#carlton cuse

[ktempestbradford]

There is so much to talk about with this article. So much. In this post I want to focus on a specific part of it: the reactions of Lindelof and Cuse to what the writers and actors experienced. Here are several quotes [emphasis mine].

“What can I say? Other than it breaks my heart that that was Harold [Perrineau's] experience,” replied Lindelof, who said he did not recall “ever” saying that. “And I’ll just cede that the events that you’re describing happened 17 years ago, and I don’t know why anybody would make that up about me.”

Lindelof told me he didn’t remember any negative incident with an editor, adding that he seeks out input from collaborators and that he’s “never threatened anyone’s career.” Lindelof also said he had no recollection of anything Hsu Taylor said about events connected to “Ab Aeterno.” He said she was a “great writer who executed at a high level” and he’s “stricken” that she was made to feel the way she felt at that time.

Regarding the other allegations leveled at him and the show, Lindelof said he had no memory of the incidents and comments I related. He told me he was “shocked and appalled and surprised” by the incidents I described to him, and said more than once that he did not think anyone was making anything up. “I just can’t imagine that Carlton would’ve said something like that, or some of those attributions, some of those comments that you [shared]—I’m telling you, I swear, I have no recollection of those specific things. And that’s not me saying that they didn’t happen. I’m just saying that it’s literally baffling my brain—that they did happen and that I bore witness to them or that I said them. To think that they came out of my mouth or the mouths of people that I still consider friends is just not computing.”

I'm not going to quote Cuse's responses here because they all boil down to: "I don't remember doing/saying that" or "Nuh uh, that didn't happen!" which is... certainly a choice.

You're going to see a bunch of people siding with and empathizing with Lindelof and praising him for saying that what happened was wrong, etc., and I will push back every time I see it because of all those instances of him saying he doesn't recall and doesn't remember. I don't think he's lying. I do think it's indicative of an ongoing problem with him as a writer and showrunner and it needs to be called out.

I'm going to tell you a story that explains my point. Also putting it and my conclusions under a cut as this is long. Please do read.

Many years ago I became friends with a white woman writer in the SFF community who lived in NYC during some of the time I did. She knew many of the writers and editors in our community who also lived in NYC or nearby. At the time, the majority of these editors were white and most were men. She became particularly friendly with some of them.

A couple of years into our relationship we were at ReaderCon together. One day at the hotel bar I was sitting with this woman (we'll call her Karen for the purposes of this story) and two other BIPOC male authors who had both published multiple books at this point and were people that Karen felt were impressive and important. During the conversation someone (probably me?) brought up the online conversations/debates/fights currently happening about representation in the SFF genre and the way certain editors were part of the problem. I want to say this was even before RaceFail happened.

Karen revealed that she'd been talking to important people like Gordon van Gelder about the things I'd been saying online and how, well... the things I was saying were just crazy. Crazy things! I was acting so crazy.

I don't remember the exact phrasing, but I remember the repeated categorizing of me/my words as Crazy.

I also don't remember exactly what I said in response. I do remember how I felt in my body at that moment. I was suddenly flooded with, I think, adrenaline or something and I wanted to run away because otherwise I was going to start throwing things. I couldn't believe this person, who claimed to be my friend, was saying this to me.

I also remember that I felt trapped because I was in a booth and the two other writers were on either side of me so I couldn't just get up and leave. It turned out I didn't need to do that. Because immediately both of them were like: Hold up. Hold the EFF up.

They both pointed out to Karen that the things I brought up in those online discussions were real issues that did need addressing and that I wasn't crazy and the only reason she thought so was because I was a Black woman and when white people or even people perceived as being white said the same thigs I did, people in the community listened, so what the heck was even wrong with her.

I just sat there, pretty quiet, still trying to calm myself down while this all happened and also felt so very grateful for how these two guys (also friends) stood up for me without hesitating, without equivocating, without giving Karen an inch to continue to talk about me in such a way. I don't even know how that conversation ended or if I even talked to Karen again at the con. I did decide right then that I was going to pull back from our friendship because of it.

A year or so later I ended up having to have a conversation with Karen because of some nonsense she pulled at WisCon. In that conversation I mentioned the discussion we had at ReaderCon and how that truly affected my view of her, a person who was supposedly my friend and who constantly tried to say she was an ally to BIPOC. And that's when she said: What discussion?

At first I wasn't sure if she was feigning ignorance or not. The more we talked, the more I realized she wasn't. She didn't remember the incident. And in that talk I realized why: It didn't have that big of an impact on her.

