Mr. Eko
Encyclopedia
Mr. Eko Tunde is a fictional character
, played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
on the ABC
television series Lost
. He is introduced in the second season episode "Adrift
" as one of the plane-crash survivors from the plane's tail section. Flashbacks reveal that he became the leader of a gang of guerrillas to save his brother when he still lived in Nigeria
. He took the identity of his brother and became a priest after his brother was killed in a botched drug smuggle. Eko killed two guerrillas in defense, was ostracized, and left Nigeria to become a priest in Australia. After investigating the "fake miracle" of a girl who came back to life after drowning in Australia in 2004, Eko boarded Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. This plane crashed and left Eko, along with a few other survivors, on a deserted island.
Lost creators Damon Lindelof
and Carlton Cuse
were fans of Akinnuoye-Agbaje's work on HBO's Oz
, and asked him to portray the character. Although Akinnuoye-Agbaje was not initially interested in joining the cast, he was persuaded by Cuse and Lindelof, but for a shorter period than they had in mind. Akinnuoye-Agbaje had a lot of influence on his character, changing the character's name and making adjustments to Eko's personality. After appearing on the show for one season, Akinnuoye-Agbaje asked Cuse and Lindelof to write his character out of the show because he did not feel at home in Hawaii. They decided that a "shocking and emotional death" would be the best way to depart the character. Mr. Eko received many positive responses from critics and fans, who were disappointed that the character was killed after one season. A toy figure of Mr. Eko was included in a second series of Lost toy figures distributed by McFarlane Toys
. After seeing his brother on the island, Eko chases him until he stumbles upon the smoke monster
, which brutally murders him.
, Mr. Eko was born on January 31, 1968. He grew up always looking after his younger brother, Yemi (Adetokumboh M'Cormack), with whom he lived in a small village. As revealed in "The 23rd Psalm
", one day, when Eko is playing with the local children, a gang of guerrillas raids the village in search of young recruits. When Yemi refuses to shoot an elderly man, Eko steps in and shoots him himself, sparing Yemi from the same fate. Impressed by his actions, the guerrillas take Eko away with them and draw him away from his religious lifestyle and into the criminal life, where Eko adopted the title "Mr." He grows up to be a fearless drug lord and a vicious leader of a guerrilla group, while his brother becomes an honoured priest. Years after his abduction, Eko returns to his home village to ask Yemi to help him smuggle heroin, which Eko has hidden in a large number of Virgin Mary statues and intends to fly out of the country. Yemi refuses until Eko threatens his associates will burn the church down if he does not sign documents that allow him and his henchmen to appear as priests.
As Eko and his men assemble at the airfield on the day the shipment is ready to be smuggled, it is revealed Yemi has tipped off the military and now tries to convince Eko not to go through with his plans. When the military arrives, Yemi is wounded in the ensuing gun battle and Eko is kicked off of the plane. After the plane leaves, Eko is mistaken for Yemi and released back to his village. Feeling guilty over Yemi's death, Eko assumes his role as the village priest. One day, Eko encounters a gang of guerrillas who made a deal with Yemi: they take 80% of the vaccines delivered to the village in exchange for the village's safety. Soon after, the guerrillas arrive at the church and attempt to cut off Eko's hands. However, Eko fights back and kills them, much to the shock of the village. The church is thus boarded up and Eko is ostracized until he leaves for London.
After leaving England, Eko serves as a priest in Australia under the name Father Tunde. A monsignor asks him to investigate a reported miracle of a young lady who has come back to life after drowning. The father of the girl, Richard Malkin, dismisses the miracle as an act of incompetence by the undertaker, claiming the girl was suffering from severe hypothermia and the doctor misdiagnosed her as a result. Eko soon prepares to board Oceanic Airlines Flight 815; shortly after buying a ticket, he encounters the girl whom the investigation is about. She tells Eko she saw Yemi as she was "between places" and his brother had a message for him to have faith.
(Daniel Dae Kim), James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway
) and Michael Dawson
(Harold Perrineau) unconscious when they arrive on their beach, and hauls them into a pit. When their innocence is proven, Eko and the tail-section survivors head to the camp of the other fuselage survivors. After their arrival in "What Kate Did
", John Locke
(Terry O'Quinn
) shows Eko an orientation video from the DHARMA Initiative
. Eko watches it and fits in with the remaining fuselage survivors.
