Miles Straume

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Miles was born in March 1977 and raised in Encino, California, by his mother Lara Chang. He resented his father for never being around and harbored disdain for fathers who mistreat their children. As a child, Miles discovered he could hear the thoughts of the deceased and used this ability to become a professional spiritualist. In December 2004, Charles Widmore hired him to travel on the Kahana to retrieve Ben Linus, believing Miles could communicate with those Ben had killed. After arriving on the island on December 21, Miles joined the survivors after initially being taken prisoner by John Locke. He later bargained with Ben for $3.2 million to tell Widmore that Ben was dead. In Season 5, the group flashed through time and settled in 1974, where Miles became a security officer for the Dharma Initiative. There, he discovered his father, Dr. Pierre Chang, lived on the island as part of Dharma but continued to stay distant until July 1977. After witnessing a peaceful moment between his younger self and his father, and learning that adult Miles caused his parents' evacuation during the "incident," Miles saved his father's life before the hydrogen bomb detonated. In Season 6, he returned to the future, used his gift to reveal that Ben killed Jacob, and dug up Nikki and Paulo's diamonds to compensate for a lack of money.

In Their Own Story

In December 2004, Miles was flown from the Kahana to the island as part of a science team. Hostile toward the survivors for killing his colleague Naomi Dorrit, he was captured by John Locke and held in a boathouse. He temporarily escaped, bargaining with Ben Linus for $3.2 million. On December 27, mercenaries ransacked the Barracks, killing six people. By December 30, after the freighter exploded and Ben moved the island through spacetime, Miles was among those who began flashing through time. They settled in 1974, joining the Dharma Initiative under pseudonyms. Miles served as a security officer and befriended Sawyer. He discovered his father, Dr. Pierre Chang, worked for Dharma but did not approach him until July 1977. After realizing he had caused his own mother's evacuation by confronting his father about being from the future, Miles rushed to save his father when debris caught him during a gunfight at the Swan site. Following a bomb detonation that turned everything white, Miles returned to the future in Season 6. He helped bury Juliet and used his power to hear her final words. Captured by the Others and taken to the Temple, he escaped with Kate after the Smoke Monster attacked. Later, he revealed Ben killed Jacob, refused $3.2 million to free Ben from Ilana, and dug up diamonds for money. When the group split over how to deal with the Man in Black, Miles sided with Richard Alpert and Ben to retrieve C4, hearing the screams of Alex Buried in a closet before escaping into the jungle.

Reader's Guide

Miles Straume is defined by his ability to hear the thoughts of the dead, a skill he developed as a child to become a professional spiritualist. His personality is characterized as hotheaded and sarcastic. He initially serves as an antagonist-aligned crew member on the Kahana before becoming an ally to the Oceanic 815 survivors. Key plot points include his time-travel experience in 1974 where he joins the Dharma Initiative, his complex relationship with his father Dr. Pierre Chang, and his role in Season 6 uncovering the truth about Jacob's death. He demonstrates loyalty by siding with Richard Alpert against the Man in Black and uses his specific gift to solve mysteries involving the deceased, such as Juliet's final message or Nikki and Paulo's hidden diamonds.

Did You Know?

• The writers created the role of Miles specifically for Ken Leung after seeing him guest star on The Sopranos, and he was the only actor to read for the part.
• Miles's name was chosen because it resembles "maelstrom," another word for a powerful whirlpool.
• In July 1977, both thirty-year-old Miles and his three-month-old infant self were living on the island simultaneously.
• Miles realized he himself caused his father to order his mother and baby self to leave the island in 1977 after confronting him about being from the future.
• To compensate for having no money on the island, Miles dug up the diamonds buried with Nikki and Paulo.