Frank Lapidus
Encyclopedia
Frank J. Lapidus is a fictional character
on the ABC
television series Lost
played by Jeff Fahey
. Frank is introduced in the second episode of season four
as a pilot hired on a mission to the island where Oceanic Flight 815
crashed. He aids the survivors of the crash against mercenary Martin Keamy
(Kevin Durand
) and helps to rescue a group who become known as the Oceanic Six. Three years later, Frank encounters the group again while working as a commercial airline pilot. His plane lands back on the island, and he is forcibly taken in by a group of his passengers headed by Ilana (Zuleikha Robinson
) and Bram (Brad William Henke
), who are working for the island's highest authority figure Jacob (Mark Pellegrino
).
Frank's name was created by co-executive producer Edward Kitsis
, who had been pitching the name "Lapidus" for years and had also used it for an unseen character in the episode "Exposé
". Fahey was the producers' first choice for the role, which was developed to suit his personality. As a result of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
, Frank's role in the first half of season four was diminished, and some planned storylines were carried over into the fifth season
. Frank's introduction, along with the three other new characters from the freighter introduced in season four, was well received, as was his return in season five. Lost executive producer Damon Lindelof
confirmed in an interview that Lapidus would be a series regular for the show's sixth
and final season.
, New York
, Frank was the intended pilot of Oceanic Airlines
Flight 815, which crashed on an island in the South Pacific
. He is first encountered in The Bahamas, ringing the NTSB
to state that the body of the pilot of Flight 815 shown on the sea bed, on the Television news, is not who it is claimed to be. Frank is later recruited as a pilot on behalf of Charles Widmore
(Alan Dale
), who is chartering a freighter
destined for the island upon which Flight 815 crashed. Frank reveals himself to be a conspiracy theorist who believes there are still survivors of Flight 815. He goes on to pilot a helicopter
from the freighter to the island, which malfunctions on approach. His team—consisting of Daniel Faraday
(Jeremy Davies
), Charlotte Lewis
(Rebecca Mader
) and Miles Straume
(Ken Leung
)—parachute to safety, and Frank is able to land the helicopter without incurring significant damage. Lapidus identifies Juliet Burke
(Elizabeth Mitchell
) as a "local" and in response to the return of Charlotte, who was being held hostage by John Locke
(Terry O'Quinn
), flies Desmond Hume
(Henry Ian Cusick
) and Sayid Jarrah
(Naveen Andrews
) to the freighter.
Later, Frank disagrees with the actions of fellow freighter passenger Martin Keamy
(Kevin Durand
), a mercenary hired to capture island inhabitant Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson
). He helps a group of survivors avoid Keamy's team, and later attempts to resist Keamy's command. When Keamy murders the freighter's captain (Grant Bowler
) in a display of power, he is forced to comply, but is able to secretly transfer a satellite phone to the survivors as a warning. When a group of survivors overpower Keamy's mercenaries, Frank attempts to fly them to safety. Due to a lack of fuel, the group—consisting of Lapidus, Sayid , Desmond, Jack Shephard
(Matthew Fox
), Hugo Reyes (Jorge Garcia
), Kate Austen
(Evangeline Lilly
), Sun-Hwa Kwon (Yunjin Kim) and Aaron Littleton—crash into the ocean, where they take to a lifeboat and are later rescued by the Searcher, a ship belonging to Desmond's girlfriend Penelope Widmore (Sonya Walger
).
Following their rescue, Frank begins working for Ajira Airways. He encounters the survivors again three years later, while piloting Flight 316 to Guam
. Frank realizes the Oceanic Six intend to return to the island, and minutes later, the flight experiences extreme turbulence
. Frank and his co-pilot are able to land the plane on the adjacent Hydra Island, although the co-pilot is killed. After gathering the survivors of Flight 316 together, Frank accompanies Sun and Ben to the main island. They meet Christian Shephard
(John Terry
), who reveals that the remaining survivors have travelled through time to 1977. Christian instructs them to await the arrival of John Locke, which they do. Sun is determined to remain with Locke and find her husband Jin-Soo Kwon
(Daniel Dae Kim), so Frank parts from her, returning to Hydra Island intent on repairing the jet radio to call for help. Upon his return, Frank finds that passenger Ilana (Zuleikha Robinson
) has found guns on the island and claimed leadership of the group. After he is unable to answer her cryptic question "What lies in the shadow of the statue?" she attacks him and knocks him out. Frank later regains consciousness in an outrigger
, being transported back to the main island by Ilana, Bram (Brad William Henke
) and three other Flight 316 survivors. He overhears them discussing whether or not he may be a potential "candidate", though when he asks what he may be a candidate for, they refuse to elaborate. Frank accompanies the group through the jungle to meet up with the island's native inhabitants The Others, at the foot of the aforementioned statue.
In the season six premiere "LA X
", Frank tells Sun that he does not trust Ilana and her men. He then witnesses The Man in Black (also O'Quinn), who was posing as Locke all along, knock out Richard Alpert
, the Others' ageless advisor. He then participates in the burial of the real Locke. Frank then accompanies Ben, Sun and Ilana to rescue any inhabitant of the attacked Temple. They only rescue Miles. They eventually decide to head for the beach. Frank overhears Miles saying that Ben killed Jacob (Mark Pellegrino
). He then tells Ben that he was the original pilot of Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. He is at the beach when Jack, Hurley and Richard arrive.