In "The 23rd Psalm", Eko discovers a Virgin Mary statue in Charlie Pace
's (Dominic Monaghan
) possession, he demands to be taken to the Beechcraft
where it came from, knowing his brother's body is there. Eko and Charlie decide to burn the plane along with all the heroin-filled statues. On his fiftieth day on the island, Eko baptizes baby Aaron and his mother Claire Littleton
(Emilie De Ravin
). As he discovers the survivors hold one of the others named "Henry Gale" (Michael Emerson
) captured in the Swan hatch, he requests to speak him. Eko confesses to him about killing two people on the first night of the crash and expresses his condolences before leaving. Following his confession, Eko starts building a church down the beach with the help of Charlie. However, after Ana Lucia Cortez
(Michelle Rodriguez
) and Yemi tell him to help Locke in a dream in "?
", Eko abandons the church and ventures into the jungle with Locke, claiming to hunt down the escaped "Henry Gale". Eko manages to coax Locke into taking him to the '?' he drew on a map, resulting in the discovery of the Pearl station. After watching the station's orientation video, Eko vows to continue pushing the button in the hatch, despite Locke's protests. In the season 2 finale "Live Together, Die Alone
", Locke and Desmond Hume
(Henry Ian Cusick
) initiate a lockdown and lock Eko out of the computer room. Desperate not to let the timer run out, Eko goes to the stash of dynamite from the Black Rock, a ship which wrecked on the island before the plane. Eko's attempt to blow open the blast door has no effect except to knock him unconscious, and thus unable to prevent the timer reaching zero, the station implodes.
Although Eko survives the implosion, he is dragged away by a polar bear. He is later rescued by Locke and Charlie, and pulled to safety. In "The Cost of Living
", Eko awakens to find Yemi in his tent, telling him he needs to confess before finding his tent is on fire. Searching for Yemi, he soon decides to follow Locke, Desmond, Sayid Jarrah
(Naveen Andrews
), Nikki and Paulo
(Kiele Sanchez
and Rodrigo Santoro
) to the Pearl station. While waiting outside, he sees Yemi again, and follows the apparition to give his confession. Upon learning it is merely a deception, Eko grows angry and chases Yemi into the jungle, where he confronts the "Monster". After being thrown about by the Monster, Eko is finally thrown to the ground. Fatally wounded, he whispers "I saw the Devil" to Locke before dying, although Locke, for whatever reason, decides to tell Sayid he said, "We're next." As he dies, we see an image of Eko and Yemi as happy children, walking into the distance. In one of the flashforwards in the final episode of the fourth season
, Hurley is seen sitting at a table with a chessboard on it across from a seemingly empty seat. Before he leaves, Hurley says "Checkmate, Mr. Eko."
said the character is "always fighting a battle, an internal struggle as to whether the life he led was worthy of pride or shame". Portrayer Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
explained Mr. Eko's dedication to pushing the button in the hatch with seeing the hatch as the answer to the mystery of life. Being described as a "natural leader", Mr. Eko is a "strong, silent type, a man of few words". Jon Bonné of MSNBC said he is "a dude you don't mess with". When Akinnuoye-Agbaje was at a bank in Hawaii, a fan said his character was a criminal pretending to be a priest, to which Akinnuoye-Agbaje replied "No, actually, I'm a priest pretending to be a criminal".
The character of Mr. Eko was created to explore the spiritual element of the show, and also to add an African character, which the producers thought would provide "cultural variety" to the cast. Lost creators Damon Lindelof
and Carlton Cuse
's first choice for the actor to portray Eko was Lance Reddick
, after they had seen him as Cedric Daniels
on HBO's The Wire
. However, after it was made clear Reddick was unavailable due to the filming schedule of The Wire, Cuse and Lindelof decided to contact Akinnuoye-Agbaje, because they were big fans of his work on the HBO prison drama Oz
. At the time, Akinnuoye-Agbaje was filming Get Rich or Die Tryin' and, being unfamiliar with the show, had no intention of joining the cast. While the producers succeeded in persuading Akinnuoye-Agbaje to take the role, he did not want to make a long-term commitment to the show and was therefore only hired for a short period of time. Akinnuoye-Agbaje accepted the part mostly because it was an opportunity to play a character with a different faith than his Buddhism
, but also because he enjoyed the idea of being on a deserted island (he had lived on a deserted island four years prior to being cast on the show). Two weeks after he was hired, Akinnuoye-Agbaje moved to Oahu, Hawaii, where filming took place.
