Suffering from emphysema since 2020, David Lynch, who says he started smoking at the age of 8 and stopped at 76, confides that he now needs additional oxygen for any physical activity beyond a short walk through his living room.
“In the back of every smoker's mind is the fact that smoking is good for your health, so you're literally playing with fire,” David Lynch, a former tobacco enthusiast, said in a recent interview for People. “It can bite you. I took a chance and got bit.”
The filmmaker explains that he started smoking at eight years old and was only able to stop completely two years after his emphysema diagnosis, at age 76. “I saw what was going to happen and it said, 'You're going to die in a week if you don't stop,'” the director said, adding, “I could barely move without having trouble breathing.” . Quitting was my only option.”
No retirement on the agenda
His condition, which causes intense shortness of breath, means that he will not be able to return to directing on set, although he could consider directing remotely. “It's hard to live with emphysema,” David Lynch said. “I can barely walk across a room. It’s like I’m walking with a plastic bag around my head.” He also revealed that he rarely leaves the house anymore. “I never really liked going out before, so it’s a good excuse,” he joked.
In August 2024, the American director confirmed that he suffered from emphysema, a lung disease, due to “years of smoking”, but reassured his fans by saying that he would “never retire”.
In an interview with the British magazine Sight and Sound in September, the director of “Twin Peaks”, “Elephant Man” (1980), “Blue Velvet”, “Mulholland Drive” and even “Sailor and Lula” claimed that his mobility was reduced , he could direct his actors remotely for future projects. “I will never retire,” he assured.
