Latest 'Lost' spoilers

Warning: This article contains spoilers about upcoming episodes of Lost which some readers may wish to avoid.

A major Lost character will die before the first season ends, executive producer JJ Abrams has revealed.

Unlike a recent episode that saw Shannon die - but only in Boone's island-induced hallucinations - this time round the death will be for real.

Abrams told E!Online: "There will definitely be death before the end of the year, and it won't be a dream. And it's not going to be a new character that comes on and all of a sudden dies in that episode.

"We're aware it's not realistic to have all 14 make it, and this is a very hard thing to do for us, because when you know you're going to do a story where someone's gonna have to bite it, you don't want to like any of the actors - because you don't want to have to say goodbye to any of them. And this cast, they're just like family. They're amazing. They're all wonderful."

In a further twist, the character in question is said to die at the hands of another.