In order to stop the Man in Black from leaving the island, Richard suggests that they destroy the Ajira plane. After Ilana is killed while holding dynamites, Frank goes to the Black Rock with the group in order to get more dynamite. However, Hurley blows up the ship in order to prevent anymore risks; destroying all the dynamite supplies. After Hurley tells of his plan to talk to the Man in Black and Richard goes with his plan to destroy the plane, Frank joins Hurley, along with Jack, and Sun. Their group then merge with the Man in Black's camp.
Later, Charles Widmore's second in command, Zoe, arrives at the camp and threatens to destroy the camp with artillery shells if the Man in Black does not give back Desmond. Frank, Jack, Hurley, Sun, and Claire Littleton
(Emilie de Ravin
) go with Sawyer's plan of betraying the Man in Black by joining Widmore, and they escape from the Man in Black's group. After Jack leaves the group, due to his reluctance to leave the island, the remaining group reach Hydra Island. However, Widmore betrays them, and has them locked in the animal cages at Hydra Station
. The Man in Black attacks Widmore's camp as the Smoke Monster; allowing Jack, who has joined the Man in Black, to free Frank and the rest of the group. They then head to the Ajira plane to leave the island. But when they get to the plane, the Man in Black reveals the plane is rigged with C4. He then suggests they leave the island by Widmore's submarine.
Frank and the group reach the sub, and they take control of it. After betraying the Man in Black, Widmore's men attack, but they manage to submerge. Jack then discovers the Man in Black planted the C4 in Jack's bag. Sayid sacrifices himself and runs off with the C4 as far away from the others as he could until it explodes. The explosion causes the submarine to sink, and Frank is knocked out after a door hits him. Frank revives and makes it to the surface of the water. He is found by Richard and Miles as they head for Hydra Island to blow up the Ajira plane. Frank convinces them to steal the plane and let him fly it. After much repair work and picking up Kate, Claire, and Sawyer, the plane takes off and heads for home.
) landed on the island in season three, the producers began to plan who else would be on the boat she came from. They wanted these new characters to be interested in finding the island for their own personal reasons. The team created consisted of Frank, Daniel Faraday, Charlotte Lewis and Miles Straume, referred to as the "freighter folk". Their relationship with the survivors of Flight 815 formed the crux of the fourth season. Co-executive producer/writer Edward Kitsis
had been pitching the name "Lapidus" for years, finally naming an unseen character in the fourteenth episode of the third season
Rick Lapidus. Unsatisfied, Kitsis developed the character "Frank Lapidus, Helicopter Pilot". According to producers Damon Lindelof
and Carlton Cuse
, Jeff Fahey "was the first and only choice for the role". Cuse had enjoyed Fahey's roles in The Lawnmower Man
and The Marshal
, and he and Lindelof commended his "intense eyes", stating that "he has exactly the right sensibilities" for the part. Fahey was offered the part without having to audition. At the time the producers began to consider him for the role, he had taken a break from acting and was living in Afghanistan
, doing charity work and running an orphanage in Kabul
. When Cuse contacted him about appearing in the show, Fahey was on the top of a mountain in Caracas
, Venezuela
during a rainstorm, having just opened an orphanage. He had never seen the series before, but the producers talked him through the first three seasons in an attempt to convince him to return to acting and accept the role. When he was cast, Fahey was unaware of whether he would be a guest star, or would develop into a regular. Focus on the character was diminished by the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
, which resulted in the fourth season being cut short. The latter half of the season did feature the character more predominately, however some stories planned for Frank and his fellow freighter folk had to be deferred to the fifth season.
Frank was not originally envisioned with a beard, however at the time of his casting, Fahey himself had one. Lindelof and Cuse felt that the beard worked with Lapidus' character, and allowed Fahey to keep it for the role, with the requirement he shave it back to a more manageable length. The character remained bearded until his return in fifth season episode "316
", set three years on from his original introduction. Fahey praised the way the character was developed to suit him, explaining that upon meeting with Lindelof and Cuse, rather than discussing the show with him, they were more interested in him personally and his experiences, going on to incorporate elements of himself into Lapidus. He expanded: "The beauty of this is they'll feed you a concept based on an idea of who you are. The actor and the characters are not suits off the rack, they tailor-make them to you. What's very exciting is it is a very positive give and take. It's a nice dance, as it were." Fahey was not given an overarching overview of his character, nor were any of the other new freighter folk, which he found exciting, creating a level of intrigue amongst the cast and crew as well as fans. Prior to arrival on the island, Lapidus was described by Naomi as a drunk. Entertainment Weekly
' s Kristin Dos Santos deemed Lapidus the most laid back of the four new characters, though Fahey commented that "It might be because he's just rolled around a few more places a little longer than the others", agreeing with Dos Santos' assessment that Lapidus was "a little nomadic". Lindelof and Cuse have said that Frank "never takes anything at face value [and is] a true conspiracy nut [who] has probably seen every episode of The X-Files
, [which will] pay off for him".
