Remembering David Lynch

Today marks the tragic loss of one of the last great American artists, David Lynch. His impact on the culture, cinema, and creative innovation will be eternally unmoved. He's best known for his visionary work as the director of Mulholland Drive, Blue Velvet, and the television series Twin Peaks. His signature surrealist style even coined the term "Lynchian." Though the majority of his work dates back more than 20 years, he has an ever-growing cult-like fanbase and is revered by his film industry peers.

The news of his passing follows a late 2024 announcement of his emphysema diagnosis. In an interview with Sight and Sound, Lynch said, "I’ve gotten emphysema from smoking for so long and so I’m homebound whether I like it or not. It would be very bad for me to get sick, even with a cold.” For a man who lived to be on set, the sudden realization that he may have already taken his last step onto a studio lot must have been a brutal and difficult adjustment.

Lynch's legacy will carry on through his art, and if today's news provides us with anything, it's the excuse to revisit or finally discover his cinematic masterpieces. To celebrate what he has given us, here are some highlights from the illustrious career of David Lynch.

Eraserhead

It's no surprise that Lynch's first foray into feature filmmaking would be as ambitious as Eraserhead—a harrowing tale about fatherhood set in an industrial wasteland. The movie, like lots of great art, was heavily misunderstood at first and then eventually found its target audience with the underground cult film scene.

Blue Velvet

In 1986, Lynch was able to develop a script he had been working on for over a decade. On the surface, Blue Velvet is a neo-noir, sensual crime thriller—but with Lynch, there's always far more than meets the eye. At its core, the film explores the vulnerability and primality of human desire. Nearly forty years later, Blue Velvet is still a widely adored framework for filmmakers today.

Mulholland Drive

In his magnum opus, Lynch pulls back the curtain on Hollywood and, in turn, dismantles the artiface of the American Dream. BBC named Mulholland Drive the greatest film of the 21st century, and I couldn't agree more. The film not only encapsulates all the themes and styles in Lynch's repertoire, but it exposes and criticizes the very system it exists in.

Twin Peaks, Fire Walk With Me, and The Return

David Lynch spent thirty years of his life building the universe and unravelling the mystery that is the town Twin Peaks. First was the television series that spanned three seasons from 1990-1992 and revolved around the murder of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee). Second came the film Fire Walk With Me that served as a prequel leading up to Palmer's death. In the decades following, the Twin Peaks universe had a massive revival with younger generations, solidifying it as a cult-classic. At the end of the first run of the series, a ghostly Laura Palmer says to Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan), "I'll see you again in 25 years." And in great Lynchian fashion, Twin Peaks: The Return, premiered exactly twenty-five years later.

David Lynch forged a path to a new cinematic frontier, unearthing a style of storytelling that defied the norm of his peers. He has left an indelible mark on cinema that will forever be imitated but never replicated.

Rest in Peace David Lynch (1946-2025)