Dominic Monaghan is lost in paradise. Currently residing on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, he is enjoying his time on the tropical isle surfing, but this is hardly a vacation. Instead he is starring as Charlie, a washed-up musician who survives a plane crash and must start a new life on a deserted island in one of AXN’s most anticipated drama series, Lost. The brainchild of Alias creator J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof, Lost features a large ensemble cast and some ongoing mysteries that are sure to keep viewers guessing.

Little is initially revealed about Charlie--the bass player in a one-hit-wonder band whose members, he insists, are still together and due for a comeback--and early hints indicate he’s hiding a pretty big secret.

Popularly known as the mischievous Hobbit, Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck, from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the actor is clearly excited about his new role. Having starred in one of the most successful franchises of all time, playing an artist who peaked too soon might seem like tempting fate to some actors, but Monaghan dismisses such a notion. "You know what, I didn’t think about that until probably about halfway through," he admits. "I could go from working on one of the most successful films of all time, and then my career could disappear. I did have a year off after making The Lord of the Rings, and I was kind of dealing with these emotions of what to do next."

During that year, the German-born and British-raised actor had moved to Los Angeles and was just like any other struggling actor--albeit one with a series of hit movies on the horizon. "I had a year of being kind of down and depressed and pissed off, and I did a bit of soul-searching," he recalls. "It was probably one of the most gratifying years of my life, looking back now, because I grew so much. I came out the other side a lot stronger and ready to get on with life."

For that reason, he has been picky about the roles he’s taken post-LOTR and wasn’t actively looking to do a TV series. "I was in the middle of reading a lot of film scripts, and I actually said to my agent that I didn’t think I wanted to do television until something really special came along," he says. That something special turned out to be Lost, which he says he was blown away by.

Asked what his favorite part about doing the series is, Monaghan says he believes the best is yet to come. "I think once the show has been on the air awhile, the thing I’m going to enjoy more than anything is talking to people on the streets and finding out what they like about the show on a week-to-week basis," he enthuses. "Feedback is so accessible when you’re on a weekly show. I think that’s going to be amazing."

When asked about his personal theory regarding Lost, here’s what Dominic has to say, "I think every major character has a retribution," and the actor believes that the lost souls of Oceanic Flight 815 is stuck in some sort of transcendental location or vacuum where "unclean" souls go at the time of death.