While Mr. Eko was created as a more passive character, the idea changed when the producers first saw Akinnuoye-Agbaje play the character. Akinnuoye-Agbaje explained "once they saw me on the screen without a shirt, all 6 foot 2 and using a stick beating three guys up, they knew this guy wasn't going to be just a passive priest". Eventually, Cuse and Lindelof decided to combine their original idea for the character with Akinnuoye-Agbaje's character on Oz. Originally, the character was named "Emeka", and later "Omecca", but after Akinnuoye-Agbaje was cast, the name was changed to "Eko", in order to be consistent with Akinnuoye-Agbaje's own Nigerian tribal lineage. Eko refers to the City of Legos (Lagos
) in Nigeria
, coming from Eleko, Lord of Lagos. Adding "Mr." in front of the character's name was also a suggestion made by Akinnuoye-Agbaje. While at first Cuse and Lindelof thought this was "the silliest thing in the world", they changed their minds after repeating the name a few times, realizing there "was something really cool about it". The character first appeared in "Adrift
", where he was only shown briefly, knocking down three of the show's main characters with a stick. Akinnuoye-Agbaje was given the stick and told to "knock those three guys out". Akinnuoye-Agbaje felt "there's no better way to make an entrance". The religious scripture on the stick was a suggestion of Akinnuoye-Agbaje.
After he had been on the show for one season, Akinnuoye-Agbaje felt uncomfortable living in Hawaii and wanted to return to his residence in London, England. He discussed Mr. Eko's departure with Lindelof and Cuse, and the three decided the character would die somewhere in the first six episodes of the third season. They also found a "shocking and emotional death" would be the best way to write the character off the show. Akinnuoye-Agbaje felt Eko's death in "The Cost of Living
" made the character "complete", commenting "The Cost of Living" was "such a well-written episode that I knew I would be able to sew him up in a season", although Cuse later said he would have preferred the character to remain on the show a little longer. In 2008, Cuse and Lindelof made hints there were possibilities of the character returning. However, despite Akinnuoye-Agbaje's wishes to return for the sixth season
, the producers stated he would not be returning. The actor was eventually offered a guest role in the series finale, but turned it down due to salary disagreements.
named him the third best character from the first three seasons of Lost, behind Hurley and Locke
. Akinnuoye-Agbaje's performance was praised by critics; Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle
said he was "probably the best actor in the cast". Akinnuoye-Agbaje shared the 2005 Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble in a Drama Series
with the cast of Lost; they were also named "Entertainers of the Year" by Entertainment Weekly
. He was also nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television
in 2005, but lost the award to Masi Oka
of Heroes
.
Generally, critics and fans were disappointed Mr. Eko was killed after being on the show for only one season. Kristin Dos Santos of E!
called Mr. Eko "the best character of the show", and was therefore very disappointed with his death. In response to Mr. Eko's death, Christine Fenno of Entertainment Weekly
stated "I'll miss Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje—his acting was up there with Terry O'Quinn
's, Elizabeth Mitchell
's, and Michael Emerson
's. I guess he was the sacrifice the island demanded". Writing for Zap2it
, Rick Porter said that his death "sucked hard, and loud, and long". IGN listed Eko's death as number one on its list of "Top 10 Lost Deaths".
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...
, played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje is a British actor, and former fashion model best known for his roles as Mr. Eko on Lost, Simon Adebisi on Oz and Nykwana Wombosi in The Bourne Identity.-Early life and career:...
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...
. He is introduced in the second season episode "Adrift
Adrift (Lost)
"Adrift" is the second episode of the second season of Lost and the 27th episode overall. The episode was directed by Stephen Williams and written by Steven Maeda and Leonard Dick. It first aired on September 28, 2005 on the American Broadcasting Company. In the episode, flashbacks depict Michael...
" as one of the plane-crash survivors from the plane's tail section. Flashbacks reveal that he became the leader of a gang of guerrillas to save his brother when he still lived in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. He took the identity of his brother and became a priest after his brother was killed in a botched drug smuggle. Eko killed two guerrillas in defense, was ostracized, and left Nigeria to become a priest in Australia. After investigating the "fake miracle" of a girl who came back to life after drowning in Australia in 2004, Eko boarded Oceanic Airlines Flight 815. This plane crashed and left Eko, along with a few other survivors, on a deserted island.
