David Lynch
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David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Lynch received critical acclaim for his films, which are often distinguished by their surrealist, dreamlike qualities. In his 58-year career, he was awarded numerous accolades, including the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in 2006 and an Honorary Academy Award in 2019. In 2007, a panel of critics convened by The Guardian announced that "after all the discussion, no one could fault the conclusion that David Lynch is the most important filmmaker of the current era." Lynch studied painting before he began making short films in the late 1960s. His first feature-length film was the independent surrealist film Eraserhead (1977), which saw success as a midnight movie. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director for the biographical drama The Elephant Man (1980) and the mystery films Blue Velvet (1986) and Mulholland Drive (2001). His romantic crime drama Wild at Heart (1990) won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. He also directed the space opera adaptation Dune (1984), the surrealist neo-noir Lost Highway (1997), the biographical drama The Straight Story (1999), and the experimental film Inland Empire (2006). Lynch and Mark Frost created the ABC series Twin Peaks (1990–91), for which Lynch was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series and Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series. Lynch co-wrote and directed its film prequel, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), and its limited series revival (2017). He has also worked as an actor, including his portrayals of FBI agent Gordon Cole in Twin Peaks and director John Ford in Steven Spielberg's The Fabelmans (2022), as well as guest roles in TV series such as The Cleveland Show (2010–13), Louie (2012), and Robot Chicken (2020, 2022). Lynch's other artistic endeavours included his work as a musician, encompassing the studio albums BlueBOB (2001), Crazy Clown Time (2011), and The Big Dream (2013), as well as painting and photography. He has written the books Images (1994), Catching the Big Fish (2006), and Room to Dream (2018). He has directed several music videos for artists such as Chris Isaak, X Japan, Moby, Interpol, Nine Inch Nails, and Donovan, and commercials for Calvin Klein, Dior, L'Oreal, Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, and the New York City Department of Sanitation. A practitioner of Transcendental Meditation (TM), he founded the David Lynch Foundation, which seeks to fund the teaching of TM in schools and has since widened its scope to other at-risk populations, including the homeless, veterans, and refugees.
Known for
Credits
Dune (1984)
as Spice Miner (uncredited)
The Elephant Man (1980)
as Man in the Bowler Hat in the Mob Chasing Merrick (uncredited)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)
as Gordon Cole
The Fabelmans (2022)
as John Ford
Plankton Salesmen (2017)
as Self (archive footage)
Inland Empire (2006)
as Bucky J, the gaffer (voice)
Lucky (2017)
as Howard
Why Are We Creative? (2018)
as Self
Side by Side (2012)
as Self
Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces (2014)
as Gordon Cole
La Traversée du désir (2009)
as Self
Heart of the Festival (2002)
as Self (archive footage)
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019)
as Self
Beatles '64 (2024)
as Self
The Black Ghiandola (2017)
as Man In Black
David Lynch in Oslo (2010)
as Self
David Lynch: Insight (2017)
as Self
Hollywood Mavericks (1990)
as Self
Great Directors (2009)
as Self
Lumière & Company (1995)
as Self
Brunes et Blondes (2010)
as Self
The Amputee (1974)
as The Nurse
I Don't Know Jack (2002)
as Self
David Lynch: The Art Life (2017)
as Self
Nadja (1995)
as Morgue Receptionist
Blue Velvet Revisited (2016)
as Self
Mysteries of Love (2002)
as Self (archive footage)
Mel Brooks: Make a Noise (2013)
as Self
I Know Catherine, the Log Lady (2026)
as Self
Morceaux de Cannes (2021)
Actor
Elvis | Viva Las Vegas (2008)
as Self
Night Flight: Born Again (2016)
as Self
Lynch 2 (2007)
as Self
Bad Binoculars (2017)
as Self
Girlfriend's Day (2017)
as Narrator (voice)
The Soul Detective (2009)
as Himself
Made in the USA (1993)
as Self
