David Lynch Tributes: Steven Spielberg, Nicolas Cage, Harmony Korine, and More Remember the Visionary Auteur

David Lynch revolutionized cinema — and now, Hollywood is paying tribute to the legendary auteur, who died Thursday at the age of 78.

Lynch made his feature debut in 1977 with “Eraserhead,” and his expansive career included features “Mulholland Drive,” “Dune,” and “Blue Velvet,” as well as iconic series “Twin Peaks.” Lynch’s family confirmed on social media that he died at age 78.

“It is with deep regret that we, his family, announce the passing of the man and the artist, David Lynch. We would appreciate some privacy at this time,” the statement reads. “There’s a big hole in the world now that he’s no longer with us. But, as he would say, ‘Keep your eye on the donut and not on the hole.’ It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.”

Lynch announced in August 2024 that he was diagnosed with emphysema. However, he told Sight & Sound magazine that while he could not leave his house due to his weakened immune system, he still hoped to direct remotely.

Lynch’s final film was “Inland Empire,” which was released in 2006. He also directed 2017 series “Twin Peaks: The Return,” and recently debuted a partially animated music video for “Sublime Eternal Love,” which he directed as part of new collaborative album “Cellophane Memories.” Lynch was set to shoot Netflix series “Unrecorded Night” in 2020 before the show was scrapped due to the pandemic; Netflix later passed on his long-gestating animated film “Snootworld,” which he co-wrote with “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “The Addams Family” scribe Caroline Thompson.

“I loved David’s films. ‘Blue Velvet,’ ‘Mulholland Drive’ and ‘Elephant Man’ defined him as a singular, visionary dreamer who directed films that felt handmade,” Steven Spielberg said in a statement provided to IndieWire. “I got to know David when he played John Ford in ‘The Fabelmans.’  Here was one of my heroes — David Lynch playing one of my heroes.  It was surreal and seemed like a scene out of one of David’s own movies.  The world is going to miss such an original and unique voice. His films have already stood the test of time and they always will.”

Harmony Korine also remembered Lynch, telling IndieWire “David Lynch was one of our great artists, a Mount Rushmore-level director, truly a GOAT. He changed a lot of people’s lives. There will never be another one like him, because he made films at a point in history where nothing like that had ever been experienced before. We live in a time where everything has been seen. Lynch invented a new language. He was a once in a generation talent who absorbed the embers of America’s wildness. He embraced his own inner logic and filtered it through a subconscious magic. He created worlds and unmatched vibrations. He hit on things that were inexplicable and sacred and beyond articulation.  He is a treasure. His work will live forever.”

Nicolas Cage, who starred in Lynch’s “Wild At Heart,” told Deadline that the director was a “singular genius in cinema, one of the greatest artists of this or any time.”

Cage said, “He was brave, brilliant, and a maverick with a joyful sense of humor. I never had more fun on a film set than working with David Lynch. He will always be solid gold.”

The American Film Institute, where Lynch was an alum of the AFI Class of 1970, remembered the filmmaker.

“David Lynch was an American original. And the stories are true – as a foundational Fellow at the American Film Institute, he lived in the stables of Greystone while filming his AFI Thesis Film, ‘Eraserhead’,” the AFI statement reads. “Across the decades, David’s impact on cinema proved indelible in his films and his art – and he always gave back to AFI – supportive of the storytellers who wrote their own rules and reached for something different.”

The AFI statement continues, “During a seminar on campus, he shared this timeless advice with Fellows: “Tell the stories that are inside you. Each person has these stories that come along. Just stay true to those ideas and enjoy the doing of it. He will live on in our dreams.”

Below are more tributes to the late, iconic Lynch.