| Man in Black | |
|---|---|
| Lost character | |
&sq=&lang=&file=File:The_Man_in_Black_from_Lost.png) The Man in Black in "Across the Sea" | |
| First appearance | "Pilot" (as The Monster) "The Incident" |
| Last appearance | "The End" |
| Created by | |
| Portrayed by | Titus Welliver (real form) Ryan Bradford (real form, child) John Terry (Christian Shephard) Adetokumboh M'Cormack (Yemi) Tania Raymonde (Alex Rousseau) Terry O'Quinn (John Locke) |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Human (formerly) Electromagnetic entity |
| Gender | Male |
| Family | Jacob (twin brother), Claudia (mother), Woman (adoptive mother) |
| Nationality | Roman |
| Centric Episodes | "The Incident", "Across the Sea" |
The Man in Black (also called "The Smoke Monster" or simply "The Monster" by the main characters) is the main antagonist of the American ABC television series Lost.[1] [2] He appeared primarily as a cloud of black smoke until the final episode of season five where he appeared as a middle-aged man dressed in black. In season six, he primarily appeared in the physical form of John Locke (Terry O'Quinn). He exhibited the ability to "scan" the minds and memories of others, allowing him to confront characters such as Mr. Eko (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) and Ben Linus (Michael Emerson), with "judgement" (a replay of their pasts), and to assume the forms and memories of the deceased, starting with the original Man in Black himself, his brother Jacob (Mark Pellegrino), or Christian Shephard (John Terry), Yemi (Adetokumboh M'Cormack), Alex Rousseau (Tania Raymonde), and Locke. According to Jacob, who explains this to Richard Alpert (Néstor Carbonell), it is the incarnation of evil, and its primary goal—to escape from the island—would be the "end of everything good".
Various other characters have implied that his escape would be catastrophic and could even cause the destruction of reality. A longtime resident of the island that serves as the main setting of Lost, the true nature of The Man in Black was long shrouded in mystery. It had been described by Lost producer Damon Lindelof as "one of the biggest secrets" of the mythology of Lost[3] while the producers have often hinted that the black cloud of smoke was not a monster in the traditional sense.[4][5] TV Guide included the character in their "The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time" list in 2013.[6]
- ^ Jensen, Jeff (May 4, 2010). "'Lost' producers, actors speak about tonight's 'they did not just do that!' shockers". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on August 13, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ^ dos Santos, Kristin (May 24, 2010). "Lost: Want to Know the Man in Black's Real Name? Get the Answer to That and More!". E! Online. Los Angeles. Archived from the original on May 24, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2009.
- ^ Lost TV, "It's Not About the Dinosaur: the Official Damon Lindelof Interview, 18 August 2004
- ^ Wharton, David Michael (July 17, 2005). "Coooooonnn!!!!!! Report: Friday and Saturday". Comicon 2005 news. Mania. Archived from the original on October 18, 2012. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ^ Grillo-Marxuach, Javier (July 22, 2005). "Burning Questions". The Fuselage. Archived from the original on September 26, 2007.
- ^ Bretts, Bruce; Roush, Matt; (March 25, 2013). "Baddies to the Bone: The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time". TV Guide. pp. 14 – 15.