Even with her being essentially told off by the other two, for her, having conversations where she casually parroted some white, male editor's racist and misogynistic view of me was of little note because she and the other people she spent a majority of time with were doing it all the time. It was just a Tuesday for her. And so after ReaderCon when she continually asked if I wanted to hang out or go on writing dates, she did so as if she had not said some absolutely egregious stuff to me weeks before. Again, to her: a Tuesday.

Having had more experience in life with certain kinds of racists, sexists, ableists, and bigots in general, I can say that this phenomenon was not specific to Karen. It is endemic with a certain kind of person who is devoted to the status quo/dominant paradigm.

So when Lindelof says that he doesn't remember doing and saying these things, he's probably not lying. Because for him, it was business as usual, a Tuesday. Normalized on a number of levels. He was a fish in water and the water was composed of racist, sexist a-holes doing whatever they wanted because no one above them put a stop to it. And that is a problem even 20ish years later.

That Lindelof had to be told he did these things and that he, in all this time, has not reflected on them, not realized on his own that what he did was terrible, apologized, and worked his butt off to not only ensure the shows he runs do not have this atmosphere but to also throw every bit of work that he can to those writers (not necessarily on his shows, but others) is proof that it continues to be a problem. And that he has a lot of work to do to atone for all these things he can't remember--starting by doing a real deep dive into why he can't.

Cuse can't be saved. I suggest we introduce him to a nice oubliette.

#I'll note that the author of the piece called him out on his passive language and I very much appreciate that #Her whole book looks to be amazing and a wake up call and I hope everyone reads it #LOST #Damon Lindelof #Carlton Cuse #Carlton Cuse For Oubliette President #I feel justified in all of my critiques of LOST

[lets-steal-an-archive]

Lost Illusions: The Untold Story of the Hit Show's Poisonous Culture

"The show was a groundbreaking smash, but behind the scenes it devolved into such toxicity that even co-showrunner Damon Lindelof now says of his leadership: 'I failed.' A powerful excerpt from the new book Burn It Down" by Maureen Ryan."

→ http://okbjgm.weebly.com/uploads/3/1/5/0/31506003/final_statement.pdf

#lost abc #abc lost #damon lindelof #carlton cuse #jj abrams #maureen ryan #burn it down #the business of show #the more you know 🌠 #javier grillo marxuach #his statement is seven pages long #he was there #pre-series through first third of s2

[fatherramiro]

Hey it’s rather important that Lost fans read this so please do - and keep your defenses of the show/writers off this post, thanks

#lost abc #abc lost #damon lindelof #carlton cuse

[scenesandscreens]

The Strain, Season Three (2016)

Directed by J. Miles Dale, Ken Girotti, Deran Sarafian, TJ Scott, Vincenzo Natali & Carlton Cuse

#scenesandscreens #j. miles dale #ken girotti #deran sarafian #tj scott #vincenzo natali #carlton cuse #the Strain #Joaquín Cosío #samantha mathis #Rupert Penry-Jones #ruta gedmintas #Max Charles #Ben Hyland #miguel gomez #Natalie Brown #kevin durand #Richard Sammel #Sean Astin #jack kesy #Mía Maestro #jonathan hyde #sean astin #corey stoll

[abnerkrill]

This is a heavy read, but if you're at all interested in how television works, or have ever wondered how bad a TV working environment can possibly get, or are a fan of Lost or modern genre TV at all...

This is an incredibly well-reported piece about the racism & abuse in the writer's room of Lost. (TW for abuse, racism, misogyny, and a decent amount of gaslighting.) Anyone working in the entertainment industry will tell you that these people are still working today & get credit for making "great TV" while all their past behavior is completely excused—and that these attitudes are not uncommon in Hollywood at all.

The article is an excerpt from from a forthcoming book: BURN IT DOWN: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood by Maureen Ryan.

For further reading on the same subject, writer Javier Grillo-Marxuach released his full 7-page final statement, including his complete remarks to Maureen Ryan.

#lost #tw racism #tw misogyny #damon lindelof #carlton cuse

[rhi1980]

Can we just give Vera Farmiga all the awards already?

Everyone involved with Five Days at Memorial deserves all the awards. Both in front of and behind the camera

#Five Days at Memorial #vera farmiga #cherry jones #john ridley #carlton cuse

[ljones41]

"LOST" Retrospect: "The Wrong Promise"

Following a re-watch of the "LOST" series finale, (6.17-6.18) "The End", I did this re-write of an old article about a scene between Kate Austen and Claire Littleton:

"LOST" RETROSPECT: "THE WRONG PROMISE"

While going over old "LOST" articles and forums, I had come across a post that asked members how they would have ended the series. After reading several other sites and articles, I had my answer. There were two things I would have changed. I would have included two other original characters in that final scene inside the afterlife church. And I would have removed one line from the transcript for the series finale, (6.17-6.18) "The End".

