The third season of the

surrealist Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' *Mystery, a seahorse that SpongeBob SquarePants adopts in the episode " My Pre ...

- horror

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Surrealist cinema, surrealist Mystery film, mystery-Horror film, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It Pilot (Twin Peaks), premiered on American Broad ...

'', billed as ''Twin Peaks: The Return'' and ''Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series'', premiered on May 21, 2017, and concluded on September 3, 2017. The 18-episode season was broadcast in the United States on

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

. It marked the ''

'' franchise's return to television after an absence of over 25 years, and continued storylines from the first two seasons (1990–91) and their part-

prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term ...

, part-

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music, or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

theatrical film, '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992). The show's co-creators

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Lynch was often called a "visionary" and received acclaim f ...

and

Mark Frost Mark Frost (born November 25, 1953) is an American novelist, screenwriter, film and television producer and director. He is the co-creator of the mystery-horror television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) and was a writer and executiv ...

returned to write the third season, with Lynch directing every episode. Set 25 years after the events of the original ''Twin Peaks'', the season follows multiple storylines, most of which are linked to

FBI agent The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

Dale Cooper Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Dale Bartholomew Cooper is a fictional character who is the protagonist of the ABC and Showtime television series ''Twin Peaks'', and plays a supporting role in the prequel film '' Twin Peaks: Fire ...

(

Kyle MacLachlan Kyle Merritt MacLachlan ( ; ' McLachlan, February 22, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his Emmy-nominated and Golden Globe-winning role as Dale Cooper in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) and its film prequel '' Twin Peaks: Fire ...

) and his 1989 investigation into the murder of high school student

Laura Palmer Laura Palmer is a fictional character in the ''Twin Peaks'' franchise and the primary focus of the series. She is portrayed by Sheryl Lee and was created by the series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost. She first appears in the ABC origin ...

(

Sheryl Lee Sheryl Lee (born April 22, 1967) is an American film, stage, and television actress. After studying acting in college, Lee relocated to Seattle, Washington to work in theater, where she was cast by David Lynch as Laura Palmer and Maddy Ferguso ...

). In addition to the fictional

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

town of

, the story extends to locations such as

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. The series garnered critical acclaim, with praise for its unconventional

narrative structure Story structure or narrative structure is the recognizable or comprehensible way in which a narrative's different elements are unified, including in a particularly chosen order and sometimes specifically referring to the ordering of the plot: ...

, visual invention, and performances. Critics have hailed the show as the best television show of 2017 and the 2010s, as well as one of the best shows of the 21st century. Some critics also consider ''The Return'' a film, with film journal '' Cahiers du cinéma'' naming it the best film of the decade and the 2022 ''Sight & Sound'' critics' poll voting it the 152nd-best film in history.

Synopsis

The third season picks up from the second season's

cliffhanger ending A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious situation, facing a difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode of serialized fiction or bef ...

, when

(

) was trapped in the Black Lodge and an evil

doppelgänger A doppelgänger ( ), sometimes spelled doppelgaenger or doppelganger, is a ghostly double of a living person, especially one that haunts its own fleshly counterpart. In fiction and mythology, a doppelgänger is often portrayed as a ghostly or p ...

—host to the evil spirit

Bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Bob (surname) * Bob (dog), a dog that received the Dickin Medal for bravery in World War II * Bob t ...

—assumed his identity in the natural world. After escaping the Black Lodge, Cooper struggles to recover his past while fending off the increasingly suspicious

criminal underworld Organized crime is a category of transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a form of illegal business, some ...

. In

, Cooper's old friends at the FBI investigate a string of crimes perpetrated by the doppelgänger, as well as the mysterious death of a local librarian who studied

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...

phenomena. Finally, the residents of Twin Peaks contend with darker forces influencing the town and the generational fallout from the murder of

(

Production

Background and development

The first season of ''

'' premiered on April 8, 1990, on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

. It was one of the top-rated series of 1990, although its ratings declined in the second season. In subsequent years, ''Twin Peaks'' has often been listed among the greatest television dramas of all time."25 Best Cult TV Shows from the Past 25 Years." ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

''. August 3, 2012, p. 40. Aaron Spelling Productions wanted to continue the series for a third season but ABC canceled it because of declining ratings and high production costs. A prequel film, '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'', was released in 1992, but received negative reviews and a poor commercial performance, leading to the cancellation of the other two films in the series. Lynch and Frost tried to develop a spin-off series centered around

Audrey Horne Audrey Horne is a fictional character from the ABC television series ''Twin Peaks'', played by Sherilyn Fenn. The character was created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. She was introduced in the pilot. The daughter of Ben and Sylvia Horne, siste ...

, but the pilot episode evolved into the unrelated theatrical film ''

Mulholland Drive Mulholland Drive is a street and road in the eastern Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. It is named after pioneering Los Angeles civil engineer William Mulholland. The western rural portion in Los Angeles and Ventura counties is n ...

''. In 2001, Lynch said that ''Twin Peaks'' was as "dead as a doornail." In 2007, artist Matt Haley began work on a

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

continuation, which he hoped would be included in the "Complete Mystery" DVD box set. ''Twin Peaks'' producer

Robert Engels Robert Engels (born 1949) is an American writer, producer, director and professor of screenwriting at Cal State Fullerton. Biography He graduated from Saint John's Preparatory School in Collegeville, Minn. in 1967. He wrote several episodes of an ...

agreed to help write it on the condition that Lynch and Frost approved the project; Haley said: " ngelsand I had a number of discussions about what the story would be. I was keen to use whatever notes they had for the proposed third season. I really wanted this to be a literal 'third season' of the show." Paramount Home Entertainment agreed to package it with the box set, also on the condition that Lynch and Frost approved. Though Frost approved the project, Lynch vetoed it, saying that he respected the effort but did not want to continue the story of ''Twin Peaks''. In or around 2012, Lynch and Frost met at Musso & Frank Grill in Los Angeles to discuss a potential third season. They did so in part because, in the final episode of season two, Laura tells Cooper that she will see him in 25 years, and "the show’s baked-in time jump was approaching". Lynch's then-wife Emily Stofle recalled that, starting in 2012, the two men began secretly meeting in Lynch's home studio to write the script, which "went on for many years"; as their ideas developed, they shifted to writing the script over

Skype Skype () was a proprietary telecommunications application operated by Skype Technologies, a division of Microsoft, best known for IP-based videotelephony, videoconferencing and voice calls. It also had instant messaging, file transfer, ...

. Lynch and Frost also privately reached out to

in 2012 to make sure he would be interested in the project. Lynch and Frost did not write a traditional script with clear divisions between episodes. Instead, they wrote a 500-page plot document. They completed the "script" in January 2015, and asked Showtime executives to review it over the weekend. They did not pitch the script to any other networks. After the script was complete, Frost left to write a tie-in novel, ''

The Secret History of Twin Peaks ''The Secret History of Twin Peaks'' is an epistolary (dossier-style) novel by Mark Frost, which provides background information on the history of the fictional town and characters from the television series ''Twin Peaks''. The book was publi ...

''.''Room to Dream'', p. 476. Lynch "expanded the story substantially" after Frost's departure.''Room to Dream'', p. 477. Due to the project's secrecy, Frost and

Jennifer Lynch Jennifer Chambers Lynch (born April 7, 1968) is an American filmmaker. The daughter of filmmaker David Lynch, she made her directorial debut with the film '' Boxing Helena'' in 1993. Following a troubled production, the film was a critical and co ...

both publicly denied rumors that the show would return. On the other hand,

Ray Wise Raymond Herbert Wise (born August 29, 1947) is an American actor best known for his role as Leland Palmer in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, Twin Peaks (season 3), 2017) and its prequel film ''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992). He has appeared ...

said Lynch told him that a third season was possible and that he might even be able to "work around" the death of Wise's character, Leland Palmer. In September 2014, shortly before the third season was announced, Lynch said that the future of ''Twin Peaks'' was a "tricky question" and that "you just have to wait and see."

