Lost Bosses: We're Not Playing It Safe in the Final Season

Prepare yourself, the sixth and final season of Lost is approaching. Obviously, executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have been very tight-lipped about the fate of the Losties after the explosion at the hatch, but they did find time to tease just a few tidbits at Tuesday night's unveiling of the 16th and final poster in the damoncarltonandapolarbear.com collection. (Said poster holds a few clues itself, but we're still working on that.) In the meantime, Lindelof and Cuse tell TVGuide.com which is their favorite poster, how they feel heading into the final season and what fans should expect when the show premieres on Feb. 2 (9/8c on ABC).

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TVGuide.com: With the final season of Lost approaching, what are you feeling?
Carlton Cuse: I think we're doing something new in this final season narratively, so we have that combination of fear and giddiness. The fear is, oh, what if people don't like it, what if the audience doesn't like what we're doing? The giddiness is, like, we always feel like we have to be bold with our show and if it works, and if people like it as much as we do, we feel like the final season will be a success. When there's a draw though, we stand by our decisions. We're not playing it safe in the final season.
Damon Lindelof: I think at this point, the nervousness is more based on how we're so deep into this season, that by the time the audience sees it, we're committed to our path. It's been like that ever since we started premiering in January and February. It's like it's too late to turn back now. We're feeling very confident about executing what our plan was, and that's all you can ever do.

TVGuide.com: What do you say to fans with such high expectations for your last season?
Cuse: I think it's like anything in life. I think that you have to have realistic expectations. We're going to do our best version of the show, but there's still going to be some mystery and magic and intentionally ambiguous things that emerge at the end of the show. We're going to answer questions, but at the same time, we're going to tell the story the way we want to tell it. We feel like, all we can do is make the version of the show that makes Damon and I happy. If we do that, hopefully enough people will like it.
Lindelof: Ditto.

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TVGuide.com: How do you feel about the intense fan reaction to the posters?
Lindelof: It's amazing. We experienced this on a much grander scale at Comic-Con, but there's a thousand other things down there. The fact that this is just a Lost event and has this level of enthusiasm, with this fan turn-out, it's a little bit shocking to us.
Cuse: I think one of the unique things about Lost is that you not only have fans of this show, but the fans themselves form a community that transcends the show. I was in the middle of talking to a fan out front and the fan all of a sudden gasped and ran off to hug someone. She came back and said, "Excuse me, this is a person I've known online and have never met in person before." This is not just an event about coming here to see the Lost art, for a lot of fans, it's a chance to meet one another.

TVGuide.com: We hear there are some little hints in the final poster. What should fans take away from viewing this?
Cuse: I think you should look in there and there will be a couple of clues to the final season that are embedded in that poster. It will make a lot of sense once you've actually seen a few episodes of the show.
Lindelof: You should look at the poster and think of the things you've seen on the show, and then whatever else is left, that's a clue for Season 6.

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TVGuide.com: Did you guys have a say in what was put into the posters?
Cuse: Only in the last one in terms of embedding a couple of clues in it, but obviously, [Jensen Karp] was responsible for putting the show together, along with Sam Thomas and Noreen O'Toole, who work in the Lost offices. We're just blown away by the artistry and the imagination of all the artists and what they brought to the table.
Lindelof: As every poster came in, we probably experienced what it's like for a fan to watch an episode of Lost. You've never seen it, you don't know what to expect, it's cool. You have to look at it for five minutes and then look at it again to truly appreciate it. The idea that Jensen basically introduced us to the artists' work before we actually saw what they were going to do with our show, and the way they interpreted it was just amazing. I just don't have enough wall space in my house for every single one of these posters.

TVGuide.com: Do you guys have a favorite out of these posters?
Cuse: If you were to twist my arm, I'd say that the Locke poster is my favorite. If the gallery caught fire all of a sudden, I would grab that and run.
Lindelof: I'm a big fan of the hatch poster. I feel when you look at the intricacies that are going on below every level of the art, there's something else there on every level. That, I feel, really encapsulates the spirit of the show. I think it's beautiful to look at too.