spicedogs | TV Guide's Article on Josh Holloway with Spoilers

JOSH GOES DEEP

WHAT’S BENEATH THE GORGEOUS SURFACE OF LOST’S BAD BOY?

Josh Hollowav is at the front door of his surprisingly modest house on the Hawaiian island of Oahu before the door-bell’s even been rung. The man known to millions as Sawyer, Lost’s roguish anti-hero, is fresh from the shower and dressed in what are likely the first clean clothes he could find—a wrinkled gray T-shirt, worn jeans and a baseball cap. He greets his guest like the hospitable Georgia boy he was raised to be, with a honey-drawled “Hello, sweetheart” punctuated with a quick kiss and a self-conscious apology. “My wife’s gone”—that would be Yessica Kumala, who’s in Indonesia visiting family—”so this is a bachelor pad right now.”

The kitchen alone proves that. Unopened mail, a tattered copy of the best-seller The Artist Way and a smattering of Lost scripts—watermarked with Holloway’s name across each top-secret page—litter the center island. And if the sorry contents of the fridge are any indication, Holloway, 37, could stand a trip to the grocery store. There’s only one bottle of water left, which he, embarrassed, kindly offers to share.

Holloway has nicknamed his solo digs Mantopia. “I had some guys from the cast over the other night,” he says, explaining both the alcohol stocked in a cabinet and the broken faucet. A sly smile spreads across his lips. “I’ve gotta get that fixed before Yessi gets home.”

Welcome to Holloway’s private world, on a day off in late August. Or rather, an afternoon off. He got called into work at 7 this morning to complete some unfinished outdoor scenes. “Sawyer’s in an animalistic place right now,” Holloway says of his character’s captivity by the inscrutable Others. “In a cage, starving, thirsting to death and just filthy.” More on Lost’s third season in a moment. Right now, Holloway is eager to unwind. So it’s out the patio door, through his canal-front yard and to the dock, where a 26-foot white Boston Whaler awaits.

Holloway agonized for weeks before buying the pricey boat last spring. Much like he did after splurging on the 61” flat-screen TV that hangs in his living room. The actor reportedly earns $80,000 per episode but stockpiles his money the way Sawyer hoards guns, medicine and booze. It’s a survivalist’s mentality, one Holloway honed growing up in a trailer with his cash-strapped parents and three brothers. And after struggling for eight years to get his big break, he’s still afraid it could all be gone tomorrow.

It’s obvious, though, from the look of pride on his face as he surveys the Whaler—which he’s dubbed Moon shine—that he’s made peace with his purchase. “Boys and their toys,” he says with a loud laugh, before letting out an emphatic “Eee-hee-hee!”

He unties the boat from the dock and expertly guides it through the palm tree–lined canals behind his house. He proves a conscientious tour guide, pointing out a bay known for its stellar snorkeling and several restaurants that he frequents. Recently, he sold some fish he caught to one of the eateries. “They took an ono and a mahi-mahi,” Holloway yells above the roar of the motor. And what’d he get for them? “A hundred and eighty dollars worth of coupons so I can go there and eat,” he says, clearly pleased with the trade.

Last month, Holloway let good pal Jorge Garcia, who plays Hurley, take Moonshine’s wheel. “I’d never driven a boat before, aside from the motorboats at Disneyland,” Garcia reports. “But Josh stayed very calm and cool.”

Being out on the water soothes Holloway. “Sometimes, I like to come out by myself, turn the boat off and just chill,” he says. “How big Lost has gotten—I’m still adjusting to that. It freaks me out at times. I gotta get away.”

For all of Holloway’s easygoing Southern charm, it seems he’s not entirely comfortable with his newfound fame and everything that comes with it. Paparazzi have tried to photograph him in his backyard (hence the large fence that now surrounds the property). And last year a burglar broke in and robbed him and Kumala at gunpoint. The perpetrator was later apprehended, but Holloway nonetheless installed a high-tech security system. Clearly, there are times when he doesn’t feel safe in his own home. “But out here,” he says, staring off into the vast Pacific, “no one can really touch me.”