Announcement and budget negotiations

On October 6, 2014,

announced that it would air a nine-episode

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

written by Lynch and Frost and directed by Lynch. Frost emphasized that the new episodes would be a continuation of the series, not a

remake A remake is a film, television series, video game, song or similar form of entertainment that is based upon and retells the story of an earlier production in the same medium—e.g., a "new version of an existing film". A remake tells the same s ...

reboot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...

. The episodes were to be set in the present day, and the passage of 25 years would be an important element in the plot. But Showtime's advertising dubbed the third season ''Twin Peaks: The Return'', over Lynch and Frost's objections. Frost also left open the possibility of future seasons. In mid-2015, Lynch and Showtime began locking horns over the show's budget. In a 2018 book co-authored by Lynch,

Kristine McKenna Kristine McKenna is an American journalist, critic and art curator best known for her interviews with artists, writers, thinkers, filmmakers and musicians. Many of these have been collected in ''Book of Changes'' (2001) and ''Talk to Her'' (200 ...

wrote that Showtime (which was budgeting for the show on a per-episode basis) was concerned that Lynch did not like the original nine-episode plan, but would not tell Showtime how many episodes he needed to tell the story. That April, Lynch announced he would not direct the third season due to budget constraints. Days later, a video was released in which several ''Twin Peaks'' cast members, including

Dana Ashbrook Dana Vernon Ashbrook (born May 24, 1967) is an American actor, best known for playing Bobby Briggs on the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) and its 1992 prequel film '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me''. Early life Ashbrook was ...

, and

Sherilyn Fenn Sherilyn Fenn (born Sheryl Ann Fenn; February 1, 1965) is an American actress. She played Audrey Horne on the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award. She als ...

, urged that Lynch be kept on board for the revival. The dispute was resolved in May; Showtime's David Nevins said that he compromised with Lynch by giving him a fixed budget for the entire season with no constraints on the episode count. One week after the announcement, Fenn and Lee announced that there would be 18 episodes, but Nevins maintained that the episode count was "open-ended" and that "we'll have ynchcut he footageinto however many episodes it feels best at". After the show aired, Lynch thanked Nevins for "ma

ing Ing, ING or ing may refer to: Art and media * '' ...ing'', a 2003 Korean film * i.n.g, a Taiwanese girl group * The Ing, a race of dark creatures in the 2004 video game '' Metroid Prime 2: Echoes'' * "Ing", the first song on The Roches' 199 ...

''Twin Peaks: The Return'' happen", saying, "maybe somebody else wouldn't have done that".

Casting

On January 12, 2015, Kyle MacLachlan was confirmed to return to the series. In October 2015, it was confirmed that

Michael Ontkean Michael Ontkean (born January 24, 1946) is a Canadian actor, long based in the United States, now retired. Ontkean relocated to the United States to attend the University of New Hampshire on a hockey scholarship before pursuing a career in a ...

, who portrayed Sheriff

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

and had since retired from acting, would not return for the revival, and that the role of town sheriff would be filled by

Robert Forster Robert Wallace Foster Jr. (July 13, 1941 – October 11, 2019), known professionally as Robert Forster, was an American actor. He made his screen debut as Private L.G. Williams in John Huston's '' Reflections in a Golden Eye'' (1967), followed ...

, later confirmed as playing Frank Truman, brother of Harry. Forster had been cast as Harry in the 1990 pilot but was replaced by Ontkean due to scheduling issues. Also in October,

David Duchovny David William Duchovny ( ; born ) is an American actor, writer, and musician. He received his breakthrough with the role of Fox Mulder in The X-Files franchise, earning Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards a ...

teased his return as Agent Denise Bryson. In November 2015, it was reported that

Miguel Ferrer Miguel José Ferrer (February 7, 1955 – January 19, 2017) was an American actor. His breakthrough role was as Bob Morton in the 1987 film ''RoboCop''. Other film roles include Harbinger in '' Hot Shots! Part Deux'' (1993), Quigley in '' Blank ...

would reprise his role as Albert Rosenfield, and that

Richard Beymer George Richard Beymer Jr. (born February 20, 1938) is an American actor, filmmaker and artist who played the roles of Tony in the 1961 film adaptation of ''West Side Story'', Peter van Daan in '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959), and Ben Horn ...

and

David Patrick Kelly David Patrick Kelly (born January 23, 1951) is an American actor, musician and lyricist who has appeared in numerous films and television series. He is best known for his role as the main antagonist Luther in the cult film '' The Warriors'' (1979 ...

would return as Benjamin Horne and Jerry Horne, respectively. In December 2015,

Alicia Witt Alicia Roanne Witt (born August 21, 1975) is an American actress and musician. She first came to fame as a child actress after being discovered by David Lynch, who cast her in ''Dune'' (1984) and ''Twin Peaks'' (1990). Witt was a regular on Cyb ...

confirmed she would reprise her role as Gersten Hayward.

Michael J. Anderson Michael J. Anderson (born October 31, 1953) is a retired American actor known for his role as The Man from Another Place in David Lynch's television series ''Twin Peaks'', and the prequel film '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me''. He is also not ...

was asked to reprise his role as

The Man from Another Place The Man from Another Place (played by Michael J. Anderson), also known as The Arm, is a character from the television series ''Twin Peaks'', created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. He is an inhabitant of the Black and White Lodges, Black Lodge, a ...

, but declined.

Russ Tamblyn Russell Irving Tamblyn (born December 30, 1934), also known as Rusty Tamblyn, is an American film and television actor and dancer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Tamblyn trained as a gymnast in his youth. He began his career as a child actor ...

underwent open-heart surgery in late 2014, and was still recovering in 2015. Lynch and Frost still hoped Tamblyn would join the cast for the new season, which was later confirmed. On September 28, 2015, Catherine E. Coulson, who reprised her role of the Log Lady in the new season, died of cancer. She filmed her final scene four days before her death. The season's first teaser trailer, released in December 2015, confirmed the involvement of

Michael Horse Michael Horse (Michael James Heinrich, born 1949) is an American film and television actor. He is also a painter and jeweler. He is best known for playing Deputy Tommy 'Hawk' Hill on ''Twin Peaks''. Background and education Michael James Hei ...

(Tommy "Hawk" Hill). In January 2016, it was reported that

would reprise her role as

in a "major presence". In February 2016, it was reported that Lynch would reprise his role as Gordon Cole. Frequent Lynch collaborator

Laura Dern Laura Elizabeth Dern (born February 10, 1967) is an American actress. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and five Golden Globe Awards. Born ...

was cast in a "top-secret pivotal role", which eventually proved to be Diane, the previously

unseen character An unseen character in theatre, comics, film or television, or a silent character in radio or literature, is a character who is mentioned but not directly known to the audience, but who advances the action of the plot in a significant way, and w ...

to whom Cooper frequently dictated taped messages during the show's original run. In April 2016, a complete cast list was released, featuring 217 actors, with actors returning from the earlier series marked with asterisks. Mary Reber, who plays Alice Tremond in the finale, is the actual owner of the house used for the Palmer residence.

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

was asked to make a

cameo appearance A cameo appearance, also called a cameo role and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief guest appearance of a well-known person or character in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking on ...

as FBI Agent Phillip Jeffries, his character from '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me''. As Bowie's health was declining, his lawyer told Lynch that he was unavailable. Before his death in January 2016, Bowie gave the production permission to reuse old footage featuring him, but he was unhappy with the accent he had used in the film, and requested that he be dubbed over by an authentic

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

actor, leading to the casting of Nathan Frizzell as Jeffries's voice. In January and February 2017, respectively, cast members

and

Warren Frost Warren Frost (June 5, 1925 – February 17, 2017) was an American actor. His work was mainly in theater, but he worked in films and television sporadically from 1958. He is known for television roles on '' Matlock'' and ''Seinfeld'', and p ...

died, but both appear in the new season. This was Ferrer's last live action television role before his death.

Harry Dean Stanton Harry Dean Stanton (July 14, 1926 – September 15, 2017) was an American actor. In a career that spanned more than six decades, Stanton played supporting roles in films including ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), '' Kelly's Heroes'' (1970), '' Dilling ...

