David Lynch, one of the great living filmmakers, helmer of “Blue Velvet,” “Mulholland Drive,” and “Eraserhead,” is currently struggling with his own health issues.
In an interview with People, Lynch — who was diagnosed with emphysema from smoking in 2020 — says he’s now permanently homebound. He can’t go out. He can only walk short distances and needs an oxygen tank carried with him at all times. It sounds like a terrible ordeal.
Despite the 2020 diagnosis, Lynch admits that he continued smoking for another two years before he finally saw the “writing on the wall,” saying that it was either quit now, or “die in a week.”
It’s tough living with emphysema. I can hardly walk across a room. It’s like you’re walking around with a plastic bag around your head […] I never really liked going out before so it’s a nice excuse.
Lynch’s emphysema diagnosis was first made public in August, which is also when rumors started to swirl that he had retired from filmmaking. He tells People that, although he deeply misses being on a movie set, he is “open to trying to direct remotely in the future.”
Lynch, who turned 78 this year, has been a heavy smoker since his pre-teen years, consistently smoking those America Spirits on and off set. Smoking was a crucial aspect of his creative process, opening his mind to different ideas. It sounds like it’s finally taken its toll.
While he admitted that his current state has been a "big price to pay," Lynch tells People, "I don’t regret it. It was important to me. I wish what every addict wishes for: that what we love is good for us."
In 2019, Lynch was supposed to shoot a mysterious project titled “Wisteria/Unrecorded Night". Lynch veterans Naomi Watts and Laura Dern had even been rumored to be a part of the creative process. The rumor had Netflix originally greenlighting 13 hour-long episodes and a budget of $85M. The mini-series may or may not have been a set of hour-long movies, it was never confirmed.
Sadly, Netflix scrapped it while it was in pre-production and just a few weeks away from production. A real shame as Lynch hasn’t directed a film since 2006’s “Inland Empire.” However, he did helm 2017’s “Twin Peaks: The Return” for Showtime, which is one of the best things he’s ever done.