Walt Lloyd

Infobox Lost character
Title=Walt Lloyd


First="Pilot, Part 1"
Flashback1= "Special"
"Exodus, Part 1"
Name=Walter Lloyd
Place=Sydney, Australia
Profession=N/A
Actor=Malcolm David Kelley

Walter Andrew Lloyd, better known as "Walt," is a fictional character on the ABC television series "Lost" played by Malcolm David Kelley.

Character's background

Prior to the crash

Walt is Michael Dawson's 10-year-old son (born August 24, 1994, named after Michael's father, Walter). Walt's mother was Susan Lloyd, a law student and future attorney, who rejected marriage with his father, a construction worker and part-time artist. His mother split up with Michael while Walt was still a baby, and moved with her son to Amsterdam for a plum international law job. Two weeks before Walt's second birthday, while Michael is recovering in a hospital from a car accident, Susan visits him. She tells him she will cover all his medical expenses. She also tells him that she and her boss, Brian Porter, are planning on getting married and that they will be moving to Rome, Italy, at the end of the month. She insists Michael give up parental rights to Walt so that Brian can adopt him. Michael initially refuses and insists on getting his son back. A legal battle ensues between Walt's two parents. Several months later, they finally settle their dispute amicably and Michael accepts to let Susan keep Walt with her. When Michael sees Walt for the last time to say goodbye, he gives the boy a stuffed polar bear.

Eight years later, Brian tracks down Michael in New York, and tells him that Susan had died in Australia due to a "blood disorder". Brian had left Sydney hastily, arriving in New York the day after Susan's death. He pleads with Michael to take custody of the boy and even gives him tickets for the flight to Sydney and back, plus extra money for travel expenses. Brian reveals that he had not wanted to be Walt's adoptive father, and that he is scared of the boy: "There's something about him. Sometimes, when he's around, things happen. He's different somehow."

Unusual occurrences have appeared around Walt. Just prior to his mother's death, Walt is studying from a book about native birds, and wants Brian to look at the entry for the Australian Bronze cuckoo. When Brian ignores him because Susan suddenly feels sick at that moment, Walt becomes insistent, and as he says "you're not looking," a bird suddenly smashes into the window because it 'wasn't looking' and dies. It looks like the bird Walt was looking at in the book.

When Michael arrives in Australia to collect Walt, he doesn't take too well to him. Michael spares Walt's feelings by telling him that Brian wants to keep him, but it is up to Michael and he has decided to take him. Michael also tells Walt that Brian said Walt could have his dog, Vincent.

In "", Michael and Walt stay in a hotel the night before the flight. Walt constantly disobeys Michael, comparing him to Brian, and attempts to leave with his dog, Vincent. Walt constantly gives Michael the cold shoulder at the airport, paying more attention to his video game instead.

After the crash (Season 1)

Befriending Locke

Soon after the crash, Walt discovers a Comic Book written in Spanish. He claims to understand the story because of the pictures. Later on his refusal to help out in the recovery of the plane crash causes Michael to throw the comic into the Fire. However, the page that burns is one with a polar bear, similar to the polar bear that attacks the group looking for the signal to work the Transceiver. This is later explained in the episode 'Special', that strange occurences seem to happen when Walt becomes angry. He also recovers a pair of handcuffs. Due to Michael's willingness to help others, Walt is left under the care of different people, most noticeably Sun, who introduces him to her knowledge of herbal uses. Walt later moves into the caves, along with Michael. Walt is intrigued by Locke's hunting instincts, and constantly tries to sneak away with him, but to no avail. It is on one occasion when Walt sees Locke in the jungle throwing knives, and asks to practice with him. The next day, Walt sneaks away with Locke and Boone, and exhibits a natural talent in knife throwing. Michael soon arrives and is enraged, taking Walt away from them and forbidding him to see them. Annoyed, Walt disobeys him and speaks with Locke in the caves. Michael catches him and, as punishment, burns Walt's comic book. Walt takes Vincent and leaves camp, heading into the jungle, where he encounters a polar bear. He is rescued by Michael and Locke.

The raft

Michael begins constructing a raft, and finishes it after a few days. However, Walt secretly sets alight to it, completely destroying it. Only Locke knows about this. Walt encounters Locke in the jungle days later, and notices the uncovered hatch. Walt then warns Locke not to open it, before running away. That night, after Michael recovers from his earlier poisoning, Walt confesses to burning the original raft, explaining that he didn't want to leave the island. However, after Michael proposes staying behind, Walt's mind suddenly changes and demands they leave. The next morning, Walt is the first to find Rousseau arriving on the beach. Later that day, he gives Vincent to a still-grieving Shannon before he leaves on the raft with Michael, Jin and Sawyer. That night, however, they encounter the Others. They destroy the raft and kidnap Walt.

eason 2 and Lost: The Missing Pieces

Walt remains in captivity with the Others, but frequently appears to Shannon, particularly in "Man of Science, Man of Faith" and "Abandoned"; however, no one believes her. In "Abandoned", Walt appears to Shannon shortly after Sayid leaves for a brief moment. He later appears to both of them the next day in the jungle. It is because of this that Shannon is shot by Ana Lucia.

