producers official word about three more seasons...

[rivum]

Originally Posted by ew.com

Why is a fixed end point good news for you guys personally?
CUSE: This was really important to us as a condition for Damon and I to stay on the show. The fact that we get to finish what we started is really important to us. And also to be able to plan out our remaining storytelling — you know, we're no longer in that weird, ambiguous place of knowing what our mythology is, but not knowing how long we have to play that mythology out. And the 3/16 paradigm allows us to be more thoughtful about executing it; it's more of a cable model. Look at how well David Chase has been able to plan out The Sopranos by doing fewer episodes.
LINDELOF: We'll be able to look back and take authorship for pretty much every episode from start to finish. We feel the fans don't really care how many episodes there are, they just want every episode to be good. Sixteen was a number where we felt we could almost guarantee every episode would be good. We know the ending of the series. We know exactly where it is we're working toward. But getting there and designing these seasons as books with satisfying beginnings, middles, and ends — this deal gives us the superstructure for that. Now, we have to figure out on an episode-by-episode basis how we make this journey as emotional and as satisfying as it can be. We also have to figure out how to dole out the episodes so that we're not frontloading it so much with answers that people say, ''That's not what I wanted it to be. I'm not watching it anymore!'' At the same time, we don't want to make it too frustrating so people have to wait until the end before they get any taste of answers at all. We feel that messaging begins in this year's finale. That's why we're so excited that we were able to make the announcement prior to the finale.
Were you prepared to walk away if you couldn't get an end date for the series from ABC?
LINDELOF: Fortunately, we never had to address that possibility.
Was there any talk to doing this any other way, like fewer episodes, or just doing two seasons?
CUSE: There were a lot of things discussed. We spent many months in these conversations, and with any negotiation, you don't immediately arrive at what the end point is. We all tried on different scenarios until we found one that everyone was happy with.
Lost makes a ton of money for the Walt Disney Company, both in the United States and overseas, where it remains a powerhouse hit. Did ABC need three more seasons of Lost in order to meet various international and domestic business objectives?
CUSE: That's really a question for ABC to speak to.
LINDELOF: Look, in order for this to happen, the studio and the network had to look at us and see the creative side and understand where we were coming from creatively, and we had to look at them and understand where they were coming from in a business sense. And in a business sense, the show is still a juggernaut on an international level, and also a domestic level. So we had to be cognizant of the big picture in everything we pitched them, because they were looking at the whole scenario — Lost as a creative and business enterprise. They were taking money off the table to give us what we were asking for. But in order to keep Lost creative and energized, we needed to have an end point. So it was that mutual acknowledgement — them looking at it as a creative negotiation and us looking at it as a business negotiation — that allowed us to arrive at the middle. God's honest truth — it's not P.R. B.S. — both us and the network and studio are thrilled by the outcome. Most negotiations end where both sides are little bit bummed with the outcome. I think everyone gets exactly what they wanted [with the 3/16 agreement]. The only thing that matters now is that people be able to look back on Lost and say, ''That was a great show.'' We now feel that we are no longer hamstrung by the ongoing business realities of an ongoing television show. We can now deliver on that.
Did you guys talk to the cast about this?
CUSE: We did, and they share our enthusiasm. They all had the same anxiety: Can this sustain? Can it last? Can it finish well?
For some people, though, 2010 is very far away. While you're only producing 48 more episodes of Lost, it still feels like we're a long way off from getting ultimate resolution.
LINDELOF: I understand that. It's like when you read Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets back in the mid 1990s, and being told that it won't be until 2007 that Harry Potter was finally going to graduate Hogwarts. You go ''What?!''
CUSE: But it really was the best alternative. It's too hard for us to make 24 episodes. The other model that was seriously discussed was two seasons of 24 episodes, and it's just too hard for us to accomplish that and keep the quality bar high. We would have had no hiatus, no time to recharge batteries or do the important story planning we need to do ahead of each season. But the prospect of taking that same number and dividing it by three instead of two made sense. It gives us the opportunity to be more thoughtful and organized in the way our storytelling is going to unfold.
LINDELOF: If we waited to announce this in January, right before the start of next season, 2010 wouldn't have felt so far away. But we wanted to tell everyone right now, before this year's finale, that the answers are coming. In fact, the real answers start coming this week [in the May 9 episode].

so there you have it...straight from the new EW.com article.

rivum

[tailhook]

CUSE: But it really was the best alternative. It's too hard for us to make 24 episodes. The other model that was seriously discussed was two seasons of 24 episodes, and it's just too hard for us to accomplish that and keep the quality bar high. We would have had no hiatus, no time to recharge batteries or do the important story planning we need to do ahead of each season. But the prospect of taking that same number and dividing it by three instead of two made sense. It gives us the opportunity to be more thoughtful and organized in the way our storytelling is going to unfold.

LOLOLOLOLOL.. Carlton's credibility is dropping faster than Kate's. Seriously.. does anybody buy this crap they're shoveling? I can see he's trying to spin it the best way possible but in doing so he's coming off like a crybaby. Allow me to translate...

WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! We can't do 24 episodes in a season! I understand we have only done that going on 3 years now and have done so WITH EVERY FREAKING SERIES WE'VE EVER BEEN ON... but there is no possible way!!!!! WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Everybody else in the network(non-cable) television industry does 22-24 episode seasons BUT FOR US ITS TOO HARD! WE NEED TIME OFF!!!! WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! It doesn't matter that those guys over on 24 at Fox follow this structure.. FOR US ITS TOO HARD OK! WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Now... lets get to reality. If they haven't got the season finale in the can right now I would be surprised. Pretty sure they would have had it bagged and tagged since at least May 1st since it airs in like 2 weeks. So they're allready on hiatus as a cast and crew. They will continue to be on hiatus until at least September. You know what that sound is? THEIR BATTERIES FREAKING RECHARGING, 4 full freaking months.

They come back in September and start putting it together for a January start tracking ahead of air time by at least 1-2 months and then its up to them to simply deliver and most likely be done before.. GUESS WHEN.. MAY 1ST. These guys are delving so far into Lying Producer mode now its sickening seeing them try to justify this chop job.

They're trying to put the best face possible on this and looking like beatneck amateurs that can't swing with the big boys. You got f**ked, but got nice bonuses via fat contract extensions left on the bedroom dresser so you would 'explain' it to us... we understand that. We got f**ked.. with 2 full years of wait ahead of us with nothing to show.. we understand that also. ABC, however, is going to be swimming in money.. AND WE MOST ASSUREDLY UNDERSTAND THAT.

[mugatu22]

...and you'll still watch, right?

I don't understand the anger. Why get so mad, vehement and combative over a TV show? I love LOST and will be annoyed w/their new format too, but it doesn't seem worth getting so upset about.