Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard and James Gunn are among the directors who have paid tribute to David Lynch.
The Twin Peaks director died on Thursday (16.01.25) at the age of 78, and a group of his fellow creatives spoke about his influence on their work, as well as the huge impact he had on cinema as a producer. all.
“I loved David’s films. ‘Blue Velvet,’ ‘Mulholland Drive,’ and ‘Elephant Man’ defined him as a unique visionary who made films that felt handcrafted,” Stephen said in a statement.
“I met David when he played John Ford in The Fabelmans.” Here was one of my heroes – David Lynch playing one of my heroes. It was surreal and looked like a scene from one of David’s own movies. The world will miss such an original and unique voice. His films have truly stood the test of time and always will.
Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn remembered Blue Velvet as an “inspiration.”
He wrote on X: “Rest in peace David Lynch. You have inspired so many of us. [heart emoji]”
Ron Howard celebrated as a “brave artist” for producing “unforgettable cinema”.
“#RIPDavidLynch, a generous man and a brave artist who follows his heart,” he wrote on X. [and] Soul and proved that radical experimentation can lead to unforgettable cinema.
“I Saw the TV Glow” director Jane Schoenbrunn insisted that Lynch’s work had a lifelong impact on her.
She wrote: “Like Kafka, like Bacon, he devoted his life to opening a portal. He was the first to show me another world, a beautiful world full of love and danger, which I felt but never saw outside while I slept. Thank you David, your gift will resonate for the rest of my life.
Joe Russo hailed a “master of cinema.”
“No one has seen the world like David Lynch,” he wrote on X. “Today the world has lost the master of cinema. Rest in peace.”
Judd Apatow expressed his gratitude in a recent meeting with the “Mulholland Drive” director.
He shared a recent photo and wrote on Instagram: “Just a few months ago, Michael Bonfiglio and I interviewed David Lynch at his home for our documentary on Mel Brooks. He was kind, funny, and full of life.
“I took a lot of photos of him during the interview. Each photo captures his joy and unique spirit.
“His work was amazing. It will stay with you forever. His efforts to spread Transcendental Meditation through his foundation have changed the lives of countless people including my own.”
“His book on creativity, Catching The Big Fish, was a game-changer. It was a true gift to all of us!”
Leslie Linka Glatter, President of the Directors Guild of America, paid a long tribute to the “visionary,” whom she praised as “one of the greatest storytellers of our time.”
“There is simply no one like David,” she said in a statement. He was a visionary at heart – raising visual storytelling in film and television to a whole new level, inspiring many directors to take risks and see new possibilities. He took a chance on me as a young director when I first joined him on Twin Peaks in the early 1990s, changing my life, and I will be forever grateful to have known him. In every interaction, David was so in a moment of life, and I couldn’t help but think of a story that made me see the world differently.
“In one of David’s early episodes of Twin Peaks, there’s a scene in a bank vault with Kyle MacLachlan and Michael Ontkin, and there’s a deer head lying in the middle of the table. No one ever points to it; it’s just there making the scene.”
“I asked David how he got the idea to put the moose head on the table. He looked at me quizzically and said, ‘It was there.’ The dresser was going to hang it on the wall, but David saw it lying on the table and said, ‘Leave the moose head.’”
“Something opened up for me, as much as you plan, make sure you’re open to life, make sure you’re open to the moose head on the table, and don’t miss what’s right in front of you.
“His ability to see the magic that exists when others don’t makes him one of the greatest storytellers of our time. I join the many filmmakers deeply touched by David’s life and work in mourning his loss today.”