David Lynch’s Cause of Death Revealed

Nearly a month after David Lynch died, the visionary director’s cause of death has been revealed.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health published Lynch’s death certificate Friday, stating that cardiac arrest due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as the primary cause of death. Dehydration was also a contributing factor, the Independent reports.

In the years leading up to his death at the age of 78, Lynch was battling emphysema, which he contracted after years of smoking cigarettes (he revealed the diagnosis publicly in 2024). The disease left Lynch largely homebound, given that the risk of catching Covid-19 or other illnesses would potentially exacerbate his health issues; Lynch’s death coincided with the Los Angeles wildfires that swept through the city in January.

Despite the health issues, Lynch continued to work until the time of his death, writing on Twitter at the time, “I am filled with happiness, and I will never retire.” 

Lynch’s family confirmed his death on Facebook, writing, “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. 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’s longtime friend and collaborator over the past four decades, actor Kyle MacLachlan, shared a moving tribute to the director on social media. “What I saw in him was an enigmatic and intuitive man with a creative ocean bursting forth inside of him. He was in touch with something the rest of us wish we could get to,” wrote MacLachlan, who starred in Lynch’s 1984 film Dune, psychological thriller Blue Velvet in 1986, and the Twin Peaks franchise.