, who reprised his role as Carl Rodd, died in September 2017, less than two weeks after the last episode of the season aired.

Filming

Principal photography began in September 2015 and took 140 days. Filming was completed by April 2016. The season was shot continuously from a single, long shooting script before being edited into episodes. A 3.2K digital camera, the Arri Amira, was used because it was the smallest camera to shoot in 4K, with 1960 ultra speed lenses from

Panavision Panavision Inc. is an American motion picture equipment company (law), company founded in 1954 specializing in cameras and photographic lens, lenses, based in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk a ...

to soften some of the digital image's sharpness. In July 2015, Frost suggested that the season would premiere in 2017 rather than 2016, as originally planned. In January 2016, Nevins confirmed that the season would premiere in the first half of 2017.

Music

The season's

score SCORE may refer to: *SCORE (software), a music scorewriter program * SCORE (television), a weekend sports service of the defunct Financial News Network *SCORE! Educational Centers *SCORE International, an offroad racing organization *Sarawak Corrido ...

contains new and reused compositions by

Angelo Badalamenti Angelo Daniel Badalamenti (March 22, 1937 – December 11, 2022) was an American composer and arranger best known for his film music, notably the scores for his collaborations with director David Lynch, '' Blue Velvet'' (1986), ''Twin Peaks'' (1 ...

, dark

ambient music Ambient music is a genre of music that emphasizes Musical tone, tone and atmosphere over traditional Musical form, musical structure or rhythm. Often "peaceful" sounding and lacking Musical composition, composition, beat, and/or structured melod ...

and

sound design Sound design is the art and practice of creating auditory elements of media. It involves specifying, acquiring and creating audio using production techniques and equipment or software. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including filmmaking ...

Dean Hurley Dean Hurley is an American composer, record producer, musician, sound designer, re-recording mixer and songwriter. He received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for the third season of ''Twin Peaks''. He is best known for his frequent collabor ...

and David Lynch (including some from '' The Air Is on Fire''), and unreleased music from Lynch and Badalamenti's 1990s project '' Thought Gang'', two of which previously appeared in ''Fire Walk with Me''. Hurley's contributions were released on the album '' Anthology Resource Vol. 1: △△'' on August 6, 2017, by

Sacred Bones Records Sacred Bones Records is an American independent record label founded in 2007 and based in Brooklyn, New York. The label has released recordings from artists including Zola Jesus, David Lynch, John Carpenter, Spellling, Blanck Mass, Crystal S ...

. Several tracks from

Johnny Jewel Johnny Jewel (born John David Padgett; May 31, 1974) is an American musician, record producer, composer, and visual artist. He is a multi-instrumentalist who is known for using all-analog equipment. Jewel has been recording and releasing material ...

's album ''Windswept'' also appear throughout. '' Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima'' by

Krzysztof Penderecki Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best-known works include '' Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', '' ...

appears in key scenes. Angelo Badalamenti's score was released on September 8, 2017, by

Rhino Records A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

as '' Twin Peaks: Limited Event Series Original Soundtrack''. Additionally, multiple episodes contain musical performances at the Roadhouse. Lynch hand-picked several of the bands and musicians, including

Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN (stylized as NIИ), is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988. Its members are the singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Trent Reznor and his frequent col ...

Sharon Van Etten Sharon Katharine Van Etten (born February 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress. Originally from New Jersey, and currently based in Los Angeles, Van Etten's music is noted for its indie rock aesthetic and personal lyric ...

, Chromatics and

Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and one of three guitarists for the rock band Pearl Jam. He was previously a gues ...

. The final musical performance at the Roadhouse was by

Julee Cruise Julee Ann Cruise (December 1, 1956 – June 9, 2022) was an American singer and actress, known for her collaborations with composer Angelo Badalamenti and film director David Lynch in the late 1980s and early 1990s. She released four albums beg ...

, who sang the original series's theme. '' Twin Peaks: Music from the Limited Event Series'', an album containing many of these performances, along with other songs heard on the season, was released by

on September 8, 2017. Other music, mostly played diegetically includes: *"American Woman" (David Lynch Remix) by Muddy Magnolias *"

Take Five "Take Five" is a jazz standard composed by Paul Desmond in 5 beat per measure, the melody relying on the blues scale, with harmony E-flat minor. It was first recorded in 1959 and is the third track on ''Time Out'' by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. ...

" by

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

I Love How You Love Me "I Love How You Love Me" is a song written by Barry Mann and Larry Kolber. It was a 1961 Top Five hit for the pop girl group The Paris Sisters, which inaugurated a string of elaborately produced classic hits by Phil Spector. Bobby Vinton had ...

" by

The Paris Sisters The Paris Sisters were a 1960s American girl group from San Francisco, best known for their work with record producer Phil Spector. Career The group consisted of lead singer Priscilla Paris (January 4, 1945 – March 5, 2004), her older sister ...

*"I Am (Old School Hip Hop Beat)" by Blunted Beatz *"Habit" and "Tabloid" by

Uniform A uniform is a variety of costume worn by members of an organization while usually participating in that organization's activity. Modern uniforms are most often worn by armed forces and paramilitary organizations such as police, emergency serv ...

Sleep Walk "Sleep Walk" is an instrumental song written, recorded, and released in 1959 by American instrumental rock and roll duo Santo & Johnny Farina, with their uncle Mike Dee playing the drums. Prominently featuring steel guitar, the song was record ...

" by

Santo & Johnny Santo & Johnny were an American rock and roll instrumental duo of Italian descent from Brooklyn, New York, composed of brothers Santo Farina (born October 24, 1937) and Johnny Farina (born April 30, 1941). They are known best for their instrum ...

Green Onions "Green Onions" is an instrumental composition recorded in 1962 by Booker T. & the M.G.'s. One of the most popular soul songs ever, and R&B instrumentals of its era, it utilizes a twelve-bar blues progression and features a rippling Hammond M3 ...

" by Booker T. & the M.G.'s *"

My Prayer "My Prayer" is a 1939 popular song with music by salon violinist Georges Boulanger and lyrics by Carlos Gomez Barrera and Jimmy Kennedy. It was originally written by Boulanger with the title ''Avant de mourir'' (Before dying) in 1926. Kennedy ad ...

" by

The Platters The Platters are an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The act ...

*"Charmaine" by

Mantovani Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (; 15 November 1905 – 30 March 1980) was an Italian British conductor, composer and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature. The book '' British Hit Singles & Albums'' ...

Viva Las Vegas ''Viva Las Vegas'' is a 1964 American rock and roll musical film directed by George Sidney, written by Sally Benson, choreographed by David Winters, and starring Elvis Presley, Ann-Margret, Cesare Danova, William Demarest and Nicky Blair ...

" by

Shawn Colvin Shawn Colvin (born Shawna Lee Colvin, January 10, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her 1997 Grammy Award-winning song "Sunny Came Home". Early life Colvin was born Shawna Lee Colvin in Vermillion, South Dakota, and ...

I've Been Loving You Too Long "I've Been Loving You Too Long" (originally "I've Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now)") is a soul music ballad written by Otis Redding and Jerry Butler. Considered by music critics and writers to be one of Redding's finest performances and ...

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Live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film * ''Live'' (2023 film), a Malayalam-language film *'' Live: Phát Trực Tiếp'', a Vietnamese-langua ...

) by

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

Sharp Dressed Man "Sharp Dressed Man" is a song by American rock band ZZ Top, released on their 1983 album ''Eliminator''. The song was produced by band manager Bill Ham, and recorded and mixed by Terry Manning. Pre-production recording engineer Linden Hudson wa ...

" by

ZZ Top ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in Houston, Texas, in 1969. For almost 56 years, it consisted of vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard (musician), Frank Beard, and bassist-vocalist Dusty Hill prior to his death in 2021. ZZ ...

*"Windswept", "Slow Dreams", "The Flame" by

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

's ''

Moonlight Sonata The Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, marked ''Quasi una fantasia'', Op. 27, No. 2, is a piano sonata by Ludwig van Beethoven, completed in 1801 and dedicated in 1802 to his pupil Countess Julie "Giulietta" Guicciardi. Although known throu ...