(Kiele Sanchez
) and Paulo
(Rodrigo Santoro
), introduced in season three. However, following their introduction in "Confirmed Dead", the four characters were well received, with Paige Albiniak of the New York Post
citing them as a reason behind the show's improved ratings. Erin Martell of AOL
's TV Squad wrote that within one episode Fahey had already won her over, and called Frank her favorite new Lost character. IGN
's Chris Carabott described Frank, as well as the other new characters from the freighter, as "great" and "exciting", writing that: "Fahey's Lapidus has exceptional screen presence that even overshadows the regular cast members to an extent." TV Guide
' s Bruce Fretts praised the casting of the freighter folk, noting that Fahey had been a personal favourite of his since his appearance in The Marshall. He deemed the group all stronger actors than former Lost stars Michelle Rodriguez
, Rodrigo Santoro
, Maggie Grace
and Ian Somerhalder
, and expressed hope that they would remain on the show longer. Jeff Jensen from Entertainment Weekly
called the new characters "fascinating" and wrote that they "totally worked for me, while their intriguing backstories left me jonesing for more." Peter Mucha of The Philadelphia Inquirer
deemed Frank's flashback "mind-bending", and Oscar Dahl of BuddyTV
called "Confirmed Dead" the "perfect introduction" to the new characters, writing that he could not wait to find out more about them. Michael Ausiello
of TV Guide
also enjoyed their introduction, and praised the actors' performances. Casey Gillis for The News & Advance
highlighted the introduction of the freighter folk as one of the highlights of the season, opining that they "fit seamlessly into the ensemble", while Digital Spy
's Ben Rawson-Jones praised the season for introducing Frank, who he deemed "a real cult figure." In contrast, James Poniewozik of Time
was critical of Lapidus. He wrote that he was amazed by the economy and precision with which the new characters were introduced because "Each got just one flashback and a little time on the island, and yet by the end of the episode, I felt I had a true handle on what they were like as individuals." He appended, however, that this was: "with the possible exception of Frank, who seems a bit too generic-drunk-hippie-guy for now."
Following the episode "Something Nice Back Home
", TV Guide' s Trish Wethman noted that she was intrigued by Lapidus' "seemingly heroic antics" in saving a group of the survivors from Keamy and his men, though overall was confused by the motivations of the freighter folk. Carabott wrote that Frank's return in the fifth season
episode "316
" was shocking, but seemed as though it was meant to be. He opined that: "The chances of Frank being on that plane are astronomical and the fact that he was supposed to be the pilot of Flight 815 just makes the situation all the more unusual. His appearance in this episode is absurd but after four and a half seasons of Lost it makes perfect sense." James Yates of the Staten Island Advance
wrote that it was "great" to see Frank again, as he had missed the character's presence, and hoped he would play a major part upon returning to the island.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
on the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television series Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
played by Jeff Fahey
Jeff Fahey
Jeffrey David "Jeff" Fahey is an American film and television actor. He has portrayed Captain Frank Lapidus on the ABC series Lost and the title role of Deputy Marshal Winston MacBride on The Marshal.-Early life:...
. Frank is introduced in the second episode of season four
Lost (season 4)
The fourth season of the American serial drama television series Lost commenced airing on the American Broadcasting Company Network in the United States, and on CTV in Canada on January 31, 2008 and concluded on May 29, 2008...
as a pilot hired on a mission to the island where Oceanic Flight 815
Oceanic Airlines
Oceanic Airlines and less frequently Oceanic Airways are fictional airlines used in several films and television programs.The most famous use of this brand is in the TV show Lost, where Oceanic Airlines is featured branded with a highly-stylized logo depicting an Aboriginal dot painting that...
crashed. He aids the survivors of the crash against mercenary Martin Keamy
Martin Keamy
First Sergeant Martin Christopher Keamy is a recurring fictional character played by Kevin Durand in the fourth season and sixth season of the American ABC television series Lost. Keamy is introduced in the fifth episode of the fourth season as a crew member aboard the freighter called the Kahana...
(Kevin Durand
Kevin Durand
Kevin Serge Durand is a Canadian actor known for his roles as Joshua in Dark Angel, Martin Keamy in Lost, Fred J. Dukes in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the Archangel Gabriel in Legion, and Little John in Robin Hood....
) and helps to rescue a group who become known as the Oceanic Six. Three years later, Frank encounters the group again while working as a commercial airline pilot. His plane lands back on the island, and he is forcibly taken in by a group of his passengers headed by Ilana (Zuleikha Robinson
Zuleikha Robinson
Zuleikha Robinson is an English actress, raised in Thailand and Malaysia by a Burmese-Indian mother and an English father. She is a graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles, and best known for playing Ilana in the ABC show Lost.In 2006, she played a Bengali character called...
) and Bram (Brad William Henke
Brad William Henke
Brad William Henke is an American actor.-Biography:Henke was born in Columbus, Nebraska. He starred in October Road and in the movies Around June with Samaire Armstrong and Jon Gries, The Amateurs with Jeff Bridges and Tim Blake Nelson, In the Valley of Elah with Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize...
), who are working for the island's highest authority figure Jacob (Mark Pellegrino
Mark Pellegrino
Mark Ross Pellegrino is an American actor of film and television. He is best known for his work on Lost as Jacob and for playing Lucifer on Supernatural.-Career:...
).
Frank's name was created by co-executive producer Edward Kitsis
Edward Kitsis
Edward Lawrence Kitsis, also sometimes credited as Eddy Kitsis, is an American screenwriter and producer, best known for his work on the popular American television series, Lost and Once Upon a Time.-Life and career:...
