Cast
David Lynch
Directing
Cast
David Lynch
Known for
Directing
Born
1946-01-20
From
Missoula, Montana, USA
Died
2025-01-16
Also known as David Keith Lynch, DKL
Biography
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.
Dune
as Spice Miner (uncredited)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me
as Gordon Cole
The Fabelmans
as John Ford
The Elephant Man
as Man in the Bowler Hat in the Mob Chasing Merrick (uncredited)
Inland Empire
as Bucky J, the gaffer (voice)
Plankton Salesmen
as Self (archive footage)
Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces
as Gordon Cole
Lucky
as Howard
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound
as Self
Critic
as Self (voice)
Side by Side
as Self
Beatles '64
as Self
Lumière & Company
as Self
Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night
as Self - Audience Member
I Know Catherine, the Log Lady
as Self
Lynch (one)
as Self
Lynch/Oz
as Self (archival footage)
The Fine Art of Separating People from Their Money
as Self
Nadja
as Morgue Receptionist
Made in the USA
as Self
The Black Ghiandola
as Man In Black
Mysteries of Love
as Self (archive footage)
David Lynch: The Art Life
as Self
Elvis | Viva Las Vegas
as Self
Heart of the Festival
as Self (archive footage)
Why Are We Creative?
as Self
A Very Lovely Dream: One Week in Twin Peaks
as Self
In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story
as Self
Morceaux de Cannes
Heart Beat
as Painter (uncredited)
Destination Dune
as Self
Mel Brooks: Make a Noise
as Self
Pretty as a Picture: The Art of David Lynch
as Self
WHAT DID JACK DO?
as Detective
Love, Death, Elvis & Oz: The Making of Wild at Heart
Blue Velvet Revisited
as Self
The Sleeper Must Awaken: Making Dune
as Self (voice) (archive footage)
Twin Peaks: The Phenomenon
as Self
Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: David Lynch
as Self
The Man with the Gray Elevated Hair
as Self
The Reality of Truth
as Self
What Is Cinema?
as Self
Girlfriend's Day
as Narrator (voice)
A Fall from Grace
as William Tabb
The 8th Floor
as Self
The Number of Completion
as Self
2012: Time for Change
as Self
Along for the Ride
as Self
La Traversée du désir
as Self
Dino De Laurentiis: The Last Movie Mogul
as Self
David Wants to Fly
as Self
Crazy About the Movies: Dennis Hopper
as Self
A Bloody Finger in Your Mouth
as Self
Great Directors
as Self
Zelly & Me
as Willie
Rammstein in Amerika
as Self
Lynch 2
as Self
Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction
as Self
Hollywood Mavericks
as Self
Dennis Hopper: Create (or Die)
as Self
Welcome Home: Mary Reber and the Twin Peaks Palmer House
as Self
Meeting the Beatles in India
as Self
Bad Binoculars
as Self
Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream
as Self
Brand: A Second Coming
as Self
Dennis Hopper: The Decisive Moments
as Self
Tell It Martin
as Self
I Don't Know Jack
as Self
The Music of David Lynch
as Self
Dynamic:01: The Best of DavidLynch.com
as himself
Ringo Starr: A Lifetime of Peace and Love
as Self
I Had Bad Milk in Dehradun
as Self
A Pot of Boiling Oil
as Self
The Amputee
as The Nurse
No Frank in Lumberton
as Self
The Polish Accountant
as Self
Moby Doc
as Self
Brunes et Blondes
as Self
Night Flight: Born Again
as Self
The Making Of A Mockumentary
as Himself (archive footage)
The A-Z of Separating People from their Money
as Self
My Beautiful Broken Brain
as Self
Between Two Worlds
as Self
See You on the Other Side Dear Friend
as Self
Professor Goudet's Lessons
as Self
The Making of ‘Mulholland Drive’
as Self
Do Not Pick Up Hitchhikers
as Self
Behind the Red Curtain
as Self
The Way of Samodelkin
as Stranger in a dream
David Lynch in Oslo
as Self
This Is Sparklehorse
as Self
The Hanging of Stuart Cornfeld
Don Van Vliet: Some YoYo Stuff
as Himself
David Lynch: The Idea Dictates Everything
as David Lynch
Boat
as The Man
Two Blue Balls
as Self
Donovan: The Donovan Concert - Live in L.A.
as Himself
Red Fish
as O Sábio
David Lynch: Insight
as Self
The Original Image - David Lynch
The Sound of Lynch
It's a Beautiful World
as Self
Rocksteppy
as Himself
Out Yonder — Chicken
Memory Film
A Slice of Lynch
as Self
Shadows of Paradise
Eraserhead Stories
as Self
On Meditation
as Self
Out Yonder — Neighbor Boy
Sailing with Bushnell Keeler
Curtains Up
The Short Films of David Lynch
as Self
Meditation, Creativity, Peace
as Self
Early Experiments
Lamp
as Self
David Lynch: Don't Look at Me
as Self
Out Yonder — Teeth
Return to Mulholland Drive
as Self
Twin Peaks Festival Greeting 2008
as Self
Does That Hurt You?
as Self
What Would David Lynch Do?
as Self (Archived Footage)
David Lynch: A Remembrance Both Wonderful and Strange
as Self (archive footage)
Ångesthunden och Malmö under vatten
as Himself
When Lynch Met Lucas
The Soul Detective
as Himself
David Lynch: 1985
as Self
David Lynch: The Virtual Life
as himself
Ruth, Roses, and Revolver
as Himself
BlueBob Egg
as Billy Groper
David Lynch Teaches Creativity and Film
as Himself
The Disc of Sorrow Is Installed
Hollyshorts Greeting
as Himself