'' and "

Last Call In a Bar (establishment), bar, a last call (last orders) is an Wiktionary:announcement, announcement made shortly before the bar closes for the night, informing patrons of their last chance to buy alcoholic beverages. There are various means to ...

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are played slowed down significantly.

Cast

as Special Agent

and his various

s and alter egos, most prominently the doppelgänger created in the final episode of the second season (known in commentary as "Mr. C") and Dougie Jones

Twin Peaks

*Jay Aaseng as Drunk *

Mädchen Amick Mädchen Amick ( ; born December 12, 1970) is an American actress and television director. She is known for her starring role as Shelly Johnson on the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991), its prequel film '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk wi ...

as Shelly Briggs *

as Deputy Sheriff

Bobby Briggs Bobby Briggs is a fictional main character in the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991; 2017), created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. He appears in both seasons of the show, the 2017 '' revival series'', as well as the prequel feature-len ...

Phoebe Augustine Phoebe Ellen Ceresia (born April 1, 1967), known professionally as Phoebe Augustine, is an American actress known for playing Ronette Pulaski in ''Twin Peaks''. Career She portrayed Laura Palmer's friend Ronette Pulaski in several episodes of t ...

as Ronette Pulaski *

as Benjamin Horne *

Gia Carides Gia Carides (; born 7 June 1964) is an Australian actress. She portrayed Liz Holt in ''Strictly Ballroom'' (1992), Susy Connor in '' Brilliant Lies'' (1996), and Cousin Nikki in the ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' franchise (2002–2023). Early ...

as Hannah * Vincent Castellanos as Federico *

Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera ( ; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor. Over his career he has received nominations for a British Academy Film Award, three Critics' Choice Movie Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Tony Award. Cera beca ...

as Wally "Brando" Brennan *

Joan Chen Joan Chen (simplified Chinese; 陈冲; born April 26, 1961) is an American actress and film director. She made her film debut in the Chinese film ''Youth'' (1977) before starring in the film (1979). She came to the attention of American audien ...

as Josie Packard * Candy Clark as Doris Truman *

Scott Coffey Scott Coffey (born Thomas Scott Coffey; May 1, 1964) is an American actor, director, producer and screenwriter. His film credits include ''Shag'', '' Some Kind of Wonderful'', ''Dream Lover'', and ''Mulholland Drive''. He directed the films '' E ...

as Trick * Catherine E. Coulson as Margaret Lanterman / "The Log Lady" * Grace Victoria Cox as Charlotte *

Jan D'Arcy Jan Therese D'Arcy is an American television and film actress born on June 18, 1939, in Oneida, New York, with a career spanning almost five decades. She is best known for playing List of Twin Peaks characters#Sylvia Horne, Sylvia Horne in ''Twin P ...

as Sylvia Horne * Eric Da Re as Leo Johnson * Ana de la Reguera as Natalie *

Hugh Dillon Hugh Dillon (born May 31, 1963) is a Canadian singer, actor, and television producer. The lead vocalist of the rock bands Headstones and Hugh Dillon Redemption Choir, his acting roles include Albert Manning in '' Degrassi: The Next Generation'' ...

as Tom Paige *

Eamon Farren Eamon Farren (born 19 May 1985) is an Australian actor. Following starring roles in the films '' X: Night of Vengeance'' (2011) and '' Chained'' (2012), he came to prominence for portraying Richard Horne in the 2017 revival of ''Twin Peaks''. ...

as Richard Horne *

Sky Ferreira Sky Tonia Ferreira (; born July 8, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter, model, and actress. As a teenager, Ferreira began uploading videos on Myspace of herself singing songs she had written, which led to her discovery by producers Bloodsh ...

as Ella *

as Sheriff Frank Truman *

as Cyril Pons *

as Dr. Will Hayward *

Balthazar Getty Paul Balthazar Getty (; born January 22, 1975) is an American actor and musician, and a member of the Getty family. His acting debut was in ''Lord of the Flies'' (1990) as Ralph. He went on to appear in '' Lost Highway'' (1997) and had a recurrin ...

as Red * Harry Goaz as Deputy Sheriff Andy Brennan *

Grant Goodeve Grant Goodeve (born July 6, 1952) is an American actor and television host. He is best known for his role as David Bradford, the eldest son on ABC television's ''Eight Is Enough'' from 1977 to 1981; he sang the theme song for the show, as well. ...

as Walter Lawford *

Andrea Hays Andrea Hays is an American actress, producer, screenwriter, costume designer, and nurse, best known for her role as Heidi in ''Twin Peaks'' which she played in both the 1990 original series and the 2017 revival, '' Twin Peaks: The Return,'' th ...

as Heidi *

Gary Hershberger Gary Hershberger (born April 5, 1964) is an American actor and screenwriter. He is best known for his television roles as Mike Nelson in ''Twin Peaks'' (1989–1991; 2017) and Matthew Gilardi on '' Six Feet Under'' (2001–2002). Early life an ...

as Mike Nelson *

as Deputy Chief Tommy "Hawk" Hill *

Caleb Landry Jones Caleb Landry Jones (born December 7, 1989) is an American actor and musician, known for his roles as Banshee in '' X-Men: First Class'', Jeremy Armitage in ''Get Out'', and Red Welby in ''Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri''. His accolades ...

as Steven Burnett *

Ashley Judd Ashley Tyler Ciminella, known professionally as Ashley Judd (born April 19, 1968), is an American actress and activist. She grew up in a family of performing artists, the daughter of country music singer Naomi Judd and the half-sister of country ...

as Beverly Paige *

as Jerry Horne *

Piper Laurie Piper Laurie (born Rosetta Jacobs; January 22, 1932 – October 14, 2023) was an American actress. She is known for her roles in the films '' The Hustler'' (1961), '' Carrie'' (1976), and '' Children of a Lesser God'' (1986), and the miniseries ...

as Catherine Martell *

Jane Levy Jane Colburn Levy ( ; born ) is an American actress. After attending the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, she debuted as the original Mandy Milkovich on the Showtime comedy-drama '' Shameless'' (2011). Levy left ''Shameless'' following its fir ...

as Elizabeth *

Peggy Lipton Margaret Ann Lipton (August 30, 1946 – May 11, 2019) was an American model, actress, and singer. She made appearances in many of the most popular television shows of the 1960s before she landed her defining role as flower child Julie Barnes i ...

Norma Jennings The following is an incomplete list of characters from the television series ''Twin Peaks'', the film ''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'', and the Twin Peaks (season 3), 2017 revival. Overview Supernatural/Otherworldly Bob Frank Silva ...

*Sarah Jean Long as Miriam Sullivan *Riley Lynch as Bing * James Marshall as

James Hurley James Hurley may refer to: * James Hurley (Twin Peaks), a fictional character from the television show ''Twin Peaks'' * James Francis Hurley (born 1962), English murderer * James R. Hurley (born 1932), Southern New Jersey politician and gambling ...

Everett McGill Charles Everett McGill III (born on October 21, 1945) is an American retired actor, who rose to prominence for his portrayal of a caveman in '' Quest for Fire'' (1981). He went on to have prominent roles in the films ''Dune'' (1984), ''Silver ...

Ed Hurley Edwin Henry Hurley (September 20, 1908 – November 12, 1969) was a professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League (AL) from 1947 to 1965. Early career Hurley was a prominent baseball umpire and basketball referee in the Wester ...