Lost creators 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...
were fans of Akinnuoye-Agbaje's work on HBO's Oz
Oz (TV series)
Oz is an American television drama series created by Tom Fontana, who also wrote or co-wrote all of the series' 56 episodes . It was the first one-hour dramatic television series to be produced by premium cable network HBO. Oz premiered on July 12, 1997 and ran for six seasons...
, and asked him to portray the character. Although Akinnuoye-Agbaje was not initially interested in joining the cast, he was persuaded by Cuse and Lindelof, but for a shorter period than they had in mind. Akinnuoye-Agbaje had a lot of influence on his character, changing the character's name and making adjustments to Eko's personality. After appearing on the show for one season, Akinnuoye-Agbaje asked Cuse and Lindelof to write his character out of the show because he did not feel at home in Hawaii. They decided that a "shocking and emotional death" would be the best way to depart the character. Mr. Eko received many positive responses from critics and fans, who were disappointed that the character was killed after one season. A toy figure of Mr. Eko was included in a second series of Lost toy figures distributed by McFarlane Toys
McFarlane Toys
McFarlane Toys, a subsidiary of Todd McFarlane Productions, Inc., is a company started by Todd McFarlane that makes highly detailed models of characters from movies, comics, musicians, video games, and sport figures...
. After seeing his brother on the island, Eko chases him until he stumbles upon the smoke monster
Man in Black (Lost)
The entity referred to most frequently as the Man in Black is a fictional character on the American ABC television series Lost, and is the main antagonist of the...
, which brutally murders him.
Prior to the crash
Originally from NigeriaNigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Mr. Eko was born on January 31, 1968. He grew up always looking after his younger brother, Yemi (Adetokumboh M'Cormack), with whom he lived in a small village. As revealed in "The 23rd Psalm
The 23rd Psalm
"The 23rd Psalm" is the tenth episode of the second season of Lost, and the 35th episode overall. The episode was directed by Matt Earl Beesley, and written by Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof. It first aired on January 11, 2006 on ABC, and was watched by an average of 20.56 million American...
", one day, when Eko is playing with the local children, a gang of guerrillas raids the village in search of young recruits. When Yemi refuses to shoot an elderly man, Eko steps in and shoots him himself, sparing Yemi from the same fate. Impressed by his actions, the guerrillas take Eko away with them and draw him away from his religious lifestyle and into the criminal life, where Eko adopted the title "Mr." He grows up to be a fearless drug lord and a vicious leader of a guerrilla group, while his brother becomes an honoured priest. Years after his abduction, Eko returns to his home village to ask Yemi to help him smuggle heroin, which Eko has hidden in a large number of Virgin Mary statues and intends to fly out of the country. Yemi refuses until Eko threatens his associates will burn the church down if he does not sign documents that allow him and his henchmen to appear as priests.
As Eko and his men assemble at the airfield on the day the shipment is ready to be smuggled, it is revealed Yemi has tipped off the military and now tries to convince Eko not to go through with his plans. When the military arrives, Yemi is wounded in the ensuing gun battle and Eko is kicked off of the plane. After the plane leaves, Eko is mistaken for Yemi and released back to his village. Feeling guilty over Yemi's death, Eko assumes his role as the village priest. One day, Eko encounters a gang of guerrillas who made a deal with Yemi: they take 80% of the vaccines delivered to the village in exchange for the village's safety. Soon after, the guerrillas arrive at the church and attempt to cut off Eko's hands. However, Eko fights back and kills them, much to the shock of the village. The church is thus boarded up and Eko is ostracized until he leaves for London.
After leaving England, Eko serves as a priest in Australia under the name Father Tunde. A monsignor asks him to investigate a reported miracle of a young lady who has come back to life after drowning. The father of the girl, Richard Malkin, dismisses the miracle as an act of incompetence by the undertaker, claiming the girl was suffering from severe hypothermia and the doctor misdiagnosed her as a result. Eko soon prepares to board Oceanic Airlines Flight 815; shortly after buying a ticket, he encounters the girl whom the investigation is about. She tells Eko she saw Yemi as she was "between places" and his brother had a message for him to have faith.
After the crash
After the crash, Eko lands with the tail-section survivors in the ocean, a short distance from the beach. On the group's first night on the island, the Others kidnap a few of the survivors. Eko kills two of them while resisting a kidnap attempt; feeling guilty, Eko remains mute for the following forty days. In "Adrift", Eko beats Jin-Soo KwonJin-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), James "Sawyer" Ford (Josh Holloway
Josh Holloway
Joshua Lee "Josh" Holloway is an American actor and model from Free Home, Georgia. He is best known for his role as James "Sawyer" Ford on the American television show Lost.-Early life:...
