Kate Austen

Kate:  All American tomboy turned elusive fugitive, Kate Austen is a woman haunted by her past and constantly on the run from it both figuratively and literally.  Kate spent most of her pre-island time trying to distance herself from her degenerate father Wayne, eventually murdering him in cold blood, hoping it would free her mother (Dianne) from his grasp.  Unfortunately Wayne's spell over Dianne continues past mortality and Kate can't seem to ever make her life whole and takes off on the lam when it becomes apparent her mother loved Wayne more than she.  This action leads to a series of events where Kate becomes estranged from her army stepfather whom she previously believed to be her actual father, and the tragic death of her childhood sweetheart Tom, in a car accident.  While on the island, Kate gets caught in a love triangle involving both Jack (the good man, the doctor, a life and identity she longs for) and Sawyer (the conman, one who doesn't restrain her, an identity Kate cannot shirk).  For the role of Kate, another performance I find almost impossible to even come near with any actor other than the original, Evangeline Lilly; I really struggled to find the right actress.  For a while I was settled on Lauren Bacall (who will eventually get a role!) but I didn't feel she possessed that inner innocence that Kate has, that draws men like Jack and Tom to her.  The women of Lost, particularly Kate, were harder to cast because of how limited the roles were in the 50's for even the best actresses.  But after much deliberation, I concluded that Audrey Hepburn is best suited for the role.  There are elements of Kate's character in several of Hepburn's best performances such as the Nun's Story, The Unforgiven, and Wait Until Dark.  Granted all of those came a little later in her career when she had more flexibility to show off her range, but I think she could make an awesome Kate, almost up to Lilly's level.  Plus who wouldn't want to see Audrey Hepburn shootin' up the place and kicking ass.