But I am here to discuss the second change. I wish that showrunners Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse had not allowed Kate Austen to promise Claire Littleton that she would help raise the latter’s three-year-old son Aaron after reaching civilization. Following the demise of the Man in Black aka the Smoke Monster, Kate and fellow castaway James "Sawyer" Ford made their escape from the island, while the latter was crumbling. Dr. Jack Shephard and Desmond Hume had unplugged the island's electromagnetic energy in order to make the Smoke Monster mortal. Kate and Sawyer used Desmond's boat Elizabeth to travel to the nearby Hydra Island, where the patched up Ajira 316 plane awaited them. Near the shore of Hydra Island, Kate and Sawyer found Claire, distraught over being abandoned again. Kate convinced Claire to follow her and all three made it aboard the Ajira plane. During the flight away from the island, Claire had expressed her fear of being a bad mother to her son Aaron, whom she had not seen in three years. To reassure Claire, Kate promised to help the former raise her three year-old son. And here is where Lindelof and Cuse made their mistake.

Now, I realize that Kate was simply trying to assure an agitated Claire that everything would be all right, once the latter was reunited with Aaron. Especially since Claire had been stuck on the island for three years and had not seen her son. Yet, a part of me suspected there was more at play. Because as far as I am concerned, Kate’s promise to help raise Aaron struck me as the wrong one to make. Why? It was not possible for her to meet this promise.

In the Season Four episode (4.04) "Eggtown", Kate's attorney had made a deal with prosecutors to allow her to take a probation deal, instead of face more trials over other crimes like insurance fraud and bank robbery. He used Kate's reputation as one of the Oceanic Six - one of the few Oceanic survivors who managed to return to their respective countries back in January 2005 - as a reason they would find it difficult to convict her. Personally, I found this argument ridiculous, but Cuse and Lindelof allowed it to stick. The probation forced Kate to remain in the United States and California for at least ten years. When she had departed Los Angeles on the Ajira Flight 316 in Season Five's (5.06) "316", Kate had broken the terms of her ten-year probation after two years.

According to the show’s canon, the period between "316" and "The End" spanned roughly two weeks. Chances are, Kate had left the country under an assumed name. And since Ajira 316 had been missing for two weeks, I suspect a great deal of publicity would have generated from the plane's return to civilization. I would not be surprised if not long after her return to civilization or U.S. territory - the plane was originally destined for Guam Island, Kate ended up in prison for breaking her probation. And once the authorities also learned she had lied about being Aaron's biological mother, there is a chance they would have prosecuted her for the New Mexico bank robbery and other crimes. Worse, Kate's mother - if she was still alive - might consider testifying against Kate over Wayne Janssen's murder. After all, Kate had never been cleared or convicted for that crime.

Even if Kate had simply decided to follow Claire to Australia, I do not see the chances of her playing a future role in Aaron's life. One might consider the possibility of Kate moving to Australia after serving time in prison for breaking her probation. That is another possibility I do not see happening. Why do I have doubts about both possibilities? I doubt very much that the Australian government would have allowed Kate to re-enter the country. Before Oceanic 815 had departed Sydney, Australia; Kate had entered the country under a false name and as a fugitive from the law. Which means she had entered Australia illegally. I just cannot see the Australian immigration authorities allowing her to set foot on the country's soil again.

Also, why would Claire need Kate’s help in raising Aaron? Kate had left the three year-old in custody of his biological grandmother, Carole Littleton, less than a day before leaving the United States. Ms. Littleton had custody of Aaron by the end of the series. And to be honest, I believe she would be the best person to serve as Aaron’s guardian, considering the tenuous nature of Claire’s mental state in the series finale. I certainly cannot see Ms. Littleton allowing Kate, a criminal who had deliberately kept her grandson away from her for nearly three years, near Aaron while he remained a minor. In fact, I do not even see Claire allowing Kate to be anywhere near Aaron. Hell, I would never allow a child abductor with a series of crimes hovering around her, near my offspring again . . . even if that person had helped me get off the island.

All I can say is . . . what were Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof thinking when they had allowed Kate to make that promise to Claire in "The End"? They could have found another way for Kate to ease the young Australian woman’s fears other than with a promise she had very little chance of fulfilling. And for the past thirteen years, many "LOST" fans have automatically believed that Kate had helped Claire raise Aaron. Without Carole Littleton’s help. Now that I think about it . . . what were they thinking?