) and Michael Dawson
Michael Dawson (Lost)
Michael Dawson is a fictional character played by Harold Perrineau on the ABC television series Lost. After losing a custody battle with Susan Lloyd , Michael does not see his son Walt for almost ten years. They reunite when she dies, but on their journey home, their plane crashes on a mysterious...
(Harold Perrineau) unconscious when they arrive on their beach, and hauls them into a pit. When their innocence is proven, Eko and the tail-section survivors head to the camp of the other fuselage survivors. After their arrival in "What Kate Did
What Kate Did
"What Kate Did" is the 34th episode of Lost. It is the ninth episode of the second season. The episode was directed by Paul Edwards, and written by Steven Maeda and Craig Wright. It first aired on November 30, 2005 on ABC. The character of Kate Austen is featured in the episode's...
", 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,...
) shows Eko an orientation video from the DHARMA Initiative
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...
. Eko watches it and fits in with the remaining fuselage survivors.
In "The 23rd Psalm", Eko discovers a Virgin Mary statue in Charlie Pace
Charlie Pace
Charlie Hieronymus Pace is a fictional character on ABC's Lost, a television series chronicling the lives of plane crash survivors on a mysterious tropical island...
's (Dominic Monaghan
Dominic Monaghan
Dominic Bernard Patrick Luke Monaghan is an English actor. He has received international attention from playing Merry in Peter Jackson's adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and for his role as Charlie Pace on the television show Lost....
) possession, he demands to be taken to the Beechcraft
Beechcraft Model 18
The Beechcraft Model 18, or "Twin Beech", as it is better known, is a 6-11 seat, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft that was manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas...
where it came from, knowing his brother's body is there. Eko and Charlie decide to burn the plane along with all the heroin-filled statues. On his fiftieth day on the island, Eko baptizes baby Aaron and his mother 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....
). As he discovers the survivors hold one of the others named "Henry Gale" (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:...
) captured in the Swan hatch, he requests to speak him. Eko confesses to him about killing two people on the first night of the crash and expresses his condolences before leaving. Following his confession, Eko starts building a church down the beach with the help of Charlie. However, after Ana Lucia Cortez
Ana Lucia Cortez
Ana Lucia Cortez is a fictional character on the ABC television series Lost, played by Michelle Rodriguez. Ana Lucia made her first appearance as a guest star in the first season finale, and became part of the main cast for season two. After Oceanic Flight 815 splits in mid-air, the tail section...
(Michelle Rodriguez
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,...
) and Yemi tell him to help Locke in a dream in "?
? (Lost)
"?", typically pronounced "Question Mark" is the 46th episode of Lost and the 21st episode of the second season. The episode was directed by Deran Sarafian, and written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. It first aired on May 10, 2006 on ABC. The character of Mr. Eko is featured in the episode's...
", Eko abandons the church and ventures into the jungle with Locke, claiming to hunt down the escaped "Henry Gale". Eko manages to coax Locke into taking him to the '?' he drew on a map, resulting in the discovery of the Pearl station. After watching the station's orientation video, Eko vows to continue pushing the button in the hatch, despite Locke's protests. In the season 2 finale "Live Together, Die Alone
Live Together, Die Alone
"Live Together, Die Alone" is the second season finale of the ABC television series Lost, consisting of the 23rd and 24th episodes of the second season. It is also the 48th and 49th episodes overall. The episode was written by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, and directed by Jack Bender. It first...
", Locke and 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....
) initiate a lockdown and lock Eko out of the computer room. Desperate not to let the timer run out, Eko goes to the stash of dynamite from the Black Rock, a ship which wrecked on the island before the plane. Eko's attempt to blow open the blast door has no effect except to knock him unconscious, and thus unable to prevent the timer reaching zero, the station implodes.
Although Eko survives the implosion, he is dragged away by a polar bear. He is later rescued by Locke and Charlie, and pulled to safety. In "The Cost of Living
The Cost of Living (Lost)
"The Cost of Living" is the 5th episode of the third season of Lost, and the 54th episode overall. It aired on November 1, 2006 in the US and on December 17, 2006 in the UK. The episode was written by Monica Breen and Alison Schapker and directed by Jack Bender. The character of Mr...