Clark Middleton Clark Tinsley Middleton (April 13, 1957 – October 4, 2020) was an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles in '' Kill Bill: Vol. 2'', ''Sin City'', ''Fringe'', ''Snowpiercer'', and ''The Blacklist''. Career Middleton's first ...

as Charlie *

Jack Nance Marvin John Nance (December 21, 1943 – December 30, 1996) was an American actor. A longtime collaborator of filmmaker David Lynch, Nance portrayed the lead in Lynch's directorial debut '' Eraserhead'' (1977). He continued to work with Lynch th ...

as Pete Martell * Walter Olkewicz as Jacques Renault and Jean-Michel Renault *John Pirruccello as Deputy Sheriff Chad Broxford *Mary Reber as Alice Tremond *

Kimmy Robertson Kimmy Robertson (born November 27, 1954) is an American actress best known for her role as Lucy Moran in the television series ''Twin Peaks'' and Rose in the film '' The Last American Virgin''. Career Robertson's high-pitched voice has led to ...

as Lucy Brennan *

Wendy Robie Wendy Robie (born October 6, 1953) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Nadine Hurley in David Lynch's television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991) and the prequel film '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992). She also s ...

Nadine Hurley The following is an incomplete list of characters from the television series ''Twin Peaks'', the film ''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'', and the Twin Peaks (season 3), 2017 revival. Overview Supernatural/Otherworldly Bob Frank Silva ...

Erik Rondell Erik Rondell (born July 8, 1967) (also credited as Eric Rondell, Erick Rondell and Erik L. Rondell) is an American actor, stuntman, and stunt co-ordinator with an almost forty year career in film and television. He is best known for his work on '' ...

as Johnny Horne *Marvin "Marv" Rosand as Toad * Rod Rowland as Chuck *

Amanda Seyfried Amanda Michelle Seyfried ( ; born December 3, 1985) is an American actress and singer. She began acting at 15, with a recurring role as Lucy Montgomery in the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns'' (1999–2001). She came to prominence for he ...

as Rebecca 'Becky' Burnett *

as Carl Rodd *JR Starr as MC *

Charlotte Stewart Charlotte Stewart (born 1941) is an American film and television actress. Biography Stewart is most famous for her role as the school teacher Eva Beadle Simms on ''Little House on the Prairie'' and her work with director David Lynch. Stewart ...

as Betty Briggs *

Jessica Szohr Jessica Szohr (; born March 31, 1985) is an American actress. She started her screen career appearing on television shows such as '' My Wife and Kids'' (2003), ''Joan of Arcadia'' (2004), '' What About Brian'' (2007) and '' CSI: Miami'' (2007). S ...

as Renee *

as Dr. Lawrence Jacoby *

Jodi Thelen Jodi Thelen (born June 12, 1962) is an American actress. Born in St. Cloud, Minnesota, Thelen made her screen debut as Georgia Miles, "a willfully free-spirited girl, naive and narcissistic" in '' Four Friends'' in 1981. Thelen appeared on Bro ...

as Maggie *

Lauren Tewes Cynthia Lauren Tewes (,Larding, Bob (June 4, 1978)"'Loveboat's' Loveable Lauren" ''New York Daily News''. Leisure, p. 10. p. 77. Retrieved January 6, 2024. "'No, I never thought of changing it,' she says. 'Once people hear it, they ne ...

as Gersten's neighbor *Jake Wardle as Freddie Sykes *

as Gersten Hayward *

Karolina Wydra Karolina Wydra ( ; born March 5, 1981) is a Polish-American actress and model. She played Dominika Petrova on the Fox medical drama series ''House'', and vampire Violet Mazurski on the HBO dark fantasy series ''True Blood''. Wydra has starred in ...

as Chloe *

Charlyne Yi Lo Mutuc, born Charlyne Yi (January 4, 1986), is an American actor, comedian, musician, and writer, known for their role as Dr. Chi Park in the Fox medical drama ''House'' (2011–2012), and for providing the voices of the Rubies in the Cartoon ...

as Ruby *

Grace Zabriskie Grace Zabriskie (née Caplinger; born May 17, 1941) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Sarah Palmer in ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991; 2017) and its film prequel '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992), Lois Henrickson in ''B ...

as Sarah Palmer

Government

* Chrysta Bell as Special Agent Tammy Preston *

Richard Chamberlain George Richard Chamberlain (March 31, 1934 – March 29, 2025) was an American actor and singer who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show '' Dr. Kildare'' (1961–1966). He subsequently earned the title "King of the Mini- ...

as Bill Kennedy *

as Diane Evans *

as FBI Chief of Staff Denise Bryson * Jay R. Ferguson as Special Agent Randall Headley *

as Special Agent Albert Rosenfield *

Ernie Hudson Earnest Lee Hudson (born December 17, 1945) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Winston Zeddemore in the ''Ghostbusters'' franchise. Hudson has also acted in the films ''Leviathan'' (1989), '' The Hand That Rocks the Cradle'' (19 ...

as Colonel Davis *

as FBI Deputy Director Gordon Cole *Adele René as Lieutenant Cynthia Knox *Owain Rhys-Davies as Agent Wilson

Las Vegas

* Alon Aboutboul as Head Mover *

Joe Adler Joe Adler is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Zart in ''The Maze Runner'' and Jason Wylie in ''The Mentalist ''The Mentalist'' is an American procedural drama television series that ran from September 23, 2008, unt ...

as Roger *

Stephanie Allynne Stephanie Allynne (born September 19, 1985) is an American actress, writer, and comedian. She is best known for her roles in '' In a World...'' (2013), '' Dream Corp, LLC'' (2016), '' One Mississippi'' (2016–17), and '' The L Word: Generation ...

as Soccer Mom *Tammie Baird as Lorraine *

Jim Belushi James Adam Belushi (; born June 15, 1954) is an American actor and comedian. His television roles include ''Saturday Night Live'' (1983–1985), ''According to Jim'' (2001–2009), and '' Good Girls Revolt'' (2015–2016). Belushi appeared in fi ...

as Bradley Mitchum *

John Billingsley John Billingsley (, born May 20, 1960) is an American actor best known for his role as Doctor Phlox on the television series '' Star Trek: Enterprise''. Early life and education Billingsley was born in Media, Pennsylvania, and subsequently liv ...

as Doctor Ben *

Ronnie Gene Blevins Ronnie Gene Blevins (born June 20, 1977) is an American character actor. He is best known for his role as small-time criminal Willie Russell in the 2013 film '' Joe'', directed by David Gordon Green. Career His TV credits include '' NCIS'', '' ...

as Tommy *

Wes Brown Wesley Michael Brown (born 13 October 1979) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre back or right back. He spent the majority of his career at Manchester United, where he won 13 trophies including five Premier Leagu ...

as Darren *Juan Carlos Cantu as Officer Reynaldo *Larry Clarke as Detective T. Fusco *

Jonny Coyne Jonathan Coyne (born 2 February 1958) is an English actor known for playing Warden Edwin James on Fox's short-lived series, ''Alcatraz'' (2012). He also appeared as Dr. Lydgate in ''Once Upon a Time in Wonderland'' and ''Once Upon a Time'' and ...

as Polish Accountant *Giselle Damier as Sandie *

David Dastmalchian David Dastmalchian ( ; born July 21, 1977) is an American actor, writer, and producer. He has had supporting roles in a number of superhero franchises: he portrayed Thomas Schiff in ''The Dark Knight'' (2008), Kurt and Veb in the Ant-Man franc ...

as Pit Boss Warrick *

Jeremy Davies Jeremy Boring (born October 28, 1969), known professionally as Jeremy Davies, is an American actor. He is known for playing Ray Aibelli in '' Spanking the Monkey'' (1994), Corporal Timothy Upham in ''Saving Private Ryan'' (1998), Private Toffl ...

as Jimmy *

Eric Edelstein Eric Edelstein is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing the role of Bobby Mallison in '' Shameless'', Chad in '' Clarence'', B.O.B. in the ''Monsters vs. Aliens'' television adaptation, and Grizzly "Grizz" in '' We Bare Bear ...

as Detective "Smiley" Fusco * John Ennis as Slot Machine Man *

Josh Fadem Josh Fadem ( ; born July 19, 1980) is an American actor, writer, and comedian. Early life Fadem was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he attended Booker T. Washington High School. He has lived and worked in Los Angeles since 2000. Car ...

as Phil Bisby *

Rebecca Field Rebecca Field is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Lacey Jean-Locklin in the Lifetime drama series ''The Client List''. She is also known for the role of Gail in the 2018 film '' A Star Is Born''. Life and career Field was ...