#lost #lost tv series #lost finale #6x18 the end #kate austen #claire littleton #damon lindelof #carlton cuse #evangeline lilly #emilie de ravin #carole littleton #susan duerden #aaron littleton #william blanchette #shawn doyle #terry o'quinn #matthew fox #ian henry cusick #josh holloway #james horan #beth broderick

[wornoutspines]

Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (S4 Premiere) | TV Review

It has begun! The final season of Jack Ryan on Prime Video and it's already intriguing #JackRyan #JohnKrasinski #WendellPierce #MichaelPeña #MichaelKelly #TomClancy #review

Carlton Cuse & Graham Roland (Creators), Tom Clancy (Novels)CASTJohn KrasinskiMichael PeñaBetty GabrielAbbie CornishWendell PierceOkieriete OnaodowanLouis OzawaMichael McElhatton Review There’s always a shadow of corruption or some sort of shady dealing going on at the beginning of this show, and yet they manage to make it different and fresh every time. I started the first of the two-episode…

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#Abbie Cornish #Based on a book #Based on a novel #Book adaptation #Book to TV #carlton cuse #David Bedella #Derek Cecil #Graham Roland #Grant Harvey #Jack Ryan #Jim Lau #John Krasinski #Louis Ozawa #Lukas Ettlin #michael kelly #Michael McElhatton #Michael Peña #Okieriete Onaodowan #premiere #Prime Video #Review #Ryn Greenwell #Season Premiere #Tom Clancy #Tom Clancy&039;s Jack Ryan #TV Series #Wendell Pierce #Wendy Davis #zuleikha robinson

[wwprice1]

LOST left the air 13 years ago today… still miss this show.

#lost #lost the island #lost tv series #jj abrams #damon lindelof #Carlton cuse #matthew fox #jack shephard #Christian shephard #kate austen #evangeline lilly #daniel dae kim #sun and jin #terry o'quinn #john locke

[floorman3]

Five Days at Memorial Review

Films and tv shows about real-life events can be a little difficult to depict because of how they are recorded, as in written down and documented. Sometimes these stories turn out very good and sometimes they don’t. The key is how the creators of the said show and or film are invested in telling this story and being meticulous in their storytelling. The creators of Five Days at Memorial pulled…

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#Apple TV + #Carlton Cuse #Cherry Jones #Cornelius Smith Jr. #Five Days at Memorial #John Ridley #Michael Gaston #Molly E Hager #Robert Pine #Vera Farmiga

[tvandfilmconfessions]

The show was a groundbreaking smash, but behind the scenes it devolved into such toxicity that even co-showrunner Damon Lindelof now says of his leadership: “I failed.” A powerful excerpt from the new book Burn It Down.

#LOST #Damon Lindelof #Carlton Cuse #Racism #Showrunner #Fandom #Fans

[thatstormygeek]

Two years of what could be called the “Tallahassee mentality” was enough for him. The term comes from characters on the show poking fun at the Florida city. One day, the Lost offices got a letter from the mayor of Tallahassee, who gamely invited the show’s personnel to visit and enclosed brochures touting the city’s attractive qualities. “In response, Damon told the writers room to double down on Tallahassee, and when asked why, he replied with a straight face that the only thing funnier than punching someone in the face for no reason is punching them harder when they ask why,” Grillo-Marxuach said. “If you can imagine that as a management philosophy, you can understand what it was like to work on Lost.”

This is an infuriating and illuminating read

#lost tv show #burn it down #maureen ryan #carlton cuse #damon lindelof #writers room #racism

[rickyvalero]

Five Days at Memorial Composer Torin Borrowdale Interview

Five Days at Memorial Composer Torin Borrowdale Interview

Apple TV+’s Five Days at Memorial is hands down one of the best series of 2022. One of the things that made it even better was Composer Torin Borrowdale’s score of the series. I had the pleasure of sitting down and chatting with Torin about his work on the show. Excerpt from my review: Overall, you are not going to want to miss this series. Apple TV+ continues to deliver on a different level…

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#Apple TV #Apple TV+ #Carlton Cuse #Cherry Jones #Composer #Five Days at Memorial #Five Days at Memorial composer #Locke & Key #Movie review #Movies #Music City drive in #Music City Film Critic #Score #Score of Series #searching #The Valero Verdict #TV Show #Vera Farmiga #Work

[hollywoodoutbreak]

Five Days at Memorial began its life as a nonfiction book about a New Orleans hospital dealing with its tragedies and triumphs in the days following Hurricane Katrina back in 2005. Now, it's become an Apple TV+ miniseries, co-developed by Carlton Cuse (of Lost fame). It's a different kind of show for Cuse, but one he's really excited about. As he told us, there were incredible stories of courage and heroism at that hospital, and he feels fortunate that he gets to tell some of those stories.

