Which first-season character was originally intended to die in the pilot?

Jack Shephard was the first-season character originally intended to die in the pilot of Lost.

In the early outline, Jack would have been killed about halfway through the opening episode, shortly after viewers became invested in him as a capable survivor. The planned death was meant to establish that the series could take major characters away without warning.

That plan changed during development. Jack became the central leader of the survivors, while the ill-fated airplane pilot was introduced as a different character and became the Monster’s first victim. Matthew Fox’s casting and the producers’ decision to retain Jack reshaped the entire series.

A common mix-up is confusing Jack’s original fate with his eventual one: he survives the pilot and remains the protagonist through the series finale, where he dies after helping protect the Island. Kate, who was initially envisioned as the survivors’ leader, did not take Jack’s place.