as Another Mom *

Patrick Fischler Patrick Fischler (born December 29, 1969) is an American character actor known for his roles as Jimmy Barrett on the drama series '' Mad Men'', Dharma Initiative worker Phil on the drama series '' Lost'', and Detective Kenny No-Gun on the poli ...

as Duncan Todd *

Meg Foster Margaret "Meg" Foster (born May 10, 1948) is an American film and television actress. Some of her many roles were in the 1979 TV miniseries version of '' The Scarlet Letter'', and the films '' Ticket to Heaven'', ''The Osterman Weekend'' and '' ...

as Cashier * Pierce Gagnon as Sonny Jim Jones * Hailey Gates as Drugged-out Mother *

Brett Gelman Brett Gelman (born October 6, 1976) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Murray Bauman in Netflix's horror-supernatural series ''Stranger Things'' and as Martin in the BBC comedy '' Fleabag''. Gelman began his care ...

as Supervisor Burns * Ivy George as 5-Year-Old Girl *

Robert Knepper Robert Lyle Knepper (born July 8, 1959) is an American actor best known for his role as Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell in the Fox drama series ''Prison Break'' (2005–2009, 2017), Samuel Sullivan in the final season of the NBC series '' Heroes'' ...

as Rodney Mitchum *

David Koechner David Michael Koechner ( ; born August 24, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. His prominent roles include Champ Kind in the '' Anchorman'' film series (2004–2013) and Todd Packer in ''The Office'' (2005–2013). Koechner first became i ...

as Detective D. Fusco *

Virginia Kull Virginia Kull is an American actress who has appeared in ''Big Little Lies'', ''NOS4A2'', ''The Looming Tower'', and others. In addition to her roles in film and television, she has appeared in various Broadway productions. Most recently, she ...

as Syzmon Waitress * Jay Larson as Limo Driver *Andrea Leal as Mandie *

Bellina Logan Bellina Logan is an American television and film actress. Career Logan is known for her roles in such films and television shows as ''Interview with the Vampire'', ''Twin Peaks'' and as Nurse Kit in '' ER'' and Janice Mayfield in the sitcom '' ...

as Female Doctor *

Josh McDermitt Josh McDermitt (born June 4, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing Eugene Porter on AMC's '' The Walking Dead''. In 2006, McDermitt appeared on ''Last Comic Standing'' as a contestant. McDermitt had a main role on ...

as Wise Guy * Don Murray as Bushnell Mullins *

Sara Paxton Sara Paxton (born April 25, 1988) is an American actress and singer. She began acting at an early age, appearing in minor roles in both films and television shows before rising to fame in early October 2002. She played Sarah Tobin from '' Greet ...

as Candy Shaker * Linda Porter as Lady Slot-Addict *

Elena Satine Elena Satine ( ka, ელენა სატინი; born November 24, 1987) is a Georgian-American actress and singer. On television, she has been featured as a series regular on the Starz period drama '' Magic City'' (2012–2013), the ABC ...

as Rhonda * John Savage as Detective Clark *

Amy Shiels Amy Shiels is an Irish film and television actress who has appeared in the films ''Veronica Guerin (film), Veronica Guerin'', ''Slaughter (2009 film), Slaughter'', ''Twin Peaks (season 3), Twin Peaks'', and as Lunafreya Nox Fleuret in ''Final Fa ...

as Candie *

Tom Sizemore Thomas Edward Sizemore Jr. (; November 29, 1961 – March 3, 2023) was an American actor. Born in Detroit, he started his career with supporting appearances in '' Born on the Fourth of July'' (1989), '' Lock Up'' (1989), and '' Blue Steel'' (19 ...

as Anthony Sinclair * Bob Stephenson as Frank *

Ethan Suplee Ethan L. Suplee (; born May 25, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films ''American History X'', '' Blow'', ''Remember the Titans'', ''John Q'', '' The Wolf of Wall Street'', '' Cold Mountain'', '' Without a Paddle ...

as Bill Shaker * Sabrina S. Sutherland as Floor Attendant Jackie *

Naomi Watts Naomi Ellen Watts (born 28 September 1968) is a British actress. Known for her work predominantly in independent films with dark or tragic themes, she has received various accolades, including nominations for two Academy Awards, a Primetime ...

as Janey-E Jones * Nafessa Williams as Jade *Christophe Zajac-Denek as Ike "The Spike" Stadtler

South Dakota

* Jane Adams as Constance Talbot *

Brent Briscoe Brent Briscoe (May 21, 1961 – October 18, 2017) was an American character actor and screenwriter. He was best known for his role as JJ on '' Parks and Recreation'' (2011–2015). Early life Briscoe was born in Moberly, Missouri. After comple ...

as Detective Dave Macklay *

Bailey Chase Bailey Chase Luetgert (born January 15, 1972) is an American stage and television actor. Chase is known for his role as Cory Snyder in '' Walk. Ride. Rodeo.'', as Butch Ada in the television series '' Saving Grace'', as Graham Miller in ''Buffy ...

as Detective Don Harrison *

Neil Dickson Neil Dickson (born 26 November 1950) is an English actor, who has worked extensively in both American and British film and television. Biography At the age of five, Dickson contracted polio, but made a complete recovery a year later. He attend ...

as George Bautzer *George Griffith as Ray Monroe *

Cornelia Guest Cornelia Cochrane Churchill Guest (born November 28, 1963) is a New York socialite, author, actress, and the Debutante of the Decade for the 1980s of the International Debutante Ball in New York City. She is a vegan, and known for her advocacy of ...

as Phyllis Hastings *

Nicole LaLiberte Nicole LaLiberté (born December 1, 1981) is an American actress. She has had recurring roles on the television series '' How to Make It in America'' (2011) and ''Dexter'' (2012–2013) and most notably played Darya in David Lynch's ''Twin Peak ...

as Darya *

Jennifer Jason Leigh Jennifer Jason Leigh (born Jennifer Leigh Morrow; February 5, 1962) is an American actress. She began her career on television during the 1970s before making her film breakthrough in the teen film ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High'' (1982). She re ...

as Chantal Hutchens *

Matthew Lillard Matthew Lyn Lillard (born January 24, 1970) is an American actor. His film work includes Chip Sutphin in '' Serial Mom'' (1994), Emmanuel "Cereal Killer" Goldstein in '' Hackers'' (1995), Stu Macher in '' Scream'' (1996), Stevo in '' SLC Punk!'' ...

as William Hastings *Karl Makinen as Inspector Randy Hollister *

Bérénice Marlohe Bérénice Lim Marlohe (born 19 May 1979) is a French actress. She played anti-heroine Bond girl Sévérine in the twenty-third ''James Bond'' film ''Skyfall''. Her television credits include ''Père et Maire'', ''Femmes de loi'', and ''Equi ...

as French Woman * James Morrison as Warden Dwight Murphy * Christopher Murray as Officer Olson *

Max Perlich Max Perlich (born March 26, 1968) is an American film and television actor. In 1990, Perlich won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for his performance in the hit indie film '' Drugstore Cowboy'' and was nominated for the same ...

as Hank *

Tim Roth Timothy Simon Roth (; born 14 May 1961) is an English actor. He was among a group of prominent British actors known as the " Brit Pack". After garnering attention in television productions '' Made in Britain'' (1982) and '' Meantime'' (1983), ...

as Gary "Hutch" Hutchens *Mary Stofle as Ruth Davenport

Supernatural

as American Girl *

Monica Bellucci Monica Anna Maria Bellucci (; born 30 September 1964) is an Italian actress and model who began her career as a fashion model before working in Italian, American, and French films. She has an eclectic filmography in a range of genres and langua ...

as herself *

as Phillip Jeffries **Nathan Frizzell as the voice of Phillip Jeffries *

Robert Broski Robert Broski (born December 18, 1952) is an American actor best known for portraying the Woodsman in '' Twin Peaks: The Return'' and for multiple media appearances as Abraham Lincoln. Career After years of working in construction, Broski first ...

as Woodsman * Don S. Davis as Major Garland Briggs *Erica Eynon as Experiment *

* Joy Nash as Señorita Dido *Carlton Lee Russell as the Jumping Man * Frank Silva as

Killer BOB Bob (sometimes known as BOB or Killer BOB) is a fictional character and main antagonist of the ABC television series ''Twin Peaks,'' played by Frank Silva. He is an interdimensional entity who feeds on pain and sorrow. An inhabiting spirit, h ...