", Eko awakens to find Yemi in his tent, telling him he needs to confess before finding his tent is on fire. Searching for Yemi, he soon decides to follow Locke, Desmond, 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:...
), Nikki 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...
(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 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...
) to the Pearl station. While waiting outside, he sees Yemi again, and follows the apparition to give his confession. Upon learning it is merely a deception, Eko grows angry and chases Yemi into the jungle, where he confronts the "Monster". After being thrown about by the Monster, Eko is finally thrown to the ground. Fatally wounded, he whispers "I saw the Devil" to Locke before dying, although Locke, for whatever reason, decides to tell Sayid he said, "We're next." As he dies, we see an image of Eko and Yemi as happy children, walking into the distance. In one of the flashforwards in the final episode of the fourth season
There's No Place Like Home
"There's No Place Like Home, Parts 1, 2 & 3" is the season finale of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of the serial drama television series Lost, consisting of the 12th through 14th episodes. They are also the 84th through 86th episodes of the show overall...
, Hurley is seen sitting at a table with a chessboard on it across from a seemingly empty seat. Before he leaves, Hurley says "Checkmate, Mr. Eko."
Personality
When creating the character, the producers envisioned Mr. Eko as "the one character who comes to terms with living on the island, and not being consumed with trying to get off". Being introduced as a "tailie", a person on the tail section of the plane, Eko is a mysterious and complex character. MSNBCMSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
said the character is "always fighting a battle, an internal struggle as to whether the life he led was worthy of pride or shame". Portrayer Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje is a British actor, and former fashion model best known for his roles as Mr. Eko on Lost, Simon Adebisi on Oz and Nykwana Wombosi in The Bourne Identity.-Early life and career:...
explained Mr. Eko's dedication to pushing the button in the hatch with seeing the hatch as the answer to the mystery of life. Being described as a "natural leader", Mr. Eko is a "strong, silent type, a man of few words". Jon Bonné of MSNBC said he is "a dude you don't mess with". When Akinnuoye-Agbaje was at a bank in Hawaii, a fan said his character was a criminal pretending to be a priest, to which Akinnuoye-Agbaje replied "No, actually, I'm a priest pretending to be a criminal".
Development
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...
's first choice for the actor to portray Eko was Lance Reddick
Lance Reddick
Lance Reddick is an American theater, film and TV actor and musician born in Baltimore, Maryland. He starred in The Wire as Cedric Daniels, appeared in Oz as Detective Johnny Basil and appeared in the fourth and fifth seasons of Lost. He now has a prominent role in Fringe...
, after they had seen him as Cedric Daniels
Cedric Daniels
Cedric Daniels is a fictional character on the HBO drama The Wire, played by actor Lance Reddick. He is a well regarded officer in the department whose focus is on good police work and quality arrests...
on HBO's The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
. However, after it was made clear Reddick was unavailable due to the filming schedule of The Wire, Cuse and Lindelof decided to contact Akinnuoye-Agbaje, because they were big fans of his work on the HBO prison drama Oz
Oz (TV series)
Oz is an American television drama series created by Tom Fontana, who also wrote or co-wrote all of the series' 56 episodes . It was the first one-hour dramatic television series to be produced by premium cable network HBO. Oz premiered on July 12, 1997 and ran for six seasons...
. At the time, Akinnuoye-Agbaje was filming Get Rich or Die Tryin' and, being unfamiliar with the show, had no intention of joining the cast. While the producers succeeded in persuading Akinnuoye-Agbaje to take the role, he did not want to make a long-term commitment to the show and was therefore only hired for a short period of time. Akinnuoye-Agbaje accepted the part mostly because it was an opportunity to play a character with a different faith than his Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
, but also because he enjoyed the idea of being on a deserted island (he had lived on a deserted island four years prior to being cast on the show). Two weeks after he was hired, Akinnuoye-Agbaje moved to Oahu, Hawaii, where filming took place.
