Damon Lindelof Has 'Profound Regrets' After Harold Perrineau Allegations of Toxic, Racist Lost Set

Co-creator Damon Lindelof was forthcoming and honest in his responses to the allegations levied against him and the show, admitting he "failed" in some ways during the show's 2004-2010 run in Maureen Ryan's upcoming book, "BURN IT DOWN: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood."

While acknowledging his failings at the time as a manager, boss and showrunner, Lindelof also says that he has since grown and evolved, in an exclusive excerpt of the book for Vanity Fair.

In an interview with Ryan for the book in 2022, Lindelof told her, "The way that I conduct myself and the way that I treat other humans who I am responsible for and a manager of is a by-product of all the mistakes that were made."

At the same time, he conceded that his personal growth "shouldn't have had to come at the cost and the trauma of people that I hurt on 'Lost.'"

The year prior he had admitted his "fundamental inexperience" led to him failing at being "someone who was supposed to model a climate of creative danger and risk-taking but provide safety and comfort inside of the creative process."

Harold Perrineau, who was among the show's original main cast members for its first two seasons as Michael, spoke out pretty harshly about his experiences with the production in the book. He said he went into it believing there would be "equitable" screen time for the main cast.

That shifted, though, as some of the characters started to move toward the forefront, with him not among them. "It became pretty clear that I was the Black guy, Daniel [Dae Kim, Jin] was the Asian guy, and then you had Jack [Matthew Fox] and Kate [Evangeline Lily] and Sawyer [Josh Holloway]."

A writer told Ryan that they were told repeatedly the "hero characters" were indeed Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Locke (Terry O'Quinn), all of them white. Perrineau said that when he raised his concerns, he was told these characters were more "relatable." Further, the writer recalled hearing, "Nobody cares about these other characters. Just give them a few scenes on another beach."

The "Oz" alum also said that he took issue with how one of the show's earliest mysteries was handled after his son on the show, Walt (Malcolm David Kelley) was kidnapped. As he saw it, the show's lack of follow-through on that narrative, and Michael's lack of focus on his missing son, was "furthering the narrative that nobody cares about Black boys, even Black fathers."

At the time, it was largely believed that the creators struggled with what to do with Walt because Kelley grew so dramatically. While filming took place over years, time was moving much slower on the island, making his sudden growth spurt problematic to explain. Cuse confirmed this, saying it was a problem they "did not know how to solve."

At the same time, Lindelof acknowledged there was "a high degree of insensitivity" toward the Black stereotypes Perrineau would try to bring up and combat. Ultimately, the friction between actor and co-creator would lead to Perrineau being unceremoniously written off the show after the second season.

Perinneau said he had expressed script concerns about his character's storylines, as well as what he saw as a lack of complexlty for his character. He told Lindelof and co-creator Carlton Cuse, "If you're going to use me, let's work. I'm here to work. I'm good at my job and I'll do anything you want. Except be 'the Black guy' on your show."

He was lashing out in particular over the fact that the first scripts for the episode where Walt was kidnapped had Sawyer flashbacks instead of Michael and/or Walt flashbacks. After his complaint, the flashbacks were changed but he said he "felt like suddenly they were mad at me."

Then he said that he was told he would not be asked back for Season 3. According to Perrineau, Cuse told him, "Well, you know, you said to us, if we don't have anything good for you, you want to go." Perrineau said he was "just asking for equal depth."

According to Ryan's book, other sources from the production claimed that Lindelof said of Perrineau's exit from the show, he "called me racist, so I fired his a--." Lindelof said he didn't recall "ever" saying that, and that "it breaks my heart that that was Harold's experience."

"I'll just cede that the events you're describing happened 17 years ago, and I don't know why anybody would make that up about me," Lindelof said.

Of the litany of allegations of things said by himself or Cruse, Lindelof said he didn't want to dismiss them, but he legitimately didn't recall any of the specific things Ryan mentioned. "And that's not me saying that they didn't happen," he insisted. "I'm just saying that it's literally baffling my brain--that they did happen and that I bore witness to them or that I said them. To think that they came out of my mouth or the mouths of people that I still consider friends is just not computing."

He also noted that every actor in the ensemble "expressed some degree of disappointment that they weren't being used enough." At the same time, he had to concede one of Perrineau's points.

"There was a disproportionate amount of focus on Jack and Kate and Locke and Sawyer -- the white characters. Harold was completely and totally right to point that out," he said. "It's one of the things that I've had deep and profound regrets about in the two decades since."

"I do feel that Harold was legitimately and professionally conveying concerns about his character and how significant it was that Michael and Walt -- with the exception of Rose -- were really the only Black characters on the show," Lindelof added.

Cuse said that he wasn't present, and didn't hear any of the comments brought up by Ryan, but noted, "I deeply regret that anyone at 'Lost' would have to hear them. They are highly insensitive, inappropriate, and offensive."