The working relationship between David Lynch and Mark Frost

[owlsseemrealtome]

I know that David Lynch and Mark Frost had their own projects that they were dealing with after the original series had finished , but I was wondering on why Lynch decided to work with Robert Engels on FWWM instead of Mark Frost ?, did they perhaps have a falling out in the mid 90's ?

[Mace]

One of the reasons I heard was that Lynch wanted to do a Twin Peaks prequel and Frost wanted to do a Twin Peaks sequel.

[Gabriel]

One of the reasons I heard was that Lynch wanted to do a Twin Peaks prequel and Frost wanted to do a Twin Peaks sequel.

Adore David Lynch's work as I do and, much as I respect him for ignoring expectations, they should've made a sequel. I love FWWM and I'm glad we have it, but an awful lot of TP fans I know, fans going back to the original airings, have never seen the film. They didn't want to see a prequel and subsequently saw it rubbished in the press and ignored it.

I suspect a sequel would have had them turning up at the cinema, regardless of the critical drubbing it would likely have got (it seems to me, the film critics had simply decided it was time to show Lynch who's boss and that they didn't like filmmakers working in television.)

It's a huge joy that we're getting the new show, but I reckon a direct sequel would have made enough money that it could have been followed by FWWM, then another film, given the plan was for three films.

Never mind: I've had to wait to the point where I'll be 42 when the new series pops up, but at least I'll be old enough to have answer to life, the universe and everything!

[LostInTheMovies]

I suspect a sequel would have had them turning up at the cinema, regardless of the critical drubbing it would likely have got (it seems to me, the film critics had simply decided it was time to show Lynch who's boss and that they didn't like filmmakers working in television.)

It's a huge joy that we're getting the new show, but I reckon a direct sequel would have made enough money that it could have been followed by FWWM, then another film, given the plan was for three films.

Well, I'd be interested in hearing more of your view on this, especially since you were conscious of Twin Peaks at the time (as I certainly wasn't); any firsthand anecdotes that lead you to believe it would have done well in the UK at least? For me, relying on resources from the time, I can't envision a Twin Peaks sequel as anything other than a flop, albeit maybe a slightly less costly one than a prequel.

Aside from my doubt that a post-sequel FWWM would've been as passionate and powerful as a post-finale FWWM (meaning that the film as it exists is largely a result of Lynch's almost frenzied desire to tell that particular story at that particular moment), I really have trouble believing ANY Twin Peaks film would have been a hit, even a modest one, in 1992. Reading press coverage from the time, I get a sense that a lot of critics and potential audiences were only even dimly aware it was a prequel going in, so I'm not sure that played a big role in the film's lack of success.

And so much of the hostility and/or indifference the film garnered outside of fan circles (and fan circles, however passionate, were clearly quite small back then) is expressed sheerly in terms of "Twin Peaks is yesterday's news" or "David Lynch is a con artist" that I don't think a Cooper/town-centric story would have excited the public much more.

Plus look at the ratings for season 2 - they actually got WORSE when the show moved from Saturday back to Wednesday for the last several episodes, even though the content was actually better at that point. People had just completely stopped caring and the fad was over.

I definitely agree that the subject matter and timeframe of FWWM alienated many in the core audience and deepened the alienation of those already disenchanted with Lynch & TP. But I can't imagine any circumstances in which a Twin Peaks film of any sort succeeds in that environment. The finale, after all, was beaten in ratings by a rerun of Northern Exposure.

Plus there's the matter of Frost's involvement. Storyville came out the same weekend as FWWM. Granted that was after some sort of long delay (it was in production before FWWM was even conceived) but Frost's energy was obviously going in other directions, and it's doubtful he would have been ready to start work on writing a Twin Peaks film until much later in the year (not to mention the fact that him & Lynch weren't seeing eye to eye on much of anything by this point in their collaboration).

I think part of the reason FWWM could be made at all was that Twin Peaks was still fresh internationally in the spring and summer of 1991 - many viewers overseas were still watching the show unfold for the first time since it was delayed in reaching foreign markets. Thus, even though its second season had been an unmitigated TV disaster in the U.S., it was still cresting on the lag in distribution at that time. But a year or two later? I find it hard to believe anyone would have financed a Twin Peaks film with both seasons wrapped up and several years in the past almost everywhere across the globe, with viewers and commentators having moved on to other subjects.

Lynch had an extremely slim window of opportunity to make further Twin Peaks at the time, even if he didn't realize it (sometimes I think he kinda did, sometimes I think he was oblivious to the degree to which Peaks' fortunes had turned). I'm certainly glad he made the choice he did given those options.

[LostInTheMovies]

Incidentally there's already an existing thread on this subject: http://www.dugpa.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2837

For some reason it is subtitled "Potential Spoilers" but I'm not sure why since the last post was in early 2015, long before any rumors or insights leaked from the set.

Anyway, the mods might want to consolidate the two threads for simplicity's sake.