In a mobisode it is revealed that at some point after he was taken off the raft, Walt was held in Room 23 at the Hydra compound by the Others. Walt posed a greater threat to them than they expected, as he had been doing something unspecified that frightened them so that they would not go in to see him. Ben responded to a particular situation with a blaring alarm and people in commotion, and Juliet suggested that Ben take responsibility and bring Walt back to Michael. Ben refused, saying Jacob wanted him there, and that Walt is important and special. After Ben denied Walt's dangerous nature, Juliet took him outside to show what Walt had done: a group of dead birds were lying on the stairwell beneath a boarded up window.

As Michael is entering the numbers into the hatch, he unexpectedly receives a message, saying "Hello?". Michael begins a conversation with this person, but after introducing himself, he receives a message asking, "Dad?". Michael believes that this is Walt trying to communicate with him. Later, Michael receives instructions from this anonymous person that leads him to the Others. Michael is briefly reunited with Walt after he is brought to their camp. Walt reveals that he had been 'experimented' on, resulting in their meeting being cut short. Before being taken away, Walt hugs Michael. Later, Michael returns with Jack, Kate, Sawyer and Hurley, in an exchange for Walt and their freedom. Walt awaits in the boat (also given to Michael), and the two sail off.

Off the Island

Whilst off the island, Walt resides at his grandmother's house due to not wanting to speak or having anything to do with Michael after learning that he killed Ana-Lucia and Libby. When Michael visits his mother's house with the hopes of speaking to Walt, he is told to leave but catches a glimpse of his son through the window.

eason 3

Back on the island, Locke lies in a pit of dead bodies about to commit suicide in despair, Walt appears to him and tells him to get out of the pit, saying he has "work to do", allowing Locke to regain use of his legs again.

eason 4

On the way to the barracks, Locke tells Sawyer about his encounter with Walt and describes him as being taller, most likely to make up for actor Malcolm David Kelley's current age difference with the character.

In the episode, "There's No Place Like Home" he appears in a flashforward with Hurley, apparently under the assumption that his father is still alive and living on the island, despite his death in There's No Place Like Home. He asks him why the Oceanic Six are lying about the real events. Hurley answers that it is so that they can protect those still on the island. Walt seems upset that none of the Oceanic Six attempted to find him, though he does say that John Locke visited him, under the alias Jeremy Bentham.

Production difficulties with the character

One of the key questions with the character Walt is casting and problems that arise concerning the proposed timeline on "Lost". While the series moves slowly through time and only months have passed on the show, the actual filming has stretched over several years.

When originally cast, Walt was portrayed as a 10 year old boy, but after two seasons, Malcolm David Kelley no longer looked 10. The show's writers appear to have dealt with this at the end of the second season by sending Michael and Walt away from the island toward supposed rescue.

In his brief appearance at the end of Season 3, Kelley is noticeably taller and older with a deeper voice. This fact is acknowledged by Locke in Confirmed Dead.

In the season four episode, "Meet Kevin Johnson", Malcolm David Kelley makes a brief uncredited cameo as Walt in the episode's flashbacks. Make-up and CGI was used to make Kelley look younger and more like a ten year old. [(April 7, 2008) " [http://www.tvguide.com/Media/Flash/ContextualPlayer.aspx?moremode=1&externalpopupload=1&videoid=10866839 Hollywood 411: "Lost": Malcolm David Kelley interview] ", "TV Guide". Retrieved on April 10, 2008.]

In the season four finale, "There's No Place Like Home", Walt appears in a flash-forward, but this scene is set about three years after the plane crash, so Kelley's older appearance is not a problem.

When asked about the production difficulties associated with Walt and possible appearances of the character in the fourth season, co-creator Damon Lindelof stated, "We've always known Malcolm was going to grow faster than we could shoot the show. And we planned for it. Trust us. Please trust us. You'll see [Walt] again. But you're gonna have to be patient. Sorry." [cite web | url = http://au.tv.ign.com/articles/825/825647p1.html | title = Lost looks to the Future |last = Goldman | first = Eric | date= October 8, 2007 | publisher = IGN] That statement by Lindelof has led to considerable fan speculation that Walt will play a major role in the final season of the show, when it's possible that the various timelines on the show will have potentially caught up with real time and allow Kelley to play Walt close to Kelley's true, chronological age, but this has not been confirmed by the producers.

References