Part of David Lynch’s allure as a filmmaker is his mystery: His work rarely explains itself, instead challenging the viewer to unpack the images and sounds Lynch conjures. So it’s a special treat to watch four of his actresses give a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse into what makes Lynch tick.
With Showtime’s “Twin Peaks” revival just a month away from premiering, W Magazine sat down with four of Lynch’s heroines — Laura Dern, Naomi Watts, Patricia Arquette and Hailey Gates — to gain insight into the filmmaker.
The best takeaway: Dern reveals Lynch’s nicknames for herself, Watts and Arquette. Per Dern: “My nickname is Tidbit, Naomi is Buttercup, and Patricia is Solid Gold.”
In the video, Dern also recalls her first meeting with Lynch and her “Blue Velvet” co-star Kyle MacLachlan at a Bob’s Big Boy restaurant.
“David’s doodling on napkins, while Kyle was doodling with a knife into his ketchup,” she says, giggling. “A girl either goes, ‘These are really bizarre men and they’re twin souls,’ or ‘I’m in love with both of these people’ — which is how how I responded.”
Arquette, who played two mysterious characters in “Lost Highway,” says that Lynch refused to address whether they were in fact in the same person, instead forcing her to come up with the whole concept behind her double-casting herself.
Watts, meanwhile, does a killer Lynch impersonation in describing her “Mulholland Drive” audition.
The new season of “Twin Peaks” debuts on Showtime May 21, after screening at the Cannes Film Festival.
Watch the W Magazine video above.