New Book Exposes Toxic Environment Behind the Scenes of Lost

In an excerpt from Maureen Ryan’s upcoming book on the dark side of Hollywood, Lost co-producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse are accused of fostering a toxic work culture.

Veteran reporter and entertainment critic Mo Ryan is leaving no stone left unturned in her upcoming book Burn It Down, which HarperCollins describes as “an exposé of patterns of harassment and bias in Hollywood, the grassroots reforms underway, and the labor and activist revolutions that recent scandals have ignited.” In a chapter of the book that was released today by Variety, Ryan uncovers the dark reality that plagued the set of one of television’s most celebrated shows, Lost.

The hit ABC series, which debuted almost 20 years ago, has long been hailed as a cornerstone of modern television. With its diverse ensemble cast, gripping sci-fi-infused plotlines, and serialized format — a risky divergence from the procedurals that saturated TV screens at the time — Lost ushered in a new era of television. But as Ryan uncovers, Lost’s success did not come without falling victim to the same corrupt and exploitative behaviors that have plagued Hollywood studios for decades.

The excerpt, in which Ryan interviews Lost actor Harold Perrineau and writers Monica Owusu-Breen, Melinda Hsu Taylor, and Javier Grillo-Marxuach — among other creatives involved with the show — brings to light the toxic environment that was forged under co-producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. “It’s very easy, especially 20 years after the fact, to think, Well, it can’t have been that bad or someone would have done something. Let me say it loud and clear: It was that bad, and no one did anything because retribution was a constant and looming presence,” says Grillo-Marxuach, who has since posted his statement on the events detailed in the book.

The disturbing interviews reveal a “cutthroat” writers’ room culture that encouraged casual racism, and sexist jokes, and intentionally neglected and punished writers of color. “We were discriminated against on the daily,” says Owusu-Breen, who was fired along with her writing partner not long after openly objecting to Cuse’s racially insensitive ideas for killing off the character of Mr. Eko. “Maybe they just didn’t like our writing, but it’s hard to tell if you’re discriminated against on the daily.”

The toxic environment extended beyond the writer’s room, impacting actors and other creatives as well. Perrineau, who played Michael Dawson on the show, gives an in-depth account of the racism he experienced, and being reprimanded when he tried to advocate for himself and the other actors of color. “Me mentioning the color of my skin — that just sent everybody off the rails,” Perrineau recalls of a 2008 interview in which he suggested his exit from the show was in part due to the show’s treatment of its Black characters.

The excerpt also features interviews from Lindelof and Cuse in response to the disturbing allegations. “My level of fundamental inexperience as a manager and a boss, my role as someone who was supposed to model a climate of creative danger and risk-taking but provide safety and comfort inside of the creative process — I failed in that endeavor,” says Lindelof. Cuse, who says the allegations are “deeply upsetting,” denies ever having any knowledge of bullying or harassment on the show and denies participating in those behaviors himself.

Ryan’s investigation into the grim reality of Lost’s behind-the-scenes environment speaks to the pervasiveness of racism, misogyny, and abuse in Hollywood, which the book seeks to unveil as a means of promoting healthy, equitable workplaces for creatives. Burn It Down goes beyond surface-level myths of Hollywood and into the rotted core of a culture built on power imbalances.

Burn It Down comes to bookshelves on June 6 and is available for pre-order now everywhere books are sold.