On last night’s premiere episode of HBO’s The Leftovers, about the aftermath of an event in which 2 percent of the world’s population vanishes one day without explanation, there is a brief moment in which we see mention of some of the celebrities who disappeared. The Pope, naturally, but also Bonnie Raitt, Gary Busey, and Condoleezza Rice. When asked about the list last week, showrunner Damon Lindelof said, “Well, Shaquille O’Neal, Jennifer Lopez, Anthony Bourdain, and the Pope were all in the book, and my contributions were Salman Rushdie and Gary Busey. And I love Salman Rushdie’s writing, but I thought like, He’ll either get a huge kick out of it, or it’ll piss him off.â€
So has Rushdie said anything about his disappearance? “I don’t think he’s seen the show,†Lindelof said. “I think his reaction will be like, what?â€