Before Matthew Fox was cast as Jack Shephard in "Lost," J. J. Abrams and ABC had gotten Michael Keaton interested in taking on the role. Had things gone as originally planned, the series would have premiered with Keaton as its lead star.
Fox went on to play Jack Shephard, the leader of the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815, across all six seasons of the show. But a single creative decision in the pilot episode changed the course of the series and ultimately convinced Keaton to abandon the project altogether.
The pilot twist that changed everything
Abrams and co-creator Damon Lindelof had considered Keaton for Jack Shephard, but the character's original vision was very different from what audiences eventually saw. Rather than becoming the show's central protagonist, Jack was meant to die in the pilot episode, a twist that would set the tone for several other plot turns meant to define the series.
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That death was meant to be one of the first pieces designed to upend audience expectations entirely. Even though Jack appeared to be the clear lead, his sudden death was meant to send the message that no one on the island was safe. However, then-ABC president Stephen McPherson believed the twist could backfire.
Keaton's own account
Keaton described the situation by recalling what Abrams told him: the guy you think is the lead character dies in the last ten minutes. He said that kind of thing intrigued him, and that the idea of committing to an hour-long television series did not appeal to him, so he thought it was great news because it meant he would not have to be in the show. He said he believed either Abrams changed his mind or the studio stepped in and said that was not going to happen.
Keaton's account of the episode explains why he ultimately passed on the project. After his departure, Matthew Fox took on the role of Jack and appeared throughout the show's six broadcast seasons. Even so, the fact that Batman almost played Jack remains one of the more intriguing curiosities surrounding the show's casting.
