Naveen Andrews Teases Lost's Return: Sayid Will Surprise You!

What's there to be said/recapped that hasn't been said/recapped in the past 200-plus days since Lost served up that terrifically twisty flash-forward-filled finale? But at long last, instead of merely speculating about what happens next, who else will get off the island and what Not Penny's Boat really wants, the action will continue with the arrival of the Season 4 opener tonight at 9 pm/ET on ABC. TVGuide.com invited Naveen Andrews to preview the "constantly surprising" episodes to come.

TVGuide.com: Has it been particularly disappointing for the Lost cast members to have seen this season cut short by the strike, seeing as the show had this great momentum going?
Naveen Andrews: Yeah, but I think it's probably worse for people who had just started a [brand-new TV] show. If this were the first season, it would be utterly disastrous, but we do have a solid fan base and we do have three seasons behind us, so it's a little different.

TVGuide.com: As I was preparing for this interview, I rewatched the season finale and I was disappointed to be reminded that there was precious little Sayid in it.
Andrews: Oh, that's kind of you to say so!

TVGuide.com: Can we expect a reverse in that trend? Does he figure largely in the new season?
Andrews: He's featured quite heavily, yeah. So maybe that is a change.

TVGuide.com: And Episode 3 is Sayid-centric, right?
Andrews: It is, yes.

TVGuide.com: Last we saw Sayid, he was on the beach with Bernard and Jin, and they had just been saved from execution at the hands of the Others. How quickly do they rejoin with the rest of the castaways?
Andrews: Well, so much of this show is about coming together and splitting apart again, for various reasons.... I guess you could say the camp splits again. And by the time you get to Episode 3, the split is kind of clearly defined.

TVGuide.com: Does Sayid have a strong opinion on the possible rescuers?
Andrews: Yes, he's heavily involved in that. What excited me about Season 4 as opposed to what the character got to do in Season 3 is that he's actually sort of pushing the story forward again, which just from an acting point of view is infinitely more interesting and rewarding. Also, you get to see that some characters get off the island. I can't say whether one of them is me or not, but.... [Laughs] It's just so difficult to talk about it without revealing too much....

[An airplane is heard roaring in the distance]

TVGuide.com: It's kind of funny that we just heard an airplane.
Andrews: Over the ocean here in Los Angeles, yes! But I will say that you get to see a whole new side of Sayid that even I would have never expected. They have taken a huge leap, and it is constantly surprising. I think Season 4 is a huge improvement, to be honest.

TVGuide.com: After seeing the finale, did the cast this season become especially anxious to see who got a flash-forward and thus "survives" the island?
Andrews: I can't deny that, no! [Laughs] A show like Lost, with so many deaths, shall we say, keeps actors on their toes and constantly anxious about whether they will be alive or not. But quite honestly, just because you're seen in the future doesn't necessarily mean that you're going to stay on the show. It's not a guarantee of life after death... if you see what I mean.

TVGuide.com: Some may argue that seeing people alive in the future undercuts the dramatic tension, but just because someone gets off the island doesn't mean that's the end of the story.
Andrews: Absolutely not, no. You're spot-on.

TVGuide.com: For all we know, Jack proceeds to go back to the island after the flash-forward we saw.
Andrews: Yeah. And he certainly seems to be on the point of doing so!

TVGuide.com: Any new possible love interests for Sayid?
Andrews: Oh, yeah. Yeah. You will see that. Again, that took me by surprise.

TVGuide.com: With some new characters coming on, Sayid might find a new ally in Rebecca Mader or....
Andrews: Or otherwise, in other dimensions... without getting too specific. Who knows? [Chuckles]

TVGuide.com: What's next for you, outside of Lost?
Andrews: There were two films that I was going to do — we all make our plans, and the plan was that we would finish the entire season in February and then be free to do movies. But those movies have been affected by the strike as well.

TVGuide.com: At what point do you simply not shoot any more episodes for this season? When would the strike have to be resolved for you to get back to work, versus production going on hiatus until, like, the summer?
Andrews: Well, I would have thought the end of February. That's just my opinion. If it goes on past February, maybe [the hiatus] you are suggesting will take place.

TVGuide.com: Do we get any bonus Naveen Andrews in the Grindhouse: Planet Terror DVD?
Andrews: [Laughs] I was given a copy, and it's supposedly got extra stuff in it. That movie, working with those two [Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez], was a very different experience. They're in charge, they shoot when they want to and how they want to. In the case of Robert, he actually edits the film as he shoots it. That experience was a helluva lot of fun. It looks hilarious, and that's how it was shooting it.

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