LOST
Ben Linus

Ben Linus

Played by Michael Emerson

ON THE ISLAND:
- Leader of the Others
- Grew up in the Dharma barracks
- As a child, was shot by a time-traveling Sayid
- Young Ben's life was saved when Richard Alpert agreed to take him into the island temple

Previous Quote

"I remember that plane breaking in half like it was yesterday." - Ben Linus

Next Quote
Prev
  • Jack Shephard about Ben:

    "I want him to experience the moment that we get off the island, and I want to know that he failed. And then I'll kill him."

  • John Locke to Ben:

    "I'm gonna sail away from this godforsaken place and watch it sink."

  • Richard Alpert

    "Jacob wanted it done. The Island chooses who the Island chooses. You know that."

  • Frank Lapidus to Sun on Locke and Ben:

    "Now the only ones who are here to help us are a murderer and a guy who can't seem to remember how the hell he got out of a coffin."

  • John Locke to Ben:

    "I'm gonna destroy the island."

  • Hugo Reyes to Ben:

    "I could really use someone with like, experience. For a little while. Will you help me, Ben?"

  • John Locke to Ben:

    "You are the man behind the curtain... the Wizard of Oz. And a liar."

  • John Locke to Ben in a flash sideways:

    "Well, if it helps, Ben... I forgive you."

  • Miles Straume to Ilana on Ben:

    "He was standing over Jacob's dead body with a bloody dagger."

  • John Locke to Ben:

    "Ben, you never cease to amaze me."

  • John Locke to Ben after turning into the smoke monster:

    "I'm sorry you had to see me like that."

  • Desmond Hume on Locke:

    "I'm not here to hurt him. I am here to help him let go."

Next

Character Bio

OFF THE ISLAND: Working with Sayid, Ben has Widmore's key people assassinated. He then convinces Jack to reunite the Oceanic 6.

RETURN TO THE ISLAND: A crash survivor of Ajira Airways Flight 316 in the present time. During his return, he is judged by the smoke monster. When he finally meets Jacob, Ben feels his longtime devotion to him has been forsaken and he murders Jacob.

Actor Bio

We were completely creeped out by him in Saw and on shows like The X-Files, and now this Emmy-winning actor keeps us guessing each week on ABC's Lost.

After graduating from Drake University with a major in Theater and a minor in Art, Michael Emerson moved to New York, forgot about acting and landed a job in magazine illustration. He later followed a romance to Florida, where he began acting again and supported himself with a variety of occupations, including directing and teaching. He acted professionally in the south for many years before entering the MFA Program at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival (University of Alabama). After graduating, he once again moved to New York as a struggling actor and found a break in Moises Kaufman's Off-Broadway production of Gross Indecency.

On Broadway, Emerson appeared in Hedda Gabler and The Iceman Cometh. His television credits include guest-starring roles on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Without a Trace, The X-Files and The Inside, among many others. For his performance as William Hinks on The Practice, he was awarded the 2001 Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Dramatic Series. In 2007, he was nominated for an Emmy for his role on Lost.

On the big screen he appeared in such films as Saw, The Legend of Zorro, Playing by Heart, The Imposters, Jumping Off Bridges and Straight-Jacket.

Emerson is keen on Shakespeare and the classical theater, drawing and ghost stories. He supports off-off-Broadway theater and theater-community charities (BC/EFA and GMHC), as well as publicly-supported radio stations.

Emerson is married to actress Carrie Preston, who currently stars on HBO's True Blood.
poll
What do you think?
Who was your favorite villain?
Ben and the Others
67%
The Man in Black
20%
Charles Widmore
5%
Keamy and the freighter mercenaries
6%

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