WHAT DID JACK DO? (2017)
as Detective
Eraserhead Stories (2001)
as Self
The Polish Accountant (2017)
as Self
The Reality of Truth (2016)
as Self
The Hanging of Stuart Cornfeld (2025)
Actor
Critic (2008)
as Self (voice)
2012: Time for Change (2010)
as Self
Love, Death, Elvis & Oz: The Making of Wild at Heart (2004)
Actor
Professor Goudet's Lessons (2013)
as Self
Eyes Behind the Lens (2026)
as Voice (Uncredited, Archive)
Rammstein in Amerika (2015)
as Self
Lynch (one) (2007)
as Self
What Is Cinema? (2013)
as Self
Along for the Ride (2016)
as Self
The Short Films of David Lynch (2002)
as Self
Behind the Red Curtain (2017)
as Self
The Number of Completion (2017)
as Self
Heart Beat (1980)
as Painter (uncredited)
Brand: A Second Coming (2015)
as Self
David Wants to Fly (2010)
as Self
In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story (1999)
as Self
Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction (2013)
as Self
Boat (2003)
as The Man
Tell It Martin (2017)
as Self
No Frank in Lumberton (1988)
as Self
Zelly & Me (1988)
as Willie
Ruth, Roses, and Revolver (1987)
as Himself
Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: David Lynch (1990)
as Self
A Pot of Boiling Oil (2017)
as Self
Dynamic:01: The Best of DavidLynch.com (2007)
as himself
The Fine Art of Separating People from Their Money (1996)
as Self
Do Not Pick Up Hitchhikers (2017)
as Self
The Making of ‘Mulholland Drive’ (2004)
as Self
A Bloody Finger in Your Mouth (2017)
as Self
Shadows of Paradise (2016)
Actor
This Is Sparklehorse (2022)
as Self
Rocksteppy (2017)
as Himself
I Had Bad Milk in Dehradun (2017)
as Self
The Man with the Gray Elevated Hair (2017)
as Self
It's a Beautiful World (2014)
as Self
Pretty as a Picture: The Art of David Lynch (1997)
as Self
Destination Dune (1983)
as Self
Lynch/Oz (2023)
as Self (archival footage)
Welcome Home: Mary Reber and the Twin Peaks Palmer House (2021)
as Self
When Lynch Met Lucas (2010)
Actor
Don Van Vliet: Some YoYo Stuff (1994)
as Himself
Out Yonder — Neighbor Boy (2002)
Actor
On Meditation (2016)
as Self
A Slice of Lynch (2007)
as Self
My Beautiful Broken Brain (2014)
as Self
Red Fish (2009)
as O Sábio
Ringo Starr: A Lifetime of Peace and Love (2014)
as Self
The Music of David Lynch (2016)
as Self
Does That Hurt You? (2003)
as Self
Dino De Laurentiis: The Last Movie Mogul (2001)
as Self
David Lynch: The Idea Dictates Everything (2021)
as David Lynch
A Very Lovely Dream: One Week in Twin Peaks (2017)
as Self
Dennis Hopper: The Decisive Moments (2004)
as Self
Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night (1988)
as Self - Audience Member
David Lynch: The Virtual Life (2020)
as himself
Between Two Worlds (2014)
as Self
The Sleeper Must Awaken: Making Dune (2021)
as Self (voice) (archive footage)
The 8th Floor (2014)
as Self
Out Yonder — Teeth (2003)
Actor
The Original Image - David Lynch (2019)
Actor
Dennis Hopper: Create (or Die) (2003)
as Self
Moby Doc (2021)
as Self
The Making Of A Mockumentary (2025)
as Himself (archive footage)
Two Blue Balls (2017)
as Self
Meeting the Beatles in India (2020)
as Self
Twin Peaks: The Phenomenon (2017)
as Self
Donovan: The Donovan Concert - Live in L.A. (2007)
as Himself
David Lynch Teaches Creativity and Film (2019)
as Himself
David Lynch: Don't Look at Me (1989)
as Self
Crazy About the Movies: Dennis Hopper (1991)
as Self
See You on the Other Side Dear Friend (2017)
as Self
Return to Mulholland Drive (2003)
as Self
The Sound of Lynch (2007)
Actor
Hollyshorts Greeting (2008)
as Himself
The A-Z of Separating People from their Money (1998)
as Self
Lamp (2003)
as Self
Out Yonder — Chicken (2007)
Actor
Sailing with Bushnell Keeler (1967)
Actor
Ångesthunden och Malmö under vatten (2011)
as Himself
Curtains Up (2018)
Actor
Memory Film (2012)
Actor
Meditation, Creativity, Peace (2012)
as Self
The Way of Samodelkin (2009)
as Stranger in a dream
Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream (2006)
as Self
The Disc of Sorrow Is Installed (2002)
Actor
What Would David Lynch Do? (2026)
as Self (Archived Footage)
BlueBob Egg (2002)
as Billy Groper
David Lynch: 1985 (2005)
as Self
David Lynch: A Remembrance Both Wonderful and Strange (2025)
as Self (archive footage)
Early Experiments (2008)
Actor
Twin Peaks Festival Greeting 2008 (2008)
as Self