spring.

As for the story: If the first season was all about the original plane-crash survivors adjusting to their new lives on a deserted island, and the second season was all about the so-called "tailies" (those who were in the tail of the plane, whom the originals had thought were dead), "this year," Lilly said, "we've opened this up to another whole other people, a whole other location, a whole other facet through which we can tell stories."

Michael Emerson, who plays the leader of "The Others" group, noted, "What I know is that we get to go live with The Others, where they learn a little more about their life and, hopefully, their mission, their agenda, whatever that might be. Maybe we'll get to warm up to them."

Producer Burk promised that many of the second season's looming questions would be answered in the first six episodes. But, warned actor Daniel Dae Kim, "I think for every question that's answered, there's another one that's posed, and that's kind of what keeps people coming back."

Cuse said the new season will include more action and adventure, and that new characters could well serve as love interests. And, he added, Sawyer (Holloway) and Jack (Matthew Fox) will definitely be competing for the romantic affections of Kate (Lilly).

But don't expect the show to get all soft.

"There'll be a lot of love. There'll be a lot of comedy," Burk said. "But we can never forget that these people are in a very dark place."