Man in Black (Lost)

The Man in Black (also called "The Smoke Monster" or simply "The Monster") is the main antagonist of the American ABC television series Lost. He appeared as a cloud of black smoke until the final episode of season five where he appeared as a middle-aged man dressed in black. In season six, he appeared in the physical form of John Locke (Terry O'Quinn). He exhibited the ability to scan the minds and memories of others, allowing him to confront characters such as Mr. Eko (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) and Ben Linus (Michael Emerson), with "judgement", and assume the appearances and memories of the dead, such as Christian Shephard (John Terry), Yemi (Adetokumboh M'Cormack), Alex Rousseau (Tania Raymonde), and Locke. According to Jacob, it is the incarnation of evil, and its primary goal—to escape from the island—would be the "end of everything good".

Various other characters have implied that his escape would be catastrophic and could even cause the destruction of reality. A longtime resident of the island, the true nature of The Man in Black was long shrouded in mystery. It had been described by Lost producer Damon Lindelof as "one of the biggest secrets" of the mythology of Lost while the producers have often hinted that the black cloud of smoke was not a monster in the traditional sense. TV Guide included the character in their list of "The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time" in 2013.