While Mr. Eko was created as a more passive character, the idea changed when the producers first saw Akinnuoye-Agbaje play the character. Akinnuoye-Agbaje explained "once they saw me on the screen without a shirt, all 6 foot 2 and using a stick beating three guys up, they knew this guy wasn't going to be just a passive priest". Eventually, Cuse and Lindelof decided to combine their original idea for the character with Akinnuoye-Agbaje's character on Oz. Originally, the character was named "Emeka", and later "Omecca", but after Akinnuoye-Agbaje was cast, the name was changed to "Eko", in order to be consistent with Akinnuoye-Agbaje's own Nigerian tribal lineage. Eko refers to the City of Legos (Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
) in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, coming from Eleko, Lord of Lagos. Adding "Mr." in front of the character's name was also a suggestion made by Akinnuoye-Agbaje. While at first Cuse and Lindelof thought this was "the silliest thing in the world", they changed their minds after repeating the name a few times, realizing there "was something really cool about it". The character first appeared in "Adrift
Adrift (Lost)
"Adrift" is the second episode of the second season of Lost and the 27th episode overall. The episode was directed by Stephen Williams and written by Steven Maeda and Leonard Dick. It first aired on September 28, 2005 on the American Broadcasting Company. In the episode, flashbacks depict Michael...
", where he was only shown briefly, knocking down three of the show's main characters with a stick. Akinnuoye-Agbaje was given the stick and told to "knock those three guys out". Akinnuoye-Agbaje felt "there's no better way to make an entrance". The religious scripture on the stick was a suggestion of Akinnuoye-Agbaje.
After he had been on the show for one season, Akinnuoye-Agbaje felt uncomfortable living in Hawaii and wanted to return to his residence in London, England. He discussed Mr. Eko's departure with Lindelof and Cuse, and the three decided the character would die somewhere in the first six episodes of the third season. They also found a "shocking and emotional death" would be the best way to write the character off the show. Akinnuoye-Agbaje felt Eko's death in "The Cost of Living
The Cost of Living (Lost)
"The Cost of Living" is the 5th episode of the third season of Lost, and the 54th episode overall. It aired on November 1, 2006 in the US and on December 17, 2006 in the UK. The episode was written by Monica Breen and Alison Schapker and directed by Jack Bender. The character of Mr...
" made the character "complete", commenting "The Cost of Living" was "such a well-written episode that I knew I would be able to sew him up in a season", although Cuse later said he would have preferred the character to remain on the show a little longer. In 2008, Cuse and Lindelof made hints there were possibilities of the character returning. However, despite Akinnuoye-Agbaje's wishes to return for the sixth season
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...
, the producers stated he would not be returning. The actor was eventually offered a guest role in the series finale, but turned it down due to salary disagreements.
Reception
Overall, the character was positively received. The first week he was on the show, Akinnuoye-Agbaje received a lot of fanmail, much to his surprise. Craig Berman of MSNBC called Mr. Eko "one of the most creatively complex characters on the island". The Los Angeles Times depicted him as "the island's favorite 'tailie'". IGNIGN
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...
named him the third best character from the first three seasons of Lost, behind Hurley and 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...
. Akinnuoye-Agbaje's performance was praised by critics; Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
said he was "probably the best actor in the cast". Akinnuoye-Agbaje shared the 2005 Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble in a Drama Series
Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble - Drama Series
The Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series is an award given by the Screen Actors Guild to honor the finest ensemble acting achievements in dramatic television.-1990s:...
with the cast of Lost; they were also named "Entertainers of the Year" by 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...
. He was also nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television
Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television
The following are a list of Saturn Award winners for Best Supporting Actor on Television:N.B. Year column refers to year of eligibility, the actual ceremonies are held the following year to those stated....
in 2005, but lost the award to Masi Oka
Masi Oka
Masayori "Masi" Oka is a Japanese-American actor and digital effects artist.He has performed in numerous feature films and TV series, most prominently as Hiro Nakamura in the NBC TV series Heroes from 2006 until its cancellation in May 2010. He resides in Los Angeles, California.-Early life:Oka...
of Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
.
Generally, critics and fans were disappointed Mr. Eko was killed after being on the show for only one season. Kristin Dos Santos of E!
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
called Mr. Eko "the best character of the show", and was therefore very disappointed with his death. In response to Mr. Eko's death, Christine Fenno of 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...
stated "I'll miss Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje—his acting was up there with 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,...
's, 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...
's, and 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:...
's. I guess he was the sacrifice the island demanded". Writing for Zap2it
Zap2it
Zap2it is an American website and affiliate network that provides news, photos and video, local TV listings and movie showtimes. The site is produced by Tribune Media Services , part of the publishing division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company...
, Rick Porter said that his death "sucked hard, and loud, and long". IGN listed Eko's death as number one on its list of "Top 10 Lost Deaths".