Film director David Lynch has died at the age of 78, his family says

David Lynch, the writer-filmmaker whose works include Mulholland Drive and Twin Peaks, has died at the age of 78.

Lynch’s death was announced on his Facebook page by his family.

“There is a big hole in the world now that he is not with us,” the message read.

“But, as he would say, ‘Keep your eye on the donut and not the hole’.” … It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.”

Lynch received three Best Director Academy Award nominations throughout his career for Blue Velvet, The Elephant Man and Mulholland Drive.

His last major project was Twin Peaks: The Return, which aired in 2017 and followed up the series that ran for two seasons in the early 1990s.

Lynch appeared in August last year he was fighting emphysema, a chronic lung disease, “as a result of smoking for many years”.

The director said that, despite the diagnosis, he is in “excellent shape” and “will never retire”.