, who had been pitching the name "Lapidus" for years and had also used it for an unseen character in the episode "Exposé
Exposé (Lost)
"Exposé" is the 14th episode of the 3rd season and 63rd episode overall of the American Broadcasting Company 's serial drama television series Lost. It was aired as on ABC in the United States and on CTV in Canada on March 28, 2007...
". Fahey was the producers' first choice for the role, which was developed to suit his personality. As a result of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
, Frank's role in the first half of season four was diminished, and some planned storylines were carried over into the fifth season
Lost (season 5)
The fifth season of the American serial drama television series Lost commenced airing on the ABC network in the United States and on A in Canada in January 2009, and concluded with a two-hour season finale on May 13, 2009...
. Frank's introduction, along with the three other new characters from the freighter introduced in season four, was well received, as was his return in season five. Lost executive producer Damon Lindelof
Damon Lindelof
Damon Laurence Lindelof is an American television writer and executive, most recently noted as the co-creator and executive producer for the television series Lost. He has written for and produced Crossing Jordan, and wrote for Nash Bridges, Wasteland, and the MTV anthology series Undressed...
confirmed in an interview that Lapidus would be a series regular for the show's sixth
Lost (season 6)
The sixth and final season of the American serial drama television series Lost commenced airing in the United States and Canada on February 2, 2010. The sixth-season premiere was the first to climb in the ratings year-over-year since the second season, drawing 12.1 million viewers. The season...
and final season.
Arc
Originally from The BronxThe Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Frank was the intended pilot of Oceanic Airlines
Oceanic Airlines
Oceanic Airlines and less frequently Oceanic Airways are fictional airlines used in several films and television programs.The most famous use of this brand is in the TV show Lost, where Oceanic Airlines is featured branded with a highly-stylized logo depicting an Aboriginal dot painting that...
Flight 815, which crashed on an island in the South Pacific
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
. He is first encountered in The Bahamas, ringing the NTSB
National Transportation Safety Board
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
to state that the body of the pilot of Flight 815 shown on the sea bed, on the Television news, is not who it is claimed to be. Frank is later recruited as a pilot on behalf of Charles Widmore
Charles Widmore
Charles Widmore is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of over forty people after their plane crashes on a remote island somewhere in the south Pacific. He is primarily portrayed as an older man by Alan Dale; Tom Connolly and David S...
(Alan Dale
Alan Dale
Alan Hugh Dale is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale developed a love of theatre and also became a rugby player. After retiring from the sport he took on a number of professions to support his family, before deciding to become a professional actor at the age of 27. With work limited in New...
), who is chartering a freighter
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
destined for the island upon which Flight 815 crashed. Frank reveals himself to be a conspiracy theorist who believes there are still survivors of Flight 815. He goes on to pilot a helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
from the freighter to the island, which malfunctions on approach. His team—consisting of Daniel Faraday
Daniel Faraday
Dr. Daniel Faraday, often referred to as Dan or simply by his surname, Faraday, is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Jeremy Davies. Faraday is introduced in the season four premiere as a physicist, suffering from memory loss, and is part of the team aboard the ...
(Jeremy Davies
Jeremy Davies
Father Jeremy Davies , an English Roman Catholic priest whose parish is based around Old Hall Green, is a former doctor and also a leading exorcist....
), Charlotte Lewis
Charlotte Lewis (Lost)
Dr. Charlotte Staples Lewis is a fictional character on the American Broadcasting Company television series Lost, played by Rebecca Mader. Charlotte is introduced in the second episode of season four and is a cultural anthropologist on a mission to the island where Oceanic Flight 815 crashed...
(Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Mader
Rebecca Leigh Mader is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Morgan Gordon on All My Children and Charlotte Lewis on Lost.-Career:...
) and Miles Straume
Miles Straume
Miles Straume is a fictional character played by Ken Leung on the ABC television series Lost. Miles is introduced early in the fourth season as a hotheaded and sarcastic medium as a crew member aboard the freighter called the Kahana that is offshore the island where most of Lost takes place...
(Ken Leung
Ken Leung
Kenneth "Ken" Leung is an American actor best known for his role as Miles Straume in the ABC television series Lost and roles in such films as Shanghai Kiss, Rush Hour, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Saw.-Early life:...
)—parachute to safety, and Frank is able to land the helicopter without incurring significant damage. Lapidus identifies Juliet Burke
Juliet Burke
Dr. Juliet Burke is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Elizabeth Mitchell. Her character was introduced in the third season premiere.- Prior to arrival on the island :...
(Elizabeth Mitchell
Elizabeth Mitchell
Elizabeth Mitchell , is an American actress/modelwho is known for her roles as Dr. Juliet Burke on ABC's TV series Lost and as FBI agent Erica Evans on V. She has starred in such films as The Santa Clause 2, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, and Gia.-Early life:Mitchell was born Elizabeth...
) as a "local" and in response to the return of Charlotte, who was being held hostage by John Locke
John Locke (Lost)
John Locke is a fictional character played by Terry O'Quinn on the ABC television series Lost. He is named after English philosopher John Locke...
(Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn
Terry O'Quinn is an American actor, most famous for playing John Locke on the TV series Lost. He made his debut in a 1980 television movie called F.D.R.: The Last Year. Since then, O'Quinn has had minor supporting roles in films and TV movies such as Young Guns, All the Right Moves, Silver Bullet,...
