David Lynch is proudly a man of mystery, and thus it’s no surprise to ask yourself: What has this writer-director been in, besides his own works?
Well, the “Twin Peaks” creator seems to take his acting career in stride. One of the few filmmakers — or rather, people in general — who has a movement named after him, Lynch’s onscreen appearances are, well, inherently pretty Lynchian.
From voicing a cartoon bartender on “The Cleveland Show” to famously portraying far-out FBI agent Gordon Cole in “Twin Peaks,” Lynch’s performances have evolved over the course of over 40 years. Now, Lynch is set to appear in Steven Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical film “The Fabelmans,” as announced by Variety.
Spielberg is directing the film, which also stars Seth Rogen, Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” breakout Julia Butters, and newcomer Gabriel LaBelle. Williams and Dano are rumored to portray Spielberg’s parents; according to Deadline, Rogen will play the “favorite uncle of young Spielberg.” The film will be set in 1950s Arizona, albeit the details are still closely under wraps. “The Fabelmans” premieres at 2022 TIFF before debuting in theaters November 11.
“Lincoln” and “West Side Story” screenwriter Tony Kushner is listed as a co-writer along with Spielberg for “The Fabelmans,” while The Hollywood Reporter announced in March 2021 that Spielberg was “conducting test screenings for young actors” to portray an adolescent version of himself.
In the meantime, check out Lynch’s top acting roles below.
David Lynch played a mute nurse in a 1974 short film for the American Film Institute. Lynch starred opposite Catherine Coulson in the black-and-white piece that shows Coulson’s legs being cleaned by Lynch while she smokes a cigarette and writes a letter.
John Heard, Sissy Spacek, and Nick Nolte lead this 1980 romantic comedy about a swinging beatnik couple who connect with author Jack Kerouac. Lynch, believe it or not, appears uncredited as a painter.
That same year, Lynch made a cameo in his own film, “The Elephant Man,” which he co-wrote and directed. Lynch is listed as the “Man in Bowler Hat in Mob Chasing Merrick” on IMDb.
Yep, that’s also David Lynch making a cameo in his 1984 adaptation of “Dune.” The uncredited role shows Lynch as a spaceship radio operator who complains about leaving his spices to escape a massive sandworm attack.
“Zelly and Me” is described as Lynch’s first “real” acting role, in which he stars as a high society man looking to woo a nanny, played by Isabella Rossellini. Lynch previously said that he took on the role in 1988 to “see if I could do it” and “overcome this fear of acting, which is phenomenally fearful.”
Across 1990 to 2017, Lynch portrayed hearing-impaired FBI agent Gordon Cole in “Twin Peaks,” followed by revivial series “Twin Peaks: The Return.” Grab a slice of cherry pie and a big ol’ cup of coffee to cheers Lynch’s long-running role.
Lynch served as an executive producer on 1994 vampire movie “Nadja,” which follows blood-sucker Nadja (Elina Lowensohn) who launches a feud against Van Helsing (Peter Fonda) for killing her father, Dracula. Lynch shows up onscreen as a morgue attendant who refuses to let vampires take a dead body.
Lynch co-wrote and directed 1997 neo-noir film “Lost Highway,” which stars Bill Pullman as a troubled jazz musician who is accused of murdering his wife, played by Patricia Arquette. In a separate storyline, Arquette also portrays a femme fatale with gang ties who seduces a mechanic (Balthazar Getty). While Lynch’s scenes as (another) morgue attendant were cut from the theatrical release, they do exist somewhere…
Lynch’s short film has a head-scratching logline (what did you expect?) but proves to be a meta-role for the “Twin Peaks” creator.
The official synopsis reads, “Holding a thin, indigo-blue metallic disc, the mysterious doppelgänger of the American filmmaker, David Lynch, and his well-equipped two-member crew prepare to perform a delicate and time-sensitive task.”
Lynch wrote, directed, and starred in the 2002 short.
Spanish short film “Peixe Vermelho” centers on a woman who is the target of mysterious events, before Lynch swings in as “The Knowledgeable One” who informs the characters that a “red herring” isn’t actually a fish (hence the title of the 2009 film!).
While Lynch, who is also one-half of a musical duo behind album BlueBOB with audio engineer John Neff, has voiced a series of characters, his most famous one remains bartender Gus on “The Cleveland Show.” Lynch starred in 20 episodes of the “Family Guy” spinoff.
Lynch teamed up with Louis C.K. for a two-episode arc on “Louie” in 2012 to help the comedian prepare for an audition to replace David Letterman as the “Late Show” host.
A terminally ill 16-year-old boy named Anthony Conti wrote a short horror film in 2017 that was put into production by the Make a Film Foundation. Johnny Depp, Laura Dern, J.K. Simmons, and Jade Pettyjohn star in the apocalyptic zombie movie alongside Lynch, who portrays a “Man in Black.”
Lynch portrays a small-town Texas man named Howard who butts heads with Harry Dean Stanton’s character in the 2017 film “Lucky.” Of course, Lynch has a pet tortoise named President Roosevelt in the movie, during which he learns a life lesson.
Lynch works with another animal co-star in Netflix short film “What Did Jack Do?” The black-and-white short was released on Lynch’s birthday, January 20, 2020. Lynch plays a detective who is interrogating prime suspect Jack, a small monkey, during a murder investigation.
Flying Lotus collaborated with Lynch for song “Fire Is Coming.” Then Lynch appearedS in the music video as an eerie leader.
Lynch’s daughter, filmmaker Jennifer Lynch, co-wrote and is set to direct thriller, “A Fall From Grace.” Lynch will star as Detective Michael Tabb, who is tasked with finding a killer. Vincent D’Onofrio, Forest Whitaker, Balthazar Getty, and Cedric the Entertainer are slated to co-star, according to IMDb.
