Naomi Watts recalls David Lynch was ready "to go back to work" before his demise
Mar 22, 2025
Washington [US], March 22 : Actor Naomi Watts recalled seeing David Lynch last time during a lunch in late November with him and fellow Lynch collaborator Laura Dern.
David Lynch, an American writer-director passed away at the age of 78 in January.
"We had a beautiful lunch at his house," she said, adding, "I knew he'd been unwell, but he was in great spirits. He wanted to go back to work -- Laura and I were like, 'You can do it! You could work from the trailer.' He was not, in any way, done. I could see the creative spirit alive in him," reported Deadline.
After Lynch died of cardiac arrest, with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease listed as an underlying cause, Watts shared that his loss was "so deeply, deeply upsetting."
Watts' breakout role came in Lynch's 2001 neo-noir mystery Mulholland Drive before starring in his 2002 short Rabbits. She and Dern also appeared in Lynch's 2006 feature Inland Empire and his 2017 Showtime series revival Twin Peaks: The Return, which turned out to be his final project, as per the outlet.
"I thought I would see him in a couple of weeks [after that last lunch] because I was here in L.A.," said Watts, "There's a lot I could share but I want to be private about it because of his family. But it was a really powerful meeting that filled me with just so much love and hope."
Watts previously remembered Lynch as "a real mentor and a friend" after his death, explaining he "was very instrumental to me even being in America. I wouldn't have stayed had I not met David Lynch."
"My heart is broken. My Buddy Dave..." wrote 'Mulholland Drive' star Naomi Watts on Instagram about filmmaker David Lynch's demise, according to Deadline.
Lynch revealed in 2024 that he was diagnosed with emphysema after a lifetime of smoking and would likely not be able to leave his house to direct any longer.
"The world will not be the same without him. His creative mentorship was truly powerful," she mentioned.
"He put me on the map. The world I'd been trying to break into for ten-plus years, flunking auditions left and right," said the actress, according to Deadline.