), flies Desmond Hume
Desmond Hume
Desmond David Hume is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost portrayed by Henry Ian Cusick. Desmond's name is a tribute to David Hume, the famous empiricist author and philosopher. Desmond was not a passenger of Flight 815. He had been stranded on the island three years prior to...
(Henry Ian Cusick
Henry Ian Cusick
Henry Ian Cusick is a Scottish-Peruvian actor of stage, television, and film. He is well-known for his role as Desmond Hume on the United States television series Lost, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination....
) and Sayid Jarrah
Sayid Jarrah
Sayid Hassan Jarrah is a character from the ABC show Lost portrayed by Naveen Andrews.-Season 1:Sayid fixes the transceiver recovered from the cockpit, and leads a group into the jungle in order to send out a distress signal. Instead, he picks up a looping message . He tries to locate the...
(Naveen Andrews
Naveen Andrews
Naveen William Sidney Andrews is a British American actor. He is best known for portraying Kip in the movie The English Patient and Sayid Jarrah on the American television series Lost.-Early life:...
) to the freighter.
Later, Frank disagrees with the actions of fellow freighter passenger Martin Keamy
Martin Keamy
First Sergeant Martin Christopher Keamy is a recurring fictional character played by Kevin Durand in the fourth season and sixth season of the American ABC television series Lost. Keamy is introduced in the fifth episode of the fourth season as a crew member aboard the freighter called the Kahana...
(Kevin Durand
Kevin Durand
Kevin Serge Durand is a Canadian actor known for his roles as Joshua in Dark Angel, Martin Keamy in Lost, Fred J. Dukes in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the Archangel Gabriel in Legion, and Little John in Robin Hood....
), a mercenary hired to capture island inhabitant Benjamin Linus (Michael Emerson
Michael Emerson
Michael Emerson is an American actor who is perhaps best known for his roles as Benjamin Linus on Lost and fictional serial killer William Hinks in The Practice.-Early life:...
). He helps a group of survivors avoid Keamy's team, and later attempts to resist Keamy's command. When Keamy murders the freighter's captain (Grant Bowler
Grant Bowler
Grant Bowler is a New Zealand actor who has worked in American, Australian and New Zealand films and television.He is known for playing the role of Constable Wayne Patterson in Blue Heelers and also appeared as Wilhelmina Slater's love interest Connor Owens in Ugly Betty.In November 2010, he was...
) in a display of power, he is forced to comply, but is able to secretly transfer a satellite phone to the survivors as a warning. When a group of survivors overpower Keamy's mercenaries, Frank attempts to fly them to safety. Due to a lack of fuel, the group—consisting of Lapidus, Sayid , Desmond, Jack Shephard
Jack Shephard
Dr. Jack Shephard is a fictional character and protagonist of the ABC television series Lost played by Matthew Fox. Lost follows the journey of the survivors of Oceanic Airlines flight 815 on a mysterious island and their attempts to survive and escape, slowly uncovering more of the much broader...
(Matthew Fox
Matthew Fox (actor)
Matthew Chandler Fox is an American actor. He is mostly known for his role as Charlie Salinger on Party of Five, and for portraying Jack Shephard on the supernatural drama television series Lost.- Early life :...
), Hugo Reyes (Jorge Garcia
Jorge Garcia
Jorge García is a U.S. actor and comedian. He first came to public attention with his performance as Hector Lopez on the television show Becker and later for his portrayal of Hugo "Hurley" Reyes in the television series Lost. Garcia also performs as a stand-up comedian.-Early life:García was born...
), Kate Austen
Kate Austen
Katherine Anne "Kate" Austen is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, played by Canadian actress Evangeline Lilly. She is the de facto female lead...
(Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly
Evangeline Lilly is a Canadian actress, best known for her role as Kate Austen in the ABC drama, Lost.-Early life:...
), Sun-Hwa Kwon (Yunjin Kim) and Aaron Littleton—crash into the ocean, where they take to a lifeboat and are later rescued by the Searcher, a ship belonging to Desmond's girlfriend Penelope Widmore (Sonya Walger
Sonya Walger
Sonya Walger is an English actress known for her roles in the ABC series Lost as Penelope "Penny" Widmore, and as Olivia Benford on ABC's FlashForward.-Education:...
).
Following their rescue, Frank begins working for Ajira Airways. He encounters the survivors again three years later, while piloting Flight 316 to Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
. Frank realizes the Oceanic Six intend to return to the island, and minutes later, the flight experiences extreme turbulence
Turbulence
In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is a flow regime characterized by chaotic and stochastic property changes. This includes low momentum diffusion, high momentum convection, and rapid variation of pressure and velocity in space and time...
. Frank and his co-pilot are able to land the plane on the adjacent Hydra Island, although the co-pilot is killed. After gathering the survivors of Flight 316 together, Frank accompanies Sun and Ben to the main island. They meet Christian Shephard
Christian Shephard
Dr. Christian Shephard is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by John Terry. He is the father of lead characters Jack Shephard , who becomes the de facto leader of the survivors of Oceanic 815 after it crashes on an island, and Claire Littleton , another of the survivors...
(John Terry
John Terry (actor)
John Terry is an American film, television, and stage actor.-Early life:Terry was born in Florida, where he attended Vero Beach High School. He was also educated at the prestigious Loomis Chaffee prep school in Windsor, Connecticut, and began a career building original custom log homes in North...