Lost’s Sawyer is the sort of man who responds to being left out of the island’s decision-making by stealing a stash of guns and declaring, “There’s a new sheriff in town, boys. Y’all better get used to it.”

Obviously, Sawyer has trust issues. You would too if your father murdered your mother and then, right in front of you, killed himself. The victimized boy grew up to be the victimizer—a con man who plays vulnerable women like fiddles and takes them for every cent. “Self-hate,” Holloway muses. “That’s the core of why he will always have that hard edge.”

With the boat docked, Holloway kicks off his shoes and kicks back in a Balinese tiki hut in his backyard. As the actor talks about his often uneasy relationship with Sawyer, he absentmindedly dips a finger into his vodka and cranberry cocktail, stirring the ice. “Sawyer’s a guy I would not tolerate in the real world,” he says. “I don’t have any respect for people who treat other people like that. I would heat his ass in a second.”

Then, with a booming laugh, he says, “I love playing somebody I wouldn’t tolerate! That’s not how I live, so it’s a real release for me.”

If Sawyer has let his guard down at all on the island, it’s because of Kate (Evangeline Lilly), the fugitive with a heart of gold, affectionately dubbed Freckles by Holloway’s character. “She sees right through him,” Holloway explains. “She’s the little chisel that broke his first wail.”

At the start of the new season, Sawyer, Kate and Jack (Matthew Fox) are separately imprisoned by the Others. But before the first episode ends, Kate has been moved to a cage next to Sawyer’s. The two share a sweet reunion that will thrill fans who’ve been rooting for the pair since they shared a hungry kiss during Season 1. “Slowly, he’s been falling for this girl,” Holloway says. “And when you come into danger from outside forces, it reveals your feelings even more.”

Producers have promised that Kate will choose between her two suitors—good doc Jack or had boy Sawyer within the first six episodes of Season 3. (Could it happen during the Sawyer-centric October 25 episode “Every Man for Himself”?)

Holloway insists he doesn’t yet know if he gets the girl. “But I’ve explored either way in my mind,” he says. “I like if Sawyer doesn’t get her because he re-mains a free agent. Then again, anytime someone gets close, he destroys it, so I’d like to see him try with Kate before he just knee-jerk blows it.”

Holloway finishes his drink as he ponders what—besides Kate—is impor¬tant to Sawyer: “I don’t think he knows. He has no frickin’ idea.” Sawyer is, in fact, lost.

Holloway, though, seems to be finding his way. Ile has everything he’s ever wanted—the flourishing career, the house, a high-powered boat docked a stone’s throw from where he now sits.

But he mentions none of those things when ticking off what he values most. “Truth. Respect. And love,” he says. “I’nm a frickin’ romantic. I can’t help it. Love is huge to me. I’ve found that, and it’s awesome.” He lets out a particularly Sawyeresque whoop. “It’s real and it’s undeniable, so what do you do?”

Cleaning up Mantopia before the wife gets home probably wouldn’t hurt.

MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!

Dying to know what’s in store when Lost returns October 4?

Here’s what the surprisingly loose-lipped cast revealed when TV GUIDE traveled to the Hawaiian set

The October 4 premiere be1ongs to Jack, who loses it in flashbacks when he suspects wife Sarah of having an affair with his boozin’ dad.

Desmond (Henry lan Cusick) turns up posthatch explosion NAKED! “I had a G-string on,” Cusick says of shooting the scene for the first episode. “The more I wore it, the more comfortable I felt.” Pause. “That can’t be good, can it?”

The real name of Henry Gale (Michael Emerson) is revealed—as is the identity of his past love. “It’s interesting,” Emerson says, “to think of Henry with a love life.”

The October 11 episode is Locke-centric and features a trippy airport-set dream sequence. Reveals Dominic Monaghan (Charlie “Hurley’s behind the Oceanic Airline counter, Desmond’s the pilot, and Charlie and Claire are married.”

Who’s the father of Sun’s baby? Don’t expect that mystery to be solved anytime soon. According to Yunjin Kim (Sun), producers told her, “It’s gonna be the finale when we find out. Like the very end of Lost.”

You can view the actual article here:

http://www.bhrescue.com/LOST/pdf/sawyer.pdf