‘Stranger’ J.J. Abrams Bad Robot Trailer Rumored To Be Ad For New ‘Lost’ Spin-Off

Stranger, a new mystery trailer from J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions, was released into the wilds of YouTube on Monday. It appears to be moody, dramatic footage of a trailer for something that involves a guy who had his mouth sewn shut with black surgical thread.

Needless to say, the rumor mill is running crazy — even with fans who think J.J. Abrams can get a little annoying with his mysteries.

I have to tip my hat to the fine folks at Metafilter, which is where I first encountered the J.J. Abrams Stranger video discussion.

At the time I tuned in, one theory seemed to be more popular than the rest.

• Rory Marinich: “The music reminds me of Lost. And the narrator used the world ‘lost.’ Maybe this is more Lost? It’s probably not more Lost but that’s what I wish it was.”
• anotherpanacea: “I think another season of Lost might be just what is needed to fix the terrible taste the last episode left in my mouth.”
• Sys Rq: “Or, you know, an adaptation of Camus, but I doubt that.”

Entertainment Weekly’s PopWatch weighed in with not one but five theories about what the mystery trailer might be. And, yes, Stranger is “a tease for a Lost spin-off series, to be told through viral videos and other alt media” is high on the list.

It could also be an ad for NBC’s Believe, a new J.J. Abrams show coming next year. Or Stranger could be a trailer for a completely different TV show.

It could even be a trailer for a novel. While more and more novelists are going the trailer route these days, I’m not so sure of that one. But reporter Jeff Jensen thinks it could be a trailer for S. by Doug Dorst due out from Mulholland Books on October 29.

But nobody really knows where J.J. Abrams is going with the Stranger mystery trailer. The hope for more Lost isn’t yet lost.