), who reveals that the remaining survivors have travelled through time to 1977. Christian instructs them to await the arrival of John Locke, which they do. Sun is determined to remain with Locke and find her husband Jin-Soo Kwon
Jin-Soo Kwon
Jin-Soo Kwon, better known as "Jin," is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost played by Daniel Dae Kim.- Prior to the crash :...
(Daniel Dae Kim), so Frank parts from her, returning to Hydra Island intent on repairing the jet radio to call for help. Upon his return, Frank finds that passenger Ilana (Zuleikha Robinson
Zuleikha Robinson
Zuleikha Robinson is an English actress, raised in Thailand and Malaysia by a Burmese-Indian mother and an English father. She is a graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles, and best known for playing Ilana in the ABC show Lost.In 2006, she played a Bengali character called...
) has found guns on the island and claimed leadership of the group. After he is unable to answer her cryptic question "What lies in the shadow of the statue?" she attacks him and knocks him out. Frank later regains consciousness in an outrigger
Outrigger
An outrigger is a part of a boat's rigging which is rigid and extends beyond the side or gunwale of a boat.In an outrigger canoe and in sailboats such as the proa, an outrigger is a thin, long, solid, hull used to stabilise an inherently unstable main hull. The outrigger is positioned rigidly and...
, being transported back to the main island by Ilana, Bram (Brad William Henke
Brad William Henke
Brad William Henke is an American actor.-Biography:Henke was born in Columbus, Nebraska. He starred in October Road and in the movies Around June with Samaire Armstrong and Jon Gries, The Amateurs with Jeff Bridges and Tim Blake Nelson, In the Valley of Elah with Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize...
) and three other Flight 316 survivors. He overhears them discussing whether or not he may be a potential "candidate", though when he asks what he may be a candidate for, they refuse to elaborate. Frank accompanies the group through the jungle to meet up with the island's native inhabitants The Others, at the foot of the aforementioned statue.
In the season six premiere "LA X
LA X
"LA X" comprises the 104th and 105th episodes of the American Broadcasting Company's Lost, marking the premiere of the sixth and final season. It was written by show runners/executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse and directed by executive producer Jack Bender...
", Frank tells Sun that he does not trust Ilana and her men. He then witnesses The Man in Black (also O'Quinn), who was posing as Locke all along, knock out Richard Alpert
Richard Alpert (Lost)
Ricardo "Richard" Alpert is a fictional character played by Nestor Carbonell in the American ABC television series Lost. Alpert is introduced in a flashback of the character Juliet Burke , where he claims to be a doctor for a bioscience company called Mittelos Bioscience; he is later revealed to...
, the Others' ageless advisor. He then participates in the burial of the real Locke. Frank then accompanies Ben, Sun and Ilana to rescue any inhabitant of the attacked Temple. They only rescue Miles. They eventually decide to head for the beach. Frank overhears Miles saying that Ben killed Jacob (Mark Pellegrino
Mark Pellegrino
Mark Ross Pellegrino is an American actor of film and television. He is best known for his work on Lost as Jacob and for playing Lucifer on Supernatural.-Career:...
). He then tells Ben that he was the original pilot of Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. He is at the beach when Jack, Hurley and Richard arrive.
In order to stop the Man in Black from leaving the island, Richard suggests that they destroy the Ajira plane. After Ilana is killed while holding dynamites, Frank goes to the Black Rock with the group in order to get more dynamite. However, Hurley blows up the ship in order to prevent anymore risks; destroying all the dynamite supplies. After Hurley tells of his plan to talk to the Man in Black and Richard goes with his plan to destroy the plane, Frank joins Hurley, along with Jack, and Sun. Their group then merge with the Man in Black's camp.
Later, Charles Widmore's second in command, Zoe, arrives at the camp and threatens to destroy the camp with artillery shells if the Man in Black does not give back Desmond. Frank, Jack, Hurley, Sun, and Claire Littleton
Claire Littleton
Claire Littleton is a fictional character played by Emilie de Ravin on the ABC drama television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of the survivors of a plane crash in the South Pacific. Claire is introduced in the pilot episode as a pregnant crash survivor. She is a series regular until her...
(Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin
Emilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
) go with Sawyer's plan of betraying the Man in Black by joining Widmore, and they escape from the Man in Black's group. After Jack leaves the group, due to his reluctance to leave the island, the remaining group reach Hydra Island. However, Widmore betrays them, and has them locked in the animal cages at Hydra Station
DHARMA Initiative
The Dharma Initiative, also written DHARMA , was a fictional research project featured in the television series Lost. It was introduced in the second season episode "Orientation". In 2008, the Dharma Initiative website was launched. Dharma's interests were directly connected with fringe science...
. The Man in Black attacks Widmore's camp as the Smoke Monster; allowing Jack, who has joined the Man in Black, to free Frank and the rest of the group. They then head to the Ajira plane to leave the island. But when they get to the plane, the Man in Black reveals the plane is rigged with C4. He then suggests they leave the island by Widmore's submarine.
