Iconic film director David Lynch has revealed he can no longer helm in person because he is housebound with emphysema, just days after Laura Dern revealed she was forced to drop out of UCLA after landing a role in his film Blue Velvet.
The 78-year-old filmmaker candidly admitted he’s not sure he’ll ever direct again after being diagnosed with a lung disease that causes difficulty breathing.
He admitted this in a recent interview with Sight and sound who contracted the disease “from smoking for so long.”
Lynch said: “I’m housebound, whether I like it or not. I can’t go outside and can only walk a short distance before I run out of oxygen.”
The director of Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks was candid in saying that his love of cigarettes put him in this position.
Iconic film director David Lynch (pictured in Beverly Hills in September 2019) revealed he can no longer helm in person because he is housebound due to emphysema.
Lynch said: ‘Smoking was something I loved, but in the end, it got to me.
‘For me it was part of the artistic life: tobacco and the smell of it, lighting things up and smoking and coming back and sitting and smoking a cigarette and looking at my work or thinking about things.
“There is nothing like it in this world that is so beautiful. In the meantime, it’s killing me. So I had to leave it.”
Although his illness has prevented him from working on projects in person, he has not completely ruled out the possibility of directing in the future.
He said: “I like being around things and getting ideas from them, but I would try to do it remotely, if necessary.”
Lynch was referring to his animated project, called Snootworld, which was pitched and ultimately rejected by Netflix.
His most recent project before his health issues was the revival of his Twin Peaks series for Showtime in 2017.
The original series ran from 1990 to 1991 and followed the investigation into the murder of prom queen Laura Palmer (played by Sheryl Lee) that took place in the fictional town of Twin Peaks, Washington.
The 78-year-old film icon (pictured in March 2002) admitted in a recent interview with Sight & Sound that he contracted the disease “from smoking for so long.”
Although his illness has prevented him from working on projects in person, he has not completely ruled out the possibility of directing in the future; he is pictured here in 2017.
His last major project before his health problems was the revival of his Twin Peaks series for Showtime in 2017; he is pictured here with Miguel Ferrer.
Kyle MacLachlan (pictured), Sherilyn Fenn, Mädchen Amick, Lee and David Duchovny, who starred in the original, returned for the revival.
Lynch’s other landmark projects include Eraserhead (1977), The Elephant Man (1980), Blue Velvet (1986; pictured), Mulholland Drive (2001) and Inland Empire (2006).
When it first aired in the early 1990s, the series had developed a cult following after its run on ABC that later resulted in the 1992 prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk.
More than two decades ago, Lynch’s iconic franchise returned with Twin Peaks: The Return.
Kyle MacLachlan, Sherilyn Fenn, Mädchen Amick, Lee and David Duchovny, who starred in the original, returned for the revival.
Other stars also joined the mix, including Laura Dern, Amanda Seyfried, Jessica Szohr, Michael Cera, Richard Chamberlain and Trent Reznor.
Lynch’s other landmark projects include Eraserhead (1977), The Elephant Man (1980), Blue Velvet (1986), Mulholland Drive (2001), and Inland Empire (2006).