*Malachy Sreenan as Bosomy Lady *

Al Strobel Albert Michael Strobel (January 28, 1940– December 2, 2022) was an American actor best known for his recurring role on David Lynch and Mark Frost's ''Twin Peaks'' as Phillip Michael Gerard, also known as Mike. Early life Strobel was born ...

as Phillip Michael Gerard / MIKE *

Carel Struycken Carel Struycken (; born 30 July 1948) is a Dutch actor. He is known for playing the Giant/Fireman in the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017), the occasional guest role of Mr. Homn in '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (1987– ...

as The Fireman *

Leland Palmer Leland Palmer is a fictional character from the ABC and Showtime television series ''Twin Peaks'', and one of the main characters in the prequel film, '' Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me''. He is portrayed in all his appearances by Ray Wise. Lela ...

* Nae Yuuki as Naido

did not reprise his role as

, who instead appears as a treelike computer-generated effect, and is voiced by an uncredited actor. When asked who provided the voice for the CGI character, executive producer Sabrina Sutherland replied: "Unfortunately, I think this question should remain a mystery and not be answered."

Other

New York

Michael Bisping Michael Gavin Joseph Bisping (; born 28 February 1979) is an English former mixed martial artist, sports commentator, analyst, and actor. He competed in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship ( ...

as Guard * Benjamin Rosenfield as Sam Colby *

Madeline Zima Madeline Rose Zima (born September 16, 1985) is an American actress. She portrayed Grace Sheffield on the CBS sitcom ''The Nanny'' (1993–1999), Mia Lewis on the Showtime comedy drama series '' Californication'' (2007–2011), and Gretchen B ...

as Tracey Barberato

New Mexico, 1956

*Leslie Berger as New Mexico Wife *

Cullen Douglas Douglas Cullen Baumbach (born November 6, 1967) better known by his stage name Cullen Douglas, is an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. His most notable television appearances have come from recurring roles on ''Pure Genius'', '' Priv ...

as Disc Jockey *Tikaeni Faircrest as Girl *Tad Griffith as New Mexico Husband *

Xolo Maridueña Ramario Xolo Ramirez (born June 9, 2001), known professionally as Xolo Maridueña (), is an American actor. His roles include Victor Graham in the NBC drama '' Parenthood'' (2012–2015), Miguel Diaz in the Netflix action series ''Cobra Kai'' (2 ...

as Boy *Tracy Philips as Receptionist

Montana

Frank Collison Frank Collison (born February 14, 1950) is an American actor known to television audiences as the hapless telegrapher Horace Bing in the series '' Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman'' and Grandpa Goodman in '' Mr. Pickles''. Early life Collison was bor ...

as Muddy *

Derek Mears Derek Mears (born April 29, 1972) is an American actor and stuntman. Often appearing in horror and science-fiction titles, he came to prominence for portraying Jason Voorhees in the 2009 reboot of '' Friday the 13th''. His film roles also includ ...

as Renzo

Odessa

*Matt Battaglia as Cowboy 3 *

Francesca Eastwood Francesca Ruth Fisher-Eastwood (born August 7, 1993) is an American actress, socialite, and television personality. The daughter of Clint Eastwood and Frances Fisher, she garnered attention starring with her family on the E! reality series '' Mr ...

as Texas Waitress Kristi *Heath Hensley as Cowboy 1 *Rob Mars as Cowboy 2 *

as Carrie Page

Episodes

Release

The season premiered on Showtime on May 21, 2017, with a two-hour episode. After the airing, the premiere and an additional two episodes became available online, and the season aired in weekly increments from that point onwards (at Lynch's insistence). Overall, the series consists of 18 episodes. It concluded on September 3, 2017, with a two-part finale. In the United Kingdom,

Sky Atlantic Sky Atlantic is a British pay television channel owned by Sky Group, Sky Group Limited that launched in 2011 and broadcasts in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel airs original British-produced dramas like ''Fortitude (TV series), F ...

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast") is the broadcasting of programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultaneously) ...

the first two episodes beginning at 2:00 am

British Summer Time During British Summer Time (BST), civil time in the United Kingdom is advanced one hour forward of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), in effect changing the time zone from UTC+00:00 to UTC+01:00, so that mornings have one hour less daylight, and eve ...

on May 22, 2017, and the next two episodes were released on

Sky UK Sky UK Limited (formerly British Sky Broadcasting Limited (BSkyB)), Trade name, trading as Sky, is a British broadcasting, broadcaster and telecommunications company that provides television, broadband internet, fixed line and mobile telephone ...

's on-demand service after the premiere. In the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; ) are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe, as well as the Arctic Ocean, Arctic and Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic oceans. It includes the sovereign states of Denm ...

, the season is broadcast on HBO Nordic, with the two-hour premiere airing on May 22, and subsequent episodes being made available the day after its U.S. airing. In Canada, the season is available on

CraveTV Crave (originally CraveTV) is a Canadian subscription video on demand service owned by Bell Media. The service competes directly with other subscription-based over-the-top streaming services operating in Canada, primarily against American-bas ...

and

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, and debuted simultaneously with the U.S. broadcast. In Australia, episodes of the season are available to stream on Stan the same day as the original U.S. broadcast. In Japan, the season aired on the satellite television network Wowow, which also aired the original series. Two episodes were screened at the

2017 Cannes Film Festival The 70th Cannes Film Festival took place from 17 to 28 May 2017, in Cannes, France. Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar was the president of the jury for the main competition. Italian actress Monica Bellucci hosted the opening and closing cerem ...

. The season was screened in its entirety from January 5–7, 2018, at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

, as part of the museum's annual series on "the year's finest films".

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the season has a 94% approval rating, with an average score of 7.8/10 and based on 460 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Surreal, suspenseful, and visually stunning, this new ''Twin Peaks'' is an auteurist triumph for David Lynch." Sean T. Collins of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' called the season "one of the most groundbreaking TV series ever", praising its original, complex storylines and the performances of its cast, particularly Kyle MacLachlan.

Matt Zoller Seitz Matt Zoller Seitz (born December 26, 1968) is an American film and television critic, author and filmmaker. Career Matt Zoller Seitz is editor-at-large at RogerEbert.com, and the television critic for ''New York'' magazine and Vulture.com, as w ...

of ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...

'' wrote that the show was "the most original and disturbing to hit TV drama since ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...

''". In his season review for ''

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

'', Matt Fowler noted that ''Twin Peaks'' "came back as a true artistic force that challenged just about every storytelling convention we know" and scored it an 8.8 out of ten. Of the season's two-part premiere, Sonia Saraiya of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote: "''Twin Peaks: The Return'' is weird and creepy and slow. But it is interesting. The show is very stubbornly itself—not quite film and not quite TV, rejecting both standard storytelling and standard forms. It's not especially fun to watch and it can be quite disturbing. But there is never a sense that you are watching something devoid of vision or intention. Lynch's vision is so total and absolute that he can get away with what wouldn't be otherwise acceptable." ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

''s Daniel Fienberg wrote of the season's format: In her "A" grade review of the premiere, Emily L. Stephens of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

'' wrote of its possible reception by critics and viewers: Lynch screened the two-hour premiere of the season at the 2017

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

, and received a five-minute standing ovation from the crowd. Film journals ''

Sight & Sound ''Sight and Sound'' (formerly written ''Sight & Sound'') is a monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). Since 1952, it has conducted the well-known decennial ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time. ...