Frank and the group reach the sub, and they take control of it. After betraying the Man in Black, Widmore's men attack, but they manage to submerge. Jack then discovers the Man in Black planted the C4 in Jack's bag. Sayid sacrifices himself and runs off with the C4 as far away from the others as he could until it explodes. The explosion causes the submarine to sink, and Frank is knocked out after a door hits him. Frank revives and makes it to the surface of the water. He is found by Richard and Miles as they head for Hydra Island to blow up the Ajira plane. Frank convinces them to steal the plane and let him fly it. After much repair work and picking up Kate, Claire, and Sawyer, the plane takes off and heads for home.
Development
After Naomi Dorrit (Marsha ThomasonMarsha Thomason
Marsha Lisa Thomason is an English actress, who is known in the United States for playing Nessa Holt in the first two seasons of the NBC series Las Vegas, for her recurring role on ABC's Lost as Naomi Dorrit, and for playing FBI agent Diana Berrigan on USA Network's White Collar.-Early...
) landed on the island in season three, the producers began to plan who else would be on the boat she came from. They wanted these new characters to be interested in finding the island for their own personal reasons. The team created consisted of Frank, Daniel Faraday, Charlotte Lewis and Miles Straume, referred to as the "freighter folk". Their relationship with the survivors of Flight 815 formed the crux of the fourth season. Co-executive producer/writer Edward Kitsis
Edward Kitsis
Edward Lawrence Kitsis, also sometimes credited as Eddy Kitsis, is an American screenwriter and producer, best known for his work on the popular American television series, Lost and Once Upon a Time.-Life and career:...
had been pitching the name "Lapidus" for years, finally naming an unseen character in the fourteenth episode of the third season
Exposé (Lost)
"Exposé" is the 14th episode of the 3rd season and 63rd episode overall of the American Broadcasting Company 's serial drama television series Lost. It was aired as on ABC in the United States and on CTV in Canada on March 28, 2007...
Rick Lapidus. Unsatisfied, Kitsis developed the character "Frank Lapidus, Helicopter Pilot". According to producers Damon Lindelof
Damon Lindelof
Damon Laurence Lindelof is an American television writer and executive, most recently noted as the co-creator and executive producer for the television series Lost. He has written for and produced Crossing Jordan, and wrote for Nash Bridges, Wasteland, and the MTV anthology series Undressed...
and Carlton Cuse
Carlton Cuse
Carlton Cuse is an AmericanEmmy Award winning screenwriter and producer, most famous as executive producer andscreenwriter for the American television series Lost for...
, Jeff Fahey "was the first and only choice for the role". Cuse had enjoyed Fahey's roles in The Lawnmower Man
The Lawnmower Man
"The Lawnmower Man" is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the May 1975 issue of Cavalier, and later collected in King's 1978 collection Night Shift.-Plot summary:...
and The Marshal
The Marshal
The Marshal is an American action-drama television series that aired on ABC for two brief seasons in 1995. The show starred Jeff Fahey as the title character, a United States Marshal charged with pursuing fugitives across the nation...
, and he and Lindelof commended his "intense eyes", stating that "he has exactly the right sensibilities" for the part. Fahey was offered the part without having to audition. At the time the producers began to consider him for the role, he had taken a break from acting and was living in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, doing charity work and running an orphanage in Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
. When Cuse contacted him about appearing in the show, Fahey was on the top of a mountain in Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
during a rainstorm, having just opened an orphanage. He had never seen the series before, but the producers talked him through the first three seasons in an attempt to convince him to return to acting and accept the role. When he was cast, Fahey was unaware of whether he would be a guest star, or would develop into a regular. Focus on the character was diminished by the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
, which resulted in the fourth season being cut short. The latter half of the season did feature the character more predominately, however some stories planned for Frank and his fellow freighter folk had to be deferred to the fifth season.
316 (Lost)
"316" is the sixth television episode of the fifth season of ABC's Lost. The 92nd episode of the show overall, "316" aired on February 18, 2009 on ABC in the United States, and was simulcast on A in Canada...
", set three years on from his original introduction. Fahey praised the way the character was developed to suit him, explaining that upon meeting with Lindelof and Cuse, rather than discussing the show with him, they were more interested in him personally and his experiences, going on to incorporate elements of himself into Lapidus. He expanded: "The beauty of this is they'll feed you a concept based on an idea of who you are. The actor and the characters are not suits off the rack, they tailor-make them to you. What's very exciting is it is a very positive give and take. It's a nice dance, as it were." Fahey was not given an overarching overview of his character, nor were any of the other new freighter folk, which he found exciting, creating a level of intrigue amongst the cast and crew as well as fans. Prior to arrival on the island, Lapidus was described by Naomi as a drunk. Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
, [which will] pay off for him".
Reception
Producers Lindelof and Cuse were initially worried about how the freighter folk characters would be received by fans, after the unhappy reaction to new characters NikkiNikki and Paulo
Nikki Fernandez and Paulo are fictional characters on the ABC drama television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of over forty people after their plane crashes on a remote island somewhere in the south Pacific...
(Kiele Sanchez
Kiele Sanchez
Kiele Michelle Sanchez is an American actress who stars in the A&E Network drama The Glades. Previously she starred as the second-eldest Sorelli sister, Anne, a therapist in her mid-twenties, in The WB's comedic ensemble drama, Related. She was cast as a co-star in the third season of the ABC...
) and Paulo
Nikki and Paulo
Nikki Fernandez and Paulo are fictional characters on the ABC drama television series Lost, which chronicles the lives of over forty people after their plane crashes on a remote island somewhere in the south Pacific...