Five Days at Memorial is currently streaming on Apple TV+.

#Carlton Cuse #five days at memorial #Apple TV+ #Apple TV #Apple TV Plus #TV #TV News #television #Entertainment #Entertainment news #Celebrities #Celebrity #celebrity news #celebrity interviews #Television News

[don-lichterman]

Locke & Key 3 | Final Season Trailer | Netflix

Locke & Key 3 | Final Season Trailer | Netflix

Official trailer for the epic final season of Locke & Key. All episodes drop August 10th, only on Netflix. SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/29qBUt7 About Netflix: Netflix is the world’s leading streaming entertainment service with 221 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries, feature films and mobile games across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can…

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#carlton cuse #comic book #connor jessup #darby stanchfield #emilia jones #griffin gluck #jackson robert scott #joe hill #keys #laysla de oliveira #lock and key #locke and key #Netflix #teaser #Trailer

[ljones41]

“LOST”:  “The Wrong Promise”

“LOST”:  “THE WRONG PROMISE”

While going over old "LOST" articles and forums, I had come across a post that asked members how they would have ended "LOST". After reading several other sites and articles about the series, I had posted my answer.  

There was one thing that I wish showrunners Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof had not added into the script for the series finale, (6.17)"The End".  I wish they had not allowed Kate Austen to promise Claire Littleton that she would help raise the latter's three-year-old son Aaron after reaching civilization, while the pair was making their departure with a handful of other survivors aboard the patched-up Ajira 316.

I realize that Kate was trying to assure an agitated Claire that everything would be all right, once the latter was reunited with Aaron. Especially since Claire had been stuck on the island for three years and had not seen her son.  But in the end, Kate's promise to help raise Aaron struck me as the wrong one to make. Why? It was not possible for her to meet this promise.

When she had departed Los Angeles on the Ajira Flight 316 in (5.06) "316", Kate had broken her plea deal from (4.04) "Eggtown".  She would have to remain in California for a ten-year probation.  When she had left California and the United States in (5.06) "316", Kate broke the terms of her probation.  According to the show's canon, the period between "316" and "The End" was roughly two weeks.  Chances are, Kate had left the country under an assumed name.  And since Ajira Flight 316 had been missing for two weeks, I suspect a great deal of publicity would have generated from its return to civilization.  I would not be surprised if the moment she returned to civilization after the plane's departure from the Island, Kate ended up in prison for breaking her probation.  That would have left Carole Littleton to help daughter Claire raise Aaron.

One might consider the possibility of Kate moving to Australia after serving time in prison for breaking her probation.  That is a possibility I do not see happening.  I doubt very much that the Australian government would have allowed Kate to re-enter the country. Three years earlier, Kate had entered under a false name and as a fugitive from the law.  Which mean that she had entered the country illegally.  I just cannot see them allowing her to set foot on Australian soil again.

Why would Claire need Kate's help?  The latter had left Aaron in custody of the former's mother, Carole Littleton, a day before boarding Ajira 316.  Ms. Littleton had custody of Aaron by the end of the series.  And to be honest, she would be the best person to serve as Aaron's guardian, considering the tenuous nature of Claire's mental state in the series finale.   Considering Claire's mental state, I cannot see Ms. Littleton would have allowed Kate, a criminal who had deliberately kept her grandson away from her for nearly three years, near Aaron while he was a minor.  In fact, I do not even see Claire allowing Kate to be anywhere near Aaron.  Hell, I would never allow a child kidnapper with a series of crimes hovering around her, near my offspring again . . . even if that person helped me get off the island.

All I can say is . . . what were Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof thinking, when they had allowed Kate to make that promise to Claire in "The End"?  They could have found another way for the fugitive to ease the young Australian woman's fears.  And for the past thirteen years, fans automatically believe that Kate had helped Claire raise Aaron. Without Carole Littleton's help.  Even to this day.

#LOST #lost tv show #lost tv series #carlton cuse #damon lindelof #lost 6x18 #6x18 the end #lost series finale #ajira 316 #kate austen #Evangeline Lilly #claire littleton #emilie de ravin #carole littleton #susan duerden #lost 5x06 #5x06 316 #lost 4x04 #4x04 eggtown