'' and '' Cahiers du cinéma'' respectively deemed the season the second-best and the best "film" of the year, with the former placing it behind the

psychological horror Psychological horror is a genre, subgenre of horror fiction, horror and psychological fiction with a particular focus on mental, emotional, and Mental state, psychological states to frighten, disturb, or unsettle its audience. The subgenre freque ...

film ''

Get Out ''Get Out'' is a 2017 American psychological horror film written, co-produced, and directed by Jordan Peele in his directorial debut. It stars Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Lil Rel Howery, LaKeith Stanfield, Bradley Whitford, Caleb ...

''. Writing for '' Vox'', Emily St. James referenced the season in discussing the artistic difference, if any, between theatrical film and TV series in the

streaming Streaming media refers to multimedia delivered through a network for playback using a media player. Media is transferred in a ''stream'' of packets from a server to a client and is rendered in real-time; this contrasts with file downl ...

era.

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

ranked ''Twin Peaks'' the second-best TV series of 2017; 20 major publications ranked it the best show of the year. In 2019, ''Twin Peaks'' was ranked 22nd on ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''s list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century. Writer-director

Jim Jarmusch James Robert Jarmusch ( ; born January 22, 1953) is an American film director, screenwriter and musician. He has been a major proponent of independent film, independent cinema since the 1980s, directing films such as ''Stranger Than Paradise'' ...

called the season "a masterpiece" and the single best piece of

American cinema The cinema of the United States, primarily associated with major film studios collectively referred to as Hollywood, has significantly influenced the global film industry since the early 20th century. Classical Hollywood cinema, a filmmakin ...

of the preceding ten years.

2017 critics' top ten lists

The series has appeared on the following lists: *No. 1 ''

'' *No. 1

of ''

'' *No. 1 ''

Collider A collider is a type of particle accelerator that brings two opposing particle beams together such that the particles collide. Compared to other particle accelerators in which the moving particles collide with a stationary matter target, collid ...

'' *No. 1 ''

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'' *No. 1 ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' *No. 1 ''

The Playlist ''The Playlist'' is a British children's entertainment and music series presented by guest presenters, produced by Strawberry Blond TV for CBBC and first aired on 22 April 2017 and ended on 12 March 2022. The first series was narrated by Sco ...

'' *No. 1 ''

Thrillist ''Thrillist'' is an online media website covering travel. ''Thrillist'' was founded in 2004 by Ben Lerer and Adam Rich. In October 2016, Thrillist merged with internet brands ''The Dodo'', NowThis News, and Seeker to form the digital media ...

'' *No. 2 ''

Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Na ...

'' *No. 2 '' The Ringer'' *No. 3 '' IndieWire'' *No. 3 ''

Slant Slant can refer to: Bias *Bias or other non- objectivity in journalism, politics, academia or other fields Technical * Slant range, in telecommunications, the line-of-sight distance between two points which are not at the same level * Slant ...

'' *No. 4 ''

'' *No. 5 ''

Paste Paste is a term for any very thick viscous fluid. It may refer to: Science and technology * Adhesive or paste ** Wallpaper paste ** Wheatpaste, a liquid adhesive made from vegetable starch and water * Paste (rheology), a substance that behaves as ...

'' *No. 6 ''

Uproxx Uproxx Studios (stylized as ''UPROXX'') is an American music, entertainment and popular culture website and content studio. It was founded in 2008 by Jarret Myer and Brian Brater. The website was acquired in 2014 by Woven Digital (which later ...

'' *No. 10 '' Adweek'' * - ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

'' * - ''

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

'' * - ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' * - ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' * - ''

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Ratings

The two-hour premiere on May 21, 2017, received 506,000 viewers on Showtime, which ''

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'' called "soft for such a strongly promoted prestige project". Ratings increased to 626,000 after the encore broadcasts that night and the premiere also had over 450,000 viewers via streaming and on-demand. Viewership for the premiere increased to 804,000 in Live+3 ratings, and it had a viewership of 1.7 million across streaming and on-demand platforms. Showtime announced that the weekend of the ''Twin Peaks'' premiere had the most signups to their streaming service ever. Prior to the finale, the season was averaging two million weekly viewers, when including

time-shifting In broadcasting, time shifting is the recording of programming to a storage medium to be viewed or listened to after the live broadcasting. Typically, this refers to TV programming but it can also refer to radio shows via podcasts. In recent yea ...

, encores and streaming. Showtime president David Nevins said that ''Twin Peaks'' "has exceeded expectations" from a financial perspective.

Awards and nominations

Analysis

Franck Boulègue's ''The Return of Twin Peaks: Squaring the Circle'' comprehensively analyzes ''Twin Peaks: The Return'', exploring its narrative complexity, cultural impact, and philosophical underpinnings. Boulègue frames the series as a unique hybrid of television and cinema, characterized by its nonlinear storytelling and engagement with themes of time, memory, and the uncanny. The book examines the show's departure from traditional formats and its reflection on the medium's evolution, positioning ''The Return'' as a bold artistic experiment that challenges viewer expectations. Kristina Šekrst examines ''Twin Peaks: The Return'' through the lens of

binge-watching Binge-watching (also called binge-viewing) is the practice of watching entertainment or informational content for a prolonged time span, usually a single television show. Statistics Binge-watching overlaps with marathon (media), marathon viewin ...

and media psychology. Šekrst highlights how Lynch's work challenges the boundaries between film and television, calling the third season an "18-hour movie" that defies traditional episodic structures. She connects the immersive narrative to recent neurological and psychological findings, exploring how

seriality {{see also, Seriality (gender studies) A seriality is a social construct which differs from a mere group of individuals. Serialities take the form of labels which are either imposed onto persons or voluntarily adopted by them. A seriality can be "u ...

affects attention spans and viewer engagement. Dominique Chateau investigates the series' unique storytelling techniques. Chateau emphasizes Lynch's "filmic ideas", in which narrative structure intertwines with dream logic to create a layered, surreal experience. Using concepts from

narratology Narratology is the study of narrative and narrative structure and the ways that these affect human perception. The term is an anglicisation of French ''narratologie'', coined by Tzvetan Todorov (''Grammaire du Décaméron'', 1969). Its theoretica ...

and

possible worlds Possible Worlds may refer to: * Possible worlds, concept in philosophy * ''Possible Worlds'' (play), 1990 play by John Mighton ** ''Possible Worlds'' (film), 2000 film by Robert Lepage, based on the play * Possible Worlds (studio) * ''Possible ...

theory, Chateau discusses how ''The Return'' blurs the line between reality and imagination, pushing the boundaries of serial storytelling and traditional cinematic aesthetics.

Dominic Lash Dominic Lash (born 18 January 1980 in Cambridge, England) is a Bristol based double bassist and film theorist. He was formerly a central figure in the musicians' collective Oxford Improvisers. Important long-term musical collaborators include A ...

examines the series' pervasive theme of doubling. Lash argues that ''The Return'' acts as a "double" itself, layering fans' expectations of a revival onto the show's narrative while simultaneously subverting them. Through extensive use of doubles, from characters like Dougie Jones to

's parallel lives, the series blends nostalgia and defamiliarization. Lash concludes that ''The Return'' achieves a paradoxical fidelity to its original by taking bold creative liberties with its legacy.

Home media

The season was released on

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...

and DVD on December 5, 2017, under the title ''Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series''. The set includes more than six hours of behind-the-scenes content. In the 2017 Home Media Awards, which honor the year's best home video releases, ''Twin Peaks: A Limited Event Series'' won four awards: Title of the Year, TV on Disc of the Year, Best TV Movie or Miniseries, and Best Extras/Bonus Material.

Future

Lynch and Frost expressed interest in making another season of ''Twin Peaks'', but Lynch said that such a project would not be immediately forthcoming, given that it took them four-and-a-half years to write and film the third season. In June 2018, Lynch said the story was "calling", but that "there are a lot of disturbances"; in August, he said he was working through ideas with producer Sabrina Sutherland. In April 2020, he said "nothing was happening" regarding further ''Twin Peaks.'' Lynch died on January 15, 2025, making the production of any further episodes or any sort of revival of the series unlikely.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Cahiers du Cinéma Award for Best Film

Season 3 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

2017 American television seasons American sequel television series Television series about talking trees