(Rodrigo Santoro
Rodrigo Santoro
Rodrigo Junqueira dos Reis Santoro is a Brazilian actor.-Life and career:Santoro was born in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro. He is of half Brazilian and half Italian descent. In 1993, as Santoro was studying Journalism at PUC-Rio, he entered the Actor's Workshop of Rede Globo...
), introduced in season three. However, following their introduction in "Confirmed Dead", the four characters were well received, with Paige Albiniak of the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
citing them as a reason behind the show's improved ratings. Erin Martell of AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
's TV Squad wrote that within one episode Fahey had already won her over, and called Frank her favorite new Lost character. IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Chris Carabott described Frank, as well as the other new characters from the freighter, as "great" and "exciting", writing that: "Fahey's Lapidus has exceptional screen presence that even overshadows the regular cast members to an extent." TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
Michelle Rodriguez
Mayte Michelle Rodríguez , known professionally as Michelle Rodriguez, is an American actress. Following on from her breakthrough role in 2000's Girlfight, she is best known for playing tough-girl roles and starring in Hollywood blockbusters such as The Fast and the Furious, Resident Evil,...
, Rodrigo Santoro
Rodrigo Santoro
Rodrigo Junqueira dos Reis Santoro is a Brazilian actor.-Life and career:Santoro was born in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro. He is of half Brazilian and half Italian descent. In 1993, as Santoro was studying Journalism at PUC-Rio, he entered the Actor's Workshop of Rede Globo...
, Maggie Grace
Maggie Grace
Margaret Grace Denig , best known as Maggie Grace, is an American actress. Originally from Worthington, Ohio, she dropped out of high school to move to Los Angeles with her mother after her parents' divorce. While struggling financially, she landed her first role as the title character in the...
and Ian Somerhalder
Ian Somerhalder
Ian Joseph Somerhalder is an American model, actor and producer, best known for playing Boone Carlyle in the TV drama Lost and Damon Salvatore in the TV drama The Vampire Diaries.-Early life:...
, and expressed hope that they would remain on the show longer. Jeff Jensen from Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
called the new characters "fascinating" and wrote that they "totally worked for me, while their intriguing backstories left me jonesing for more." Peter Mucha of The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
deemed Frank's flashback "mind-bending", and Oscar Dahl of BuddyTV
BuddyTV
BuddyTV is an entertainment-based website based in Seattle, Washington, which generates content about television programs and sporting events. The website publishes information about celebrity and related entertainment news through a series of articles, entertainment profiles, actor biographies and...
called "Confirmed Dead" the "perfect introduction" to the new characters, writing that he could not wait to find out more about them. Michael Ausiello
Michael Ausiello
Michael Ausiello is an American television industry journalist and actor. He was a Senior Writer at TV Guide and its companion website, TVGuide.com. On May 28, 2008, Ausiello left TV Guide for Entertainment Weekly and posted his first blog for Entertainment Weekly on July 2, 2008...
of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
also enjoyed their introduction, and praised the actors' performances. Casey Gillis for The News & Advance
The News & Advance
The News & Advance is the daily newspaper of record in Lynchburg, Virginia. Its circulation is approximately 35,600 on weekdays, 35,000 on Saturdays and 41,200 on Sundays. Its primary circulation area consists of the city of Lynchburg and the surrounding counties of Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford,...
highlighted the introduction of the freighter folk as one of the highlights of the season, opining that they "fit seamlessly into the ensemble", while Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
's Ben Rawson-Jones praised the season for introducing Frank, who he deemed "a real cult figure." In contrast, James Poniewozik of Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
was critical of Lapidus. He wrote that he was amazed by the economy and precision with which the new characters were introduced because "Each got just one flashback and a little time on the island, and yet by the end of the episode, I felt I had a true handle on what they were like as individuals." He appended, however, that this was: "with the possible exception of Frank, who seems a bit too generic-drunk-hippie-guy for now."
Following the episode "Something Nice Back Home
Something Nice Back Home
"Something Nice Back Home" is the tenth episode of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of the serial drama television series Lost and 82nd episode overall. It was aired on May 1, 2008, on ABC in the United States and on CTV in Canada...
", TV Guide
Lost (season 5)
The fifth season of the American serial drama television series Lost commenced airing on the ABC network in the United States and on A in Canada in January 2009, and concluded with a two-hour season finale on May 13, 2009...
episode "316
316 (Lost)
"316" is the sixth television episode of the fifth season of ABC's Lost. The 92nd episode of the show overall, "316" aired on February 18, 2009 on ABC in the United States, and was simulcast on A in Canada...
" was shocking, but seemed as though it was meant to be. He opined that: "The chances of Frank being on that plane are astronomical and the fact that he was supposed to be the pilot of Flight 815 just makes the situation all the more unusual. His appearance in this episode is absurd but after four and a half seasons of Lost it makes perfect sense." James Yates of the Staten Island Advance
Staten Island Advance
The Staten Island Advance is a daily newspaper published in the borough of Staten Island in New York City. The only daily newspaper published in the borough, and the only borough to have its own major daily paper, it covers news of local and community interest, including borough politics. As of...
wrote that it was "great" to see Frank again, as he had missed the character's presence, and hoped he would play a major part upon returning to the island.