On January 15, 2025, American Director David Lynch passed at 78. Lynch died due to a diagnosis from last year of Emphysema.
Death by Disease?
Emphysema is a “chronic obstructive pulmonary disease” (according to Cleveland Clinic). This disease damages your lungs making it difficult to breathe due to the damage to the alveoli (small sacs in the lungs to help people breathe). This disease is known for its irreversible damage to the lungs, making it incurable. Yet, treatments are available, providing ways to prevent this disease’s worsening or make it more manageable for those diagnosed.
In the case of Lynch, he had developed this disease because of his “many years of smoking” (he revealed last August of 2024). Still, this disease can also be retrieved from exposure to “industrial pollutants or dust” ( betterhealth.vic.gov ), and in rare cases, this disease can even be genetic.
Life before Death
Before Director David Lynch’s death, he had directed various movies from 1969 to 2014. During his film time, he produced 17 films, the first being “The Grandmother” and the last being “Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces.” Among these 17 movies, the most popular movie is “The Elephant Man” (1980). On the other hand, Lynch’s most profitable and popular box office movie is “Eraserhead” (1977).
Director David Lynch stood out to many audiences during his time because he was seen as a somewhat “visionary” due to the “surrealism” displayed in his films, which was rare at this time (supported by Wikipedia). His films were not only known as surrealistic, but they exceeded in these ways because of the psychological absurdity used in his directed films. This combination of unique film techniques gave Director David Lynch the unofficial title of one of the greatest directors in history.
During his career, Lynch received 25 awards and was nominated for 48 in his lifetime. Some rewards Lynch won varied from Best Writing for his 1993 film “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me” to his 1981 grand prize-winning film “The Elephant Man.” Not only this, but David Lynch was also nominated eight times for the Oscar awards.
Public’s Reaction to David Lynch’s Death:
As soon as audiences learned of Lynches death, the news spread quickly. Social Media Platforms almost immediately “blew up” with posts or stories expressing their morning for Lynch’s passing, clips in remembrance, and expressions of grief.
In addition, celebrities have also expressed their mourning and grief because of his passing, including:
Naomi Watts on Instagram as she wrote, “The world will not be the same without him. His creative mentorship was truly powerful. He put me on the map. The world I’d been trying to break into for ten-plus years, flunking auditions left and right. Finally, I sat before a curious man, beaming with light, speaking words from another era, making me laugh and feel at ease. How did he even ‘see me’ when I was so well hidden, and I’d even lost sight of myself?!”
Musician Billy Corgan, “Truly saddened to hear of the passing of David Lynch. Working with him was like a dream out of one of his movies, and I treasure the times I got to speak with him and hear his vision for a film first-hand. I encourage anyone who loves movies and television to watch all David produced. He was a true artist, through and through.”
Director James Gunn on the social platform X, “RIP David Lynch. You inspired so many of us.”
Even these few celebrity expressions of remembrance do not express the significant impact Director David Lynch’s death